Science, Language, and Arts: A Classic Education with a Revolutionary Approach

On Tuesday November 26, we were able visit the Science, Language, and Arts school located in the heart of the BAM Cultural District in downtown Brooklyn. The school is located on 126 Saint Felix Street right off Atlantic Avenue station and once inside, you will discover a multi-level building with stairways that lead to classrooms, dance and music studios, and playrooms.

As the name of the school entails, the Science, Language and Arts school takes a project-based approach to its curriculum. As stated in their website, "A project-based interdisciplinary approach supports a curriculum rich in the sciences, math, and the arts. Children are immersed not only in foreign languages but a school culture designed to develop thoughtful, cooperative citizens."

The school ranges from grades Pre-K through 3rd, and is unique in that it offers a language immersion program in three languages: French, Mandarin and English. The school uses a scaffolded model for developing French proficiency. Students in pre-school are taught 95% of the time in French and move towards developing both French and English proficiencies in first, second, and third grade. They also offer Mandarin twice a week and advanced classes are available for native and advanced speakers.

A conversation with the director, Jennifer Wilkin, gave us more insight into the development of the school and other factors of the school that make it truly one of a kind. Students can expect to move, dance, and learn about coordination through Buckets and Beats, a multi-level multi-stick drumming course. The school also offers a variety of after-school programs that further develop French language skills from beginning to advanced levels. Each week parents receive an extensive newsletter in the form of an album that gives them information on upcoming events, relevant news, and sample student work so that they are kept up to date.

For more information on this school, visit their website or call 347–770–0205.

Photo gallery:

School Entrance 

Classrooms 

Weekly Parent Newsletter 

ELL? TBE? ESL?

Those looking into bilingual/dual language schools may be familiar with the acronyms ELLS, TBE, ESL, etc. Here's a quick look at what these terms mean and how to determine what your child's needs.

In short, here's what the different acronyms stand for:

ELL- English Language Learner 

TBE- Transitional Bilingual Education 

ESL- English as a Second Language

What is an English Language Learner or ELL?

English Language Learners, or ELLS are newly enrolled students who have native languages other than English and need support learning English.

How does a school determine if my child is an ELL?

All parents/guardians of newly enrolled students must complete a Home Language Identification Survey (HLIS).

If HLIS indicates that your child uses a language other than English, he or she is administered an English proficiency test called the Language Assessment Battery Revised (LAB-R).

Once a child scores at a certain level of proficiency in English on the New York State English as a Second Language Achievement Test (NYSESLAT), he or she can enter a monolingual instructional program.

  

What ELL programs are available for my child?

Transitional Bilingual Education (TBE): programs include language arts and subject matter instruction in the students’ native language and English as well as intensive instruction in English as a Second Language.

Dual Language: programs provide half of instruction in English and half in the native language of the ELLs in the program.

Freestanding English as a Second Language (ESL):  provide all language arts and subject matter instruction in English. 

For more information about ELL programs in the NYC Dept. of Education, click here.

Why Bilinguals Are Smarter

                                                                                                                  Photo: Harriet Russell
         
Does being bilingual make you smarter? According to an article by the New York Times, the answer is yes. The article provides evidence through various studies and research that supports this claim.

Dual Language Program Fair at P.S. 165

 

Information booth displaying student work at P.S. 165

P.S. 165 The Robert E. Simon School located on 234 West 109th street held a school fair event on Saturday, November 2nd. At the event were a variety of schools around the city that also hold dual-language programs.

The dual program at P.S. 165 is offered for students from K-8. It offers academic instruction that is 50 percent in English and 50 percent in Spanish. The dual language teachers foster and cultivate all of their students' academic skills in both languages so that they are truly bi-lingual, bicultural and bilateral.

For more information on this school, you can visit www.psms165.org

Other schools at the event:

P.S. 58 The Carroll School (DL French)

330 Smith Street

Brooklyn, NY 11231

School:  718-330-9322

Parent Coodinator: (917) 613-5074 

jbredthauer2@schools.nyc.gov

PS 165 Robert E. Simon (DL Spanish)

234 W. 109^th Street

New York, NY 10025

School: (212) 678-2873

Parent Coordinator: (212) 678-2873

PS 163 (DL Spanish)

The Alfred E. Smith School

163 West 97^th Street

New York, NY 10025

School: (212) 678-2854

Parent Coordinator: p5163pc@yahoo.com

PS 84 The Lillian Weber School for the Arts (DL Spanish&French)

32 West 92^nd Street

New York, NY 10025

(212) 799-2534

PS 87 William T. Sherman School (DL Spanish)

160 West 78th Street

 New York, NY 10024

School: (212) 678-2826

Parent Coordinator: (212) 678-2826 x3

Mlerner@ps87.info