The study of another language opens up windows into other cultures. To know another language is, essentially, to know another people. In a world that is shrinking due to better communications and increased travel, we are rubbing elbows with our neighbors. We do not all speak or think alike. What better way is there to foster open communication and understanding than to speak one another’s mother tongue?

By the time a student graduates from Sant Bani, we expect a student to have achieved a basic level of proficiency in the language studied, which includes written and oral comprehension as well as the ability to communicate through speech and the written word. Through the use of film, music, stories, drawings and charades, artwork, recorded material, novels, and newspaper articles, the student will have acquired an understanding of another culture and some experience with the literature of the language studied.

Curriculum Notes

French and Spanish are the two languages offered for formal instruction. However, our international students are often invited to share their language and culture in a classroom setting, both with their own classmates and younger students.

In Kindergarten through 2nd Grade, children receive instruction for about 15 minutes, three times a week. At this level, most of the material is presented orally in a concrete manner, with many manipulatives, games, songs, and simple dialogues.

There is currently no formal foreign language instruction in 3rd-6th Grades.

At the Junior High level, real-life situations and vocabulary are presented, and grammar concepts are introduced. In 7th Grade, students receive instruction in French and Spanish during two quarters of the school year. By 8th Grade, students have chosen to specialize in either French or Spanish, and (if they meet certain academic criteria) may also choose an accelerated pace that will allow them to complete five years of foreign language studies by the end of High School.

At the High School level, students are progressively asked to perform more mental operations without the aid of concrete visuals (for example, at Level 1, vocabulary may be introduced by means of drawings on the board or performing the action; by Level 4 or 5, new vocabulary is mostly presented by means of definitions, synonyms, or antonyms in the target language).

Department Head: Debbie Asbeck