We live in a multicultural, multilingