Middle School Modern Languages

In order for students to acquire a new language, students need to hear, read, and understand it a lot. To achieve this, we maximize students’ exposure to Chinese, French, or Spanish through comprehensible language, including oral, written, and visual storytelling. We focus on the instruction and use of the high-frequency vocabulary, words that are the most commonly used in the language and can be used across many different situations.

Students read books and interesting articles, watch videos, co-create stories, act out stories, listen to songs, and talk about the message in the language. This way, students also learn about the culture and geography organically, using the language students know.

Incoming students rank their language choices (Chinese, French, or Spanish).

  • 6th graders can take either Chinese A, French A, or Spanish A.
  • 7th graders can take the A or B section
  • In 8th grade, most students will take the C level of the course (or B level if they took A in 7th grade)

Want to learn more? The video below explain how we teach language and what the student experience is in all of our language courses.

Middle School Language Courses

Chinese A

6th, 7th
Modern Languages

This introductory course exposes students to Chinese through comprehensible input, including oral, written, and visual storytelling. The input-based approach to acquiring language focuses on the instruction of vocabulary in a highly contextualized manner. By keeping the conversation/story engaging and compelling, the learner is distracted from consciously trying to memorize vocabulary. Class time centers around developing […]

Chinese B

7th, 8th
Modern Languages

A continuation of Chinese A, in Chinese B students continue to develop their fluency in the language. This course exposes students to Chinese through comprehensible input, including oral, written, and visual storytelling. The input-based approach to acquiring language focuses on the instruction of vocabulary in a highly contextualized manner. By keeping the conversation/story engaging and […]

French A

6th, 7th
Modern Languages

This introductory course exposes students to French through comprehensible input, including oral, written, and visual storytelling. The input-based approach to acquiring language focuses on the instruction of vocabulary in a highly contextualized manner. By keeping the conversation/story engaging and compelling, the learner is distracted from consciously trying to memorize vocabulary. Class time centers around developing […]

French B

7th, 8th
Modern Languages

A continuation of French A, in French B students continue to develop their fluency in the language. This course exposes students to French through comprehensible input, including oral, written, and visual storytelling. The input-based approach to acquiring language focuses on the instruction of vocabulary in a highly contextualized manner. By keeping the conversation/story engaging and […]

French C

8th
Modern Languages

A continuation of French B, in French C students continue to develop their fluency in the language. This course exposes students to French through comprehensible input, including oral, written, and visual storytelling. The input-based approach to acquiring language focuses on the instruction of vocabulary in a highly contextualized manner. By keeping the conversation/story engaging and […]

Spanish B

7th, 8th
Modern Languages

A continuation of Spanish A, in Spanish B students continue to develop their fluency in the language. This course exposes students to Spanish through comprehensible input, including oral, written, and visual storytelling. The input-based approach to acquiring language focuses on the instruction of vocabulary in a highly contextualized manner. By keeping the conversation/story engaging and […]

Spanish C

8th
Modern Languages

A continuation of Spanish B, in Spanish C students continue to develop their fluency in the language. This course exposes students to Spanish through comprehensible input, including oral, written, and visual storytelling. The input-based approach to acquiring language focuses on the instruction of vocabulary in a highly contextualized manner. By keeping the conversation/story engaging and […]