Spanish Immersion K-12 Schools
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Questions
- Spanish Immersion In Berkeley and Oakland
- Spanish Immersion after 5th grade
- Spanish immersion school with strong art program
- Spanish Immersion schools in Berkeley and Oakland?
Spanish Immersion In Berkeley and Oakland
Sept 2013
Hello I am a mother of a 4 year old and a 2 year old and we are looking for quality dual immersion schools for spanish speaking families. I have heard of a few but a lot of the reviews are old. We speak spanish at home and would like to find a great bilingual school for our family. I also would appreciate any advice on application processes. Thank you, Megan
You didn't say whether you were looking for preschool for right now, or looking ahead toward kindergarten. For preschool, I'd recommend any of the several Kidsland home-based daycare/preschools (mostly located in S. Berkeley, but also w/locations in San Leandro).
If you are looking ahead toward kindergarten plus, Oakland Unified School District offers dual-immersion Spanish/English in several of its public schools, including Melrose Leadership Academy, Manzanita Seed, Community United, Global Family School, and Esperanza Elementary. I chose Esperanza for my son this year, and have been impressed thus far w/the level of caring & commitment amongst the teachers, admin, and after school staff. All of the Spanish language arts teachers are native speakers. There are some of the usual public school issues (class sizes larger than ideal in some grades, for instance), but for an Oakland public school, I'd say they make a dedicated contribution to the community. Parent who switched from private to public
(Editor Note: Several responses were recieved for Escuela Bilingue Internacional - see that page for reviews.)
Spanish Immersion after 5th grade
Dec 2011
My daughter has been attending the Spanish immersion program in a Berkeley Public School. Does anybody know if there is a Spanish Immersion middle school in the Bay Area? I would love for her to continue her education in Spanish, but I don't think any of the Berkeley Middle Schools offer the immersion program, or am I wrong? wanting to keep it up!
I believe Longfellow is the Berkeley middle school where the continuing Spanish immersion kids go, but I could be wrong. In Contra Costa, Portola is the feeder for our Spanish immersion kids but their program is in its infancy, just started this year. anon
The only Spanish Immersion Middle School that I know of is Escuela Bilingue Internacional (EBI) in Emeryville. Currently the school is Pk-5th grade but the plans are for the school to go up to 8th grade. Next year they add 6th grade and are currently accepting Middle School applications.
This is our 5th year at EBI and we plan to stay through middle school. EBI is getting accredited as an International Baccalaureate Organization school, which means that the curriculum is Inquiry based. Students are taught to think critically, to develop their analytical and experimental skills, to take responsibility for their learning and consider how it affects the world around them and to be better global citizens. You should take a tour and check out their new facility. http://www.ebinternacional.org/ Happy EBI parent
You should check out Escuela Bilingue Internacional (EBI)! It's an amazing bilingual English-Spanish immersion K-8 school in Oakland and Emeryville. My child began this year and we've been very impressed with the quality of teaching and the organization of the school. In addition to language immersion, the schools offers an IB curriculum as well as a strong arts program. We also love the friendly and open community of families who deeply care about the school. You can check out the website at:www.ebinternacional.org and contact Liza Sanchez, the Admissions Director at 510.653.3324. There's also an upcoming Middle School Info Session on January 10th. Good luck! Anonymous
Spanish immersion continues at Longfellow Middle School in Berkeley. You will need to fill out a new Middle School application and preference form, like you did when your child entered Kindergarten. Choose Longfellow's Spanish Immersion when you fill that out. Berkeley mom of 3
My child is younger, but attends Escuela Bilingue Internacional , a private Spanish/English school with campuses in Oakland and Emeryville. They will be adding a middle school next year in Emeryville, as they have been adding a grade per year. The school is only a few years old and they add a grade each year as the older students ''age in'' to the next grade level. It is a wonderful school, I can't say enough positive things about how great it has been for our daughter. We adopted our child from Latin America and wanted her to have some contact with her birth country's language and culture. EBI is an international baccalaureate school, all the classroom teachers are native Spanish speakers and bring their culture and language to the school. It is a warm, supportive staff and community of diverse families. Happy mom
Longfellow Middle School continues the Spanish immersion program through 8th grade. My son is a 7th grader and he loves it at Longfellow. He is challenged academically and has made great friends through the sports teams. My 5th grade daughter will start there next year. Longfellow is a dynamic caring place. The teachers and administration are responsive and talented. The parent community is involved. I highly recommend that you check it out. Cherene, Longfellow PTA President
There is a BUSD Middle School continuation of the Dual Immersion Program at Longfellow Middle School . We are currently in our 9th year and have successfully continued the bilingual development of Berkeley Unified Students from all three TWI elementary schools and the Thousand Oaks Bilingual Program. Our program runs from 6th through 8th grade, and then we help place our graduates in advanced Spanish classes at Berkeley High School. You are welcome to visit Longfellow and the Dual Immersion classrooms anytime. Longfellow Teacher Mary Patterson
I would suggest that you look at Escuela Bilingue Internacional (website: www.ebinternacional.org) It is a private Spanish immersion school, and it goes up to 6th grade (ultimately it will go up to 8th grade). I think you'll be be very impressed with the rigorous academics, the talented staff, and especially the warmth and diversity of the families that attend. The curriculum is called International Baccalaureate (IB)and has a global community focus. They have financial aid available too! Happy parent of bilingual kid
From what I understand, kids/families who want to continue in TWI through middle school all attend Longfellow Middle School . All 3 TWI elementary programs feed into Longfellow, which has a TWI track alongside their regular program. Our oldest is only in 3rd grade (in a TWI class), but from what I hear, Longfellow is supposed to have a great program. TWI Mom
Longfellow Middle School has a well-respected dual emersion spanish-english program, although some students there are in the english only program. If you know some families with older kids in the dual emersion program, you should speak with those families about their middle school choice. The longfellow community is small and close and supportive with good teachers. The campus is safe with a big yard and a great auditorium. Sports, music and other programs are offered. They probably have an open house coming up at some point that you can check out. My student did not go,through that program, but has friends who did and those kids are great. Another BUSD parent
In Oakland, we have Melrose Leadership Academy , a public two-way immersion school that is building a k-8. Right now I have a son in 2nd grade and every year a grade will be added until 8th.
Spanish immersion school with strong art program
April 2010
We currently live in SF and are moving to the East Bay. Our son currently attends a Spanish immersion preschool that is arts focused, which he loves. We are looking at elementary schools in Berkeley with Spanish immersion programs and a strong arts curriculum. I toured Cragmont and was impressed with its arts program. I also toured Escuela Bilingue in Oakland and, while the Spanish Immersion seemed great, the arts seemed limited, especially in the upper grades. Can anyone speak to either of these schools or other schools that would be worth looking into? Thank you! hoping to move
My child is at Escuela Bilingue International (pre-K), so take my comments, especially about the upper grades, with as much salt as necessary. He's my second, much younger, kid, so I've seen my share of schools. What strikes me most about EBI is the thoughtfulness of the administration and community in creating the curriculum and deciding how things will be done. There's an amazing flexibility and creativity in finding the best situation for each child. There is a very sincere commitment that I see in action to enable students to direct their education. You really see classes shift direction based on the ideas and interests of the kids, individually and collectively. In some ways, this is more meaningful in the upper grades, but I see it as well even in the PK. It takes a special kind of a teacher to start a day with a certain plan in mind and integrate changes in direction at the drop of a hat, but I've watched it.
Which is to say two things about arts -- if a kid's interested in art, I know that they would get a tremendous amount of support in integrating that into many aspects of his education. And, I suspect that as the school continues to expand, arts will be strengthened. I continue to see the school fine-tune and strengthen various parts of the program (this year hiring a gym teacher who is really amazing). I'm not sure that I perceive EBI as particularly weak on the arts -- there's currently a display of children's interpretations of great artists' works.
One last thought for you -- I had a fairly specific list that I used when looking for a school for my older son, based on his pre-school experience and his interests. He's in an arts magnet school which he loves. It's a great school. But, he's lost interest in art. Not because of the school. He just grew and changed. I don't regret it exactly, but if I had to do it again I would look for the overall school that seemed to support students well, with a much less specific list.
One last thing about EBI -- it's a very international community (not surprisingly) which is very fun and, I think, broadening. EBI parent
Wanted to provide some feedback on EBI . The langauage aspect is phenominal, as the teaching staff represents many spanish speaking countries and the manner in which they teach is comprehensive. The art program is completely integrated into the curriculum, which is why it may seem limited. My kids have been exposed not only to hands-on art projects in many mediums, but also the a variety of artists and can speak knowledgeably about them. All of the teachers use art as a way to teach other subjects (math, geography, science and music). We have been very satisfied with the entire curriculum and recommend that you take a second look at EBI. Very Satisfied EBI Parent
Have you visited Manzanita SEED in Oakland? My son began there in K and is now in 2nd grade. He is very artistic and it has been a great place for him to learn and grow. SEED has had a resident artist teaching art once a week to each class since the school began several years ago. The art teacher also provides art instruction during the After School Program. The After School Program is free. Along with art, students can also choose to join a choir, learn expressive dance, or work with an amazing theatre arts teacher. SEED has a partnership with MOCHA so that artists come into each classroom to do several projects with each class every year, and also provide teacher training. I have seen the quality of art instruction improve among the teachers, and art is integrated often into writing, science and social studies projects across all grade levels. The Spanish instruction is wonderful and fully integrated so that students are learning science and math concepts as they improve their Spanish literacy and oral language skills. I feel I must tell you that I am both a happy parent and a teacher at SEED. I discovered SEED when I was looking for a school for my older son who is now in middle school. I was so impressed with the school and principal that I applied to work at the school myself, and I continue to be very pleased with the high level of instruction my son receives along with the opportunity for him to continue developing his artistic, social, and Spanish language skills. I feel that my older son also benefitted greatly from his instruction at SEED. anne
I am a mom of a second grader in the dual immersion program at Cragmont Elementary school . Next year she will go to EBI. I understand your concerns and felt the same when she started in kindergarten. But I can tell you that the only thing I will miss is the art program because Joe is an incredible teacher. But I am also convinced that the art program that they will be starting at EBI next year will also be great. Art is also incorporated into the academic program in many ways.
