by Gerardo A.

The Spanish immersion program helps students learn the language quickly and effectively by surrounding them with Spanish every day and speaking to them in Spanish daily. This constant exposure makes learning a lot more fun and easier. Students improve their listening and speaking skills, as well as their understanding of different cultures. The program helps students become more confident in using Spanish, and it can open up opportunities for travel, work, and connecting with people from different backgrounds.

The Spanish immersion program at Alamo Heights has created many opportunities for students. Not only has it helped students who speak other languages learn English, but it has also allowed English-speaking students to learn Spanish and speak it fluently.

I have been in the Spanish immersion program at Alamo Heights for more than nine years, and it has brought a lot of positive experiences into my life. It has given me more educational opportunities and a better understanding of the Hispanic and Latino communities and their traditions and cultures. Whether you start knowing Spanish or English, this program helps you learn another language and opens up the chance to travel to other countries and understand their culture.

In my experience, the Spanish immersion program at Alamo Heights started with every subject taught in Spanish, and then it slowly started adding more English. For the class of 2029, we started with only Spanish in Pre-K and Kindergarten. In first, second, and third grade, there wasn’t much English mixed in. By fourth grade, we began to have some English during the day. In fifth grade, English became a bigger part of our lessons. When we got to sixth grade in the Junior School, we only had a few subjects in Spanish, like Spanish, science, and social studies. The next year was similar, with the same subjects in Spanish. In our last year in the Junior School, things changed, and now we have science in English, while Spanish and U.S. history are still in Spanish.

Overall, the Spanish immersion program at Alamo Heights has given me and many other students the chance to learn a second language while also understanding different cultures. It has been an amazing experience that has opened up many opportunities for us to connect with people from all over the world. Even though the program started with just Spanish, it has grown to include both languages in ways that help students succeed, and I think it’s something everyone in the school should be proud of.