Anonymous wrote:In my experience it depends on whether the child cares to learn.

If the child sees it as drudgery, a thorn in their side, they'll hate it.

If they see it as a fun thing that they take to like a riddle or something they're 'good at' then a kid can start at almost any age.

There is also some element of innate talent for language that some have and some don't. Everyone can learn another language if they're young enough, but after that some really struggle while others can still pick it up relatively smoothly.

It's going to be a really challenging environment for the student, and if they're not up for it, it could go really badly.

However, if they are up for it as others have recommended I would definitely do summer camp and/or classes. I would look for a camp that explicitly teaches Spanish (not just immersion) as they will need that explicit learning initially to get the basics. Also, you should be prepared to not only do additional Spanish tutoring (or at home learning) during the school year, but also math and reading/writing since there is a good chance they are not going to grasp everything the teachers is saying during class and could fall behind otherwise.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm assuming it's for charter schools, as DCPS will not take a new student into immersion program after 1st grade.

I think this is actually false. I know a family that entered in 3rd at a DCPS immersion. The student had some knowledge of Spanish before but wasn't fluent.

perhaps they make exceptions for inbound students, especially when there's some language already.

Anonymous wrote:I'm assuming it's for charter schools, as DCPS will not take a new student into immersion program after 1st grade.

I think this is actually false. I know a family that entered in 3rd at a DCPS immersion. The student had some knowledge of Spanish before but wasn't fluent.

Anonymous wrote:In my experience it depends on whether the child cares to learn.

If the child sees it as drudgery, a thorn in their side, they'll hate it.

If they see it as a fun thing that they take to like a riddle or something they're 'good at' then a kid can start at almost any age.

There is also some element of innate talent for language that some have and some don't. Everyone can learn another language if they're young enough, but after that some really struggle while others can still pick it up relatively smoothly.

100%. Something shifts around age 10 for the chances of building a good base to get to native fluency, and it just gets harder and harder (not impossible, but requires harder commitment) from there. 2nd grade is well within that range – but need a kid who likes to learn and otherwise supportive environment.

If your kid is smart and adaptable and interested in it, I don't think second grade is too late. But she may need tutoring and you should definitely start getting her ready now (or when lottery results come out). There are Spanish camps for the summer, and lots of videos. Maybe find a bilingual babysitter to spend some time with both kids? It will help that she will have a sibling learning too..."helping" him will be a good way to practice basics. Also, be prepared for her to be extra tired and moody after school because learning a new language is exhausting. If you can avoid aftercare, that might help.

I'm assuming it's for charter schools, as DCPS will not take a new student into immersion program after 1st grade.

Anonymous wrote:Terrible idea. They will struggle and could resent you for it.

They will struggle more at some schools than others.

I would never put a 2nd grader in immersion. It’s too late. K might possibly work but not 2nd.

They might resent you more later on for giving younger sibling that chance and not them…

PP adding. Even if older sibling doesn’t end up going to immersion school, I think Spanish-speaking camp over the summer is still a good idea. They’ll get some familiarity – it might spark interest for later studies, and it’ll be less odd like if younger sibling starts learning but they’re clueless.

Yes this is fine. It's still really early.

Anonymous wrote:If I were you, I'd ask some of the schools you're looking at. They'll be able to give you a better idea than one family's anecdote. They may also tell you that they can't recall any student starting the dual language program past K or 1st grade there, and if that's the case I'd rank those schools lower than schools who have more experience getting 1st or 2nd graders up to speed.

Agree. I don’t recall my specific notes from tours offhand, but remember that some schools are open to it and some highly discouraged it – and made that known / weren’t warm to the idea at all when parents asked in the tours.

Is your kid capable of doing it? Absolutely. Will they be miserable? It really depends on the school’s attitude; they need supportive teachers on board.

It’s great that you know the language and that presumably PK3er would also join in on the adventure.

YMMV, but anecdotally I did something like this as a kid but even later – 5th grade. No one else at the school had that experience but the school was supportive and made the difference. Yes there was a lot of staring into space not knowing what was going on but really only for first three months. And then things started to click and sped up from there.

If you go for it, definitely look into exposure or even immersion over the summer. Camps, shows, books/stories you already know in English, songs, etc. Make it a family project. Even as seemingly small as kindly asking for a Spanish-speaking server at restaurants so you can practice in context. It adds up and will make the school drop-off less jarring.

If you have the means, I’d have loved to do something like Concordia over the summer: https://www.concordialanguagevillages.org/

Good luck!

Terrible idea. They will struggle and could resent you for it.

They will struggle more at some schools than others.

I would never put a 2nd grader in immersion. It’s too late. K might possibly work but not 2nd.

I wouldn't wait to start immersion if this is your intent. Put them in an immersion environment immediately and find a Spanish-only summer option. Switch all your screens to Spanish-only shows. Don't let them start 2nd grade with no real Spanish.

Academics start to pick up in later elementary school and they'll need to be fluent quickly to keep up.

In my experience it depends on whether the child cares to learn.

If the child sees it as drudgery, a thorn in their side, they'll hate it.

If they see it as a fun thing that they take to like a riddle or something they're 'good at' then a kid can start at almost any age.

There is also some element of innate talent for language that some have and some don't. Everyone can learn another language if they're young enough, but after that some really struggle while others can still pick it up relatively smoothly.

If I were you, I'd ask some of the schools you're looking at. They'll be able to give you a better idea than one family's anecdote. They may also tell you that they can't recall any student starting the dual language program past K or 1st grade there, and if that's the case I'd rank those schools lower than schools who have more experience getting 1st or 2nd graders up to speed.

Almost scared to post here but here goes: I will be doing the lottery for my rising PK3-er. I have another kid currently enrolled at a decent DCPS school. We’ve always wanted to have our kids in a Spanish language immersion setting but have lucked out.

My question is, is putting my rising 2nd grader in an immersion setting for the first time a terrible idea? I am a fluent (but not native) speaker and would be able to assist. Kiddo is extremely bright, reading like a champ, and Spanish is phonetic. I further understand that all the immersion schools in our area are 50/50 immersion by that grade level. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks!