La Petit Ecole: A "Small School" with Big Ideas

La Petit Ecole Tribeca Location 

La Petit Ecole or "The Small School" offers a unique program for those seeking to place their children in a French language immersion preschool. The school focuses on creating a space that helps students explore their curiosity and creativity through teacher guided activities that are based on student interests. Students engage in a variety of activities with art, music, and food to help build their cognitive and language abilities along with their social skills. All activities are taught using the target language to ensure that student gain as much exposure to the language as possible.  Guest artists and musicians also make regular visits to engage with the students. There are two locations one in the Upper West Side and one in Tribeca. To apply to this program, children should be at least 2 to 4 years old. 

Painting is one of the major activities at La Petit Ecole where children express themselves 

 Students are encouraged to show off their talents in music along with songs they have learned at La Petit by performing in front of an audience. 

This well-kept kitchen area is used during lunch/snack time where children are also given "lunchtime duties" which is an important part of French culture. Students also learn recipes in French and prepare  dishes such as a fruit salad that they prepare and share with their classmates. 

Here is a series of pictures of a typical day routine usually consisting of "circle time" where all students come together, "exploration time" where students are divided by language level and engage in various activities, snack/nap time, and outdoor playtime. If weather permits, teachers take students to neighboring park areas where they play and engage in physical activity. Students work independently and in groups and learn to cooperate with one another, building social skills and respect for a shared space. 

Students also learn math and science concepts using blocks of wood in various shapes and pick up numbers and formulas in the target language. 

The most amount of students in one classroom is 15 students and are open to students of all language backgrounds including no prior language experience. 

Once the application is reviewed, student are interviewed to complete the process. 

Check out their website for more information  https://sites.google.com/site/lapetiteecolenyc/

NYFACS: A French American Charter School in West Harlem

NYFACS Located on West 120th street in Harlem 

One may not have to look to far to find bilingual schools located in the neighborhood. If you are looking for a bilingual French-English program located in Harlem, the New York French American Charter School or NYFACS may be worth exploring. NYFACS opened its doors in 2010 in West Harlem offering a bilingual language immersion program in French, catering to its community of French-speakers. Families come from many different countries around the world and the school emphasizes programs focusing on the development of global and cultural diversity. Interestingly, it is the only free bilingual French charter school in the U.S. 

One thing we noticed about this school is the amount of space available. The school has four floors with a number of classrooms that are painted with bright colors. Student work is a common theme as you walk down the hallways, usually displaying what students have learned about the two cultures. The school currently offers programs for grades K-5, but has plans on expanding to K-12. 

Classrooms are bright and spacious with enough space for students to hang their belongings. Currently classrooms have anywhere from 15-25 students, 25 being the max. 

The library is full of books in French and English 

Students are exposed to French language in all grades, however there is a heavy emphasis on French in the lower school (K-2) where 80% of instruction is in the target language. All teachers who speak French are native speakers.  

As students move to the upper school (grades 3-5) the level of language instruction becomes 50% French and 50% English

Student Artwork 

Different cultures embraced at NYFACS

Brandi Fluent, the administrative assistant who gave us a tour of the school, emphasized that they are focused on building a truly global perspective by developing knowledge and understanding of cultures throughout the world. The staff has a diverse background as well, including native French speakers who come from various countries. These teachers can provide different perspectives and are able to share their experiences with their students. 

To learn more about this school please visit their website at http://www.nyfacs.net/ or contact them by phone at (212)666-4134.

Thank you again NYFACS for having us!

A Visit to the International School of Brooklyn

The exploration of bilingual programs around the city continues as we were able to visit the International School of Brooklyn this past Thursday. Upon entering the school doors, you immediately get a sense that this school is serious about learning and its students. Located in a renovated building that was once a church, the school is spacious and bright. The hallways are carefully decorated with student work and anyone walking through them can see what students are currently learning. One display that stuck out in particular was of the school's curriculum in the lower division where it showed the units being studied and the various topics and themes in those units that answer questions such as how we express ourselves, where are we in time in place, how we organise ourselves, how the world works, and sharing the planet. Here's a sense of what we experienced upon arrival:

   

                                          

On our tour of the classrooms in the lower and upper divisions, we were able to witness students and teachers (all who are native speakers) engage in the target language. It was truly fascinating to see students at such an early stage of development, some not being native speakers, speak solely in the target langauge. Each classroom felt like a smaller community that took part in a bigger world of learning. The classrooms are bright and colorful with big windows that let a great amount of sunlight into the room. Again, student work is boasted on the walls giving a sense of pride and accomplishment in what is achieved at ISB. Take a look at our photos of some of the classrooms we visited: 

Spanish Vowels

Art is another subject that students are able to take and are taught in the target language. Students can express their creativity through carefully planned projects that help them develop language skills and are meaningful and fun. The school takes a process over product approach and emphasizes that the process of learning to build and create is more important than the product. 

Paper Mache masks 

Current unit: The Four-Seasons of Vivaldi 

Here is a piece of artwork made by a group of 2nd grade French students displayed in the hallway. Each of the students cut and painted squares, made holes, and strung each piece together to form a beautiful tapestry, resembling that of El Anatsui, a famous contemporary artist. 

Making our way down to the basement, we found that the school also has a music room, cafeteria, and library-very impressive! 

Library

The International School of Brooklyn or ISB is a school that offers a world of opportunity for its rapidly growing student body of about 300 students. Located in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, the school offers a full-immersion language program in Spanish and French. It is divided into the lower division which consists of the Nursery, Pre-K and grades K-5 and the upper division which consists of middle school grades 6-8. They have plans on enlarging the program to include high school grades in the near future.

So how much time do students spend in language immersion in each grade level? Here's a quick breakdown:

-Nursery and Pre-K: 100% full instruction in target language, French or Spanish
-Kindergarten: 90% instruction in target language with 3 hrs. of English per week
-1st through 3rd: 75% of the formal instruction in the target language, with 6 hours per week in     English
-4th and 5th grade: 50-50 model, with half of the formal instruction in the target language and half of the formal instruction in English

Once students move up to middle school, they will engage in a rigorous academic program following the International Baccalaureate model and be required to study eight traditional subjects such as humanities, science, mathematics, arts, physical education, etc. On top of this, they are required to study two languages. For more information on IB programs, visit the following link www.ibo.org.

One of the highlights of this school as described by the lower school director, Delphine Michaud, is that is it is focused on incorporating a truly global perspective in its classrooms. The emphasis is on building a community of learners based on multi-cultural education, preparing students for a international future.

For more information, you can visit the school website at http://isbrooklyn.org/.

Thank you ISB! We hope to see you soon!

NYC's English Language Learners

A recently published demographic report from the NYC Dept. of Education's Office of English Language Learners provides some eye-opening statistics. As mentioned in the report, approximately 41% of students enrolled in NYC public schools speak another language than English at home. ELLs make up 14.4% percent of the entire DOE population and as of 2013 there are 159,162 enrolled in the school system. The largest portion of these students come from the Dominican Republic. Users can access other reports on the DOE website, which holds other important information for ELLs  such as the enrollment process and types of ELL programs. Take a look at some the report highlights below.

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 

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