English Plus Spanish Program

The English Plus Spanish constituency is composed of kindergarten through fifth grade classes, and a Special Education class (third through fifth grades). All general education classes are part of an inclusion program.

In this model, students do not go to a class taught exclusively in English until the sixth grade. They receive content instruction in both Spanish and English. Their English instruction is conducted though an approach appropriate to English Language Learners. The late-exit program believes that Spanish maintenance is crucial to the development of the students’ healthy self-concept. Therefore, by the fifth grade, students still receive instruction in Spanish at least half the time.

Spanish Bilingual Special Education

This class applies the above philosophies and approaches to the needs of special education students. Rather than focusing on the students’ deficiencies, the program strives to build upon the student’s existing body of knowledge. There is an extremely low teacher to student ratio, and the participation of parents in the educational process is required. A psychologist from Mission Health Services works half of the week as part of the team. An essential part of this program is mainstreaming in the Least Restrictive Environment.