I am a native Spanish speaker and feel that the Spanish level of the kids and teachers is superior at EBI. The students in kindergarten speak in Spanish with their teacher but in Cragmont they don't as much. I have friends who graduated from there and they don't speak Spanish as well as the third grade students I have seen at EBI. They have a separate English teacher so students only speak English with that teacher and Spanish with their other teacher.
The music program at EBI is also spectacular. The instruments they play are from different parts of the world and students in first grade start playing recorder and learning to read music. In Cragmont the music program is very basic. The transdisciplinary program at EBI is complete in all aspects and the academic level is also quite advanced. That is also very important to me. My daughter had great teachers the first two years at Cragmont but this year has been more difficult. I am excited with my decision to send her to EBI next year and she is also thrilled after having spent two days there trying it out. She wanted to start right away! Best of luck on your decision!
Spanish Immersion schools in Berkeley and Oakland?
August 2008
Hi, Does anyone know about the Spanish Immersion schools in Berkeley? Is there anyway to get into them if you do not live in Berkeley? Are there any spanish immersion programs in Oakland? Thank you. -Nancy
for berkeley there is the Spanish immersion private school but I assume you mean the public school programs. first you would have to get your child accepted into the Berkeley school system as a transfer student, then possibly you could apply to be in the lottery for an immersion program spot. Additionally, Oakland would have to ''let you out'' of their district. sorry I don't know if there are such programs in Oakland. There is one in Point Richmond's Washington School (public) which seems excellent and is not so hard to get in as Berkeley; if there is room they would probably take an out-of-district transfer, but again, it is in pt. richmond- probably quite far for you. anon
Getting into Berkeley dual immersion program requires the same process as getting into any of Berkeley's public schools - you have to live in Berkeley and apply through the lottery process. Since there is a waiting list for all the dual immersion programs, I doubt there would be much chance for an out-of-district applicant. berkeley parent
There is a new Oakland public Spanish dual immersion school called Manzanita SEED located at the Manzanita Elementary School campus - East 27th off of Fruitvale. They do a 50-50 model. It's a new up-and-coming school with a lot of promise. The principal is Katherine Carter. Check it out. Oakland parent
Hi- I didn't see the original posting, but if you are looking for a Spanish Immersion program in the Oakland public schools, Piedmont Avenue Elementary has one starting next week, as an after school program,provided by ''Viva EL Espanol'', for the students. For more information,you can contact, Piedmont Ave. Elementary school's office(510)879-1460 or call'' Viva El Espanol'', #(925)962-9177 or visit www.LamorindaSpanish.com Denise
Now in its third year, Esperanza Elementary in Oakland is a dual-immersion program. Native English and Spanish speakers learn together in the same classroom. In K-2, literacy and math are taught in Spanish; science and social studies in English. In 3-5 it is the opposite. The school is located in a low-income area, with many of the associated challenges, but as a teacher there last year, I must say that it is a gem of a school with a smart, dedicated, hard-working staff and wonderful children. Esperanza Elementary 10315 E St. 510-879-1551
--A proud Oakland public school teacher
Most OUSD Spanish immersion schools don't have a special process or testing, unless you want to enter as a Spanish-primary student. Then there is a testing process. I'd suggest contacting the district rather than the individual schools as school ended before Memorial Day and I'm not sure there's anyone around at individual schools. There is a Student Welcome Center that might be a good place to start.
MLA is very popular and while you might get lucky, make sure you have a back up plan. My kids are at Greenleaf, which also runs through 8th grade. We've been very happy there. International Community School and Manzinita Seed werethe other ones we considered, though they just run through 5th.
It's a pretty straightforward process--when you apply, the Enrollment Office will contact you to determine language proficiency. The good news is that MLA and other Spanish immersion schools often have space in the upper grades because it's challenging to fill open seats if kids don't have a dual language background. Call the Enrollment Office, which is open through the summer--Oakland handles enrollment centrally so the school won't be able to enroll you directly (though they can answer questions you might have).