Teachers at Reedley school introduce new teaching strategy for dual immersion students

REEDLEY, Calif. (KFSN) -- Students are learning English and Spanish astatine dual immersion schools crossed the Valley.

In Reedley, teachers are taking a antithetic attack this twelvemonth with a caller instructional strategy.

Aribel Cazares is simply a second-grade dual immersion teacher astatine Alta Elementary School successful Reedley.

She lone teaches successful Spanish. She says the students are assured speaking the connection backmost to her.

This year, a caller instructional strategy was added called "cross-linguistic connection."

Instead of students conscionable learning English oregon conscionable learning Spanish, they larn the 2 broadside by side.

"We absorption connected the similarities and differences betwixt the languages successful bid for the kids to beryllium capable to go proficient successful the language," Cazares said.

On the time we visited, they were learning astir the prefix "re."

They reinforced what they were learning by adding successful matching assemblage movements.

"The purpose of the lessons is for students to beryllium capable to marque the connections betwixt the autochthonal connection and the people language, and vice versa," Cazares said.

Julianna Villicana speaks English arsenic her archetypal connection and is learning Spanish arsenic a 2nd language.

"If I don't cognize however to accidental thing successful my archetypal language, I tin usage my 2nd connection arsenic support," Julianna said.

She says she likes learning Spanish and hopes to usage it to her advantage.

"Knowing a 2nd connection tin assistance maine pass with radical who don't cognize different language," Julianna said.

Cazares says the cross-linguistic transportation isn't truthful overmuch astir learning the concept, but alternatively being capable to place whether the conception is akin oregon antithetic successful some languages.

She says she hopes students volition person a deeper knowing of English and Spanish and determination connected from her schoolroom with confidence.

"The extremity end is for our students to beryllium capable to permission this schoolhouse being biliterate and feeling assured with the mode that they pass and feeling that they're acceptable for the satellite due to the fact that they're capable to read, constitute and everything successful some languages, which, obviously, it's a immense asset," Cazares said.

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