Classroom Spotlight: Kindergarten

October has been a busy month in our immersion classes. The end of first quarter arrived, some great fall field trips were taken, and of course, the students prepared some awesome presentations for our Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration earlier this month. The day before the event, I got to pop into kindergarten to join them in learning about some traditional El Salvadoran food, pupusas. They also made their "Torito Pinto" (painted bull) crafts that day.

It is so amazing to spend time in these classrooms, but especially with our kindergarten students who are so new to not only school, but the Spanish language as well. One of the things I personally love about Spanish Immersion education is that the teachers must engage all the senses of the children to help them learn. There is plenty of educational research out there that tells us that kids learn in different ways and with different modalities. So we know that good teaching in any classroom engages not only what students hear, but also what they see, touch, and even how they move. In an early elementary Spanish immersion classroom, due to the language acquisition that is taking place, our teachers have no choice but to appeal to not only auditory senses, but also the visual, and kinesthetic. This is a win-win for all of the students in the room.

One of my favorite quotes about teaching says, "Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn." This quote has traditionally been credited to Ben Franklin, although that has now been disproved. But, I think it's valuable regardless of who said it first; and I imagine, many of us, even as adults, would agree that when we are learning something new, this idea of physical engagement rings true for us as well.

There were so many great learning moments and experiences taking place in kindergarten on this day that I wanted to share with you. So I've put together a short video highlighting some of the sights and sounds from that morning. Special thanks to Maestra Tijerina's sister for coming to help the students with their cooking experience that day.

How do you learn new things best? How do you think your child learns best?