Early Spanish lessons in Bethlehem schools

Introductory classes start in younger grades

Ask how it is to learn about the Spanish language and culture, Bethlehem Area School District elementary children are likely to answer, Bueno!

The district introduced a Spanish class for all students in the district’s 16 elementary schools this past school year and administrators say it has been a success.

The class meets once a week and focuses on culture and basic language in the younger grades before increasing the language concentration in the higher grades. Before last fall, most Bethlehem Area students didn’t study a second language until middle school.

At last week’s school board committee meeting, Assistant Superintendent Jack Silva showed a video of grade school children learning Spanish words and doing some related activities.

“It’s good preparation for students learning a second language,” Silva said on the video.

Spanish teachers Jennifer Cierech and Amy Jahn De Torrez talked on the video about some of the lessons they teach.

Jahn De Torrez pointed out that the classes give meaning and history to common Spanish traditions that have become part of U.S. culture.

“Their worldview has expanded a little bit,” Jahn De Torrez said.

She talked to students about the history of Cinco de Mayo so they’ll realize “it’s not about like chips and salsa.”

“Cinco de Mayo is really about this battle where this small, little army beat this gigantic army and then we pulled in some cultural pieces and we did listen to some music but the kids were all excited about it,” she said. “Then we’re able to use that to apply some language and try some different things.”

Cierech said the cultural appreciation and language lessons go hand in hand.

“The first kind of purpose of the program is cultural appreciation across the board,” Cierech said. “Then of course once people have cultural appreciation then the urge to learn the language naturally comes.”

Asked about the program after the meeting, Silva said: “People love it. Parents realize that we’re living in a global community and an awareness of other language and other cultures and language development is always a good thing.”

He said for years administrators would hear from parents that the district waited too long to teach children world languages in middle school or high school.

So they decided it was time to reorganize the curriculum to make space for Spanish for the youngest students.

Margie Peterson is a freelance writer for The Morning Call.