Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The brain plasticity that enable young children to learn languages easily ends at around age seven. Ask any immigrant that moved to the US with young kids. It isn't fair to place older kids into an immersion environment unless they are prepared to work hard at learning the language because they no have the ability to absorb the language seemingly effortlessly.

Calling BS. The language center of the brain is plastic until puberty for most kids. I've seen this in action with a kid who learned french at 11. He's as fluent and native as anyone else. I know because I am too

I immigrated to the U.S. at 7 knowing no English and English became my dominant language by age nine. I sound like a native speaker in English. My cousin who came here at 10 while he is English dominant still speaks English with an accent.

And note that this was FULL immersion not 50/50 where the dominant culture is in English. Call it BS if you want but while the brain may retain plasticity til puberty, the ability to learn language simply by being exposed to it (without being taught formally) wanes considerably by age 7 on average. Also, individual ability to learn language counts too but in general age matters.

Are you a linguist? Where did you get your information? Would you mind sharing?

No, I'm not a linguist. This is common knowledge in any immigrant community. Do a google search.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The brain plasticity that enable young children to learn languages easily ends at around age seven. Ask any immigrant that moved to the US with young kids. It isn't fair to place older kids into an immersion environment unless they are prepared to work hard at learning the language because they no have the ability to absorb the language seemingly effortlessly.

Calling BS. The language center of the brain is plastic until puberty for most kids. I've seen this in action with a kid who learned french at 11. He's as fluent and native as anyone else. I know because I am too

I immigrated to the U.S. at 7 knowing no English and English became my dominant language by age nine. I sound like a native speaker in English. My cousin who came here at 10 while he is English dominant still speaks English with an accent.

And note that this was FULL immersion not 50/50 where the dominant culture is in English. Call it BS if you want but while the brain may retain plasticity til puberty, the ability to learn language simply by being exposed to it (without being taught formally) wanes considerably by age 7 on average. Also, individual ability to learn language counts too but in general age matters.

Are you a linguist? Where did you get your information? Would you mind sharing?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The brain plasticity that enable young children to learn languages easily ends at around age seven. Ask any immigrant that moved to the US with young kids. It isn't fair to place older kids into an immersion environment unless they are prepared to work hard at learning the language because they no have the ability to absorb the language seemingly effortlessly.

Calling BS. The language center of the brain is plastic until puberty for most kids. I've seen this in action with a kid who learned french at 11. He's as fluent and native as anyone else. I know because I am too

I immigrated to the U.S. at 7 knowing no English and English became my dominant language by age nine. I sound like a native speaker in English. My cousin who came here at 10 while he is English dominant still speaks English with an accent.

And note that this was FULL immersion not 50/50 where the dominant culture is in English. Call it BS if you want but while the brain may retain plasticity til puberty, the ability to learn language simply by being exposed to it (without being taught formally) wanes considerably by age 7 on average. Also, individual ability to learn language counts too but in general age matters.

Anonymous wrote:The brain plasticity that enable young children to learn languages easily ends at around age seven. Ask any immigrant that moved to the US with young kids. It isn't fair to place older kids into an immersion environment unless they are prepared to work hard at learning the language because they no have the ability to absorb the language seemingly effortlessly.

Calling BS. The language center of the brain is plastic until puberty for most kids. I've seen this in action with a kid who learned french at 11. He's as fluent and native as anyone else. I know because I am too

Anonymous wrote:The brain plasticity that enable young children to learn languages easily ends at around age seven. Ask any immigrant that moved to the US with young kids. It isn't fair to place older kids into an immersion environment unless they are prepared to work hard at learning the language because they no have the ability to absorb the language seemingly effortlessly.

This, and I can't reiterate enough how discouraging it can be - especially for a child who has always done well in school - to suddenly be in an environment where everyone is ahead of you and you need "remedial" attention that you are taken out of class to receive. Even in the best of environments, that is incredibly hard for a child and just seems like a set up for frustration and discouragement at best, failure and prolonged loss of confidence at worst.

The brain plasticity that enable young children to learn languages easily ends at around age seven. Ask any immigrant that moved to the US with young kids. It isn't fair to place older kids into an immersion environment unless they are prepared to work hard at learning the language because they no have the ability to absorb the language seemingly effortlessly.

I wish you the best in your quest for your child(ren) education.

Good luck on Thursday.

Anonymous wrote:What about programs like Communikids? If we get a lottery spot DC will enter a high upper grade next school term without any prior language exposure. I plan to try Communikids for the summer. Will this help?

The higher the grade level the more you child would probably have to cram. If there is no love/like for the language now, it might turn your child off from the language.

What grade are you looking to enter?

I do not know much about Communikids. You would have to see how their program is ran and how much they will cover before Aug.

I thought they onyl go up to age 6.

What about programs like Communikids? If we get a lottery spot DC will enter a high upper grade next school term without any prior language exposure. I plan to try Communikids for the summer. Will this help?

Anonymous wrote:I would not do it if my child was going to an upper grade. I would do K and maybe 1st-but only with prior immersion exposure (not just a 2 day a week 30 minute class).

Thankfully, we got into an immersion school in K. My child was able to transition well because for a year and a half prior we put my child in an immerison program outside of school time. I also supplemented with other language immersion activities.

I would suggest that if you do put your child in an upper grade immersion without prior exposure-start now with gettign them ready. sign up for and immerison afterschool program, saturday/sunday programs, etc. Your child will be sitting in a Spanish/French only class all day long.

Just be careful that you don't put your child in a situation that he/she hates the language.

Keep in mind, some of the English only kids have had several years of Spanish/French vs your child who has none. Many of the kids in 1st and 2nd graders can write, read with fluency, comprehend, converse, read and do math and other subject in the target language. By this time, some accents are native-like.

Anonymous wrote:I would not do it if my child was going to an upper grade. I would do K and maybe 1st-but only with prior immersion exposure (not just a 2 day a week 30 minute class).

Thankfully, we got into an immersion school in K. My child was able to transition well because for a year and a half prior we put my child in an immerison program outside of school time. I also supplemented with other language immersion activities.

I would suggest that if you do put your child in an upper grade immersion without prior exposure-start now with gettign them ready. sign up for and immerison afterschool program, saturday/sunday programs, etc. Your child will be sitting in a Spanish/French only class all day long.

Seems like this is especially true of French (although true of all languages). I say French because, if Stokes is the only public French bi-lingual school in DC, then your odds of getting in are so slim that if it's really that important, you would really have to start supplementing your child's French education as early as possible. Yes, many of us who speak a 2nd language well/fluently may have only started in middle school and just continued through and after college, but if you want your child in a bilingual school where the other kids will have been learning/speaking/writing/reading the language since PS, PK or at least K, then you want to start prepping them outside of school now if you're that sure you will seek the bilingual path.

I would not do it if my child was going to an upper grade. I would do K and maybe 1st-but only with prior immersion exposure (not just a 2 day a week 30 minute class).

Thankfully, we got into an immersion school in K. My child was able to transition well because for a year and a half prior we put my child in an immerison program outside of school time. I also supplemented with other language immersion activities.

I would suggest that if you do put your child in an upper grade immersion without prior exposure-start now with gettign them ready. sign up for and immerison afterschool program, saturday/sunday programs, etc. Your child will be sitting in a Spanish/French only class all day long.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are no test. Kids are accepted. Some grasp the language, some do not, some struggle and some do not (new and old students).

So with this reality, is it wise to send an English-only child? I know every child is different. WWYD if it was your child. I'm waiting on the lottery for the upper grade for my DC, but not sure if this is wise. TIA for any info.

I've never taught at a bilingual school but I've taught elementary and middle school and there is NO WAY I'd send my English-only child into this situation in an upper grade. And my kids have always done well, adapted well to new educational challenges, all that. But still, that feels like a set up. Even if the other kids, teacher and the school staff are very nuturing about it, your kid is still missing a good portion of what's happening and needing special attention that most of his/her classmates don't need. Even if it's totally not your kid's fault, it can easily feel like failing/being inadequate.

I would never do that to my kids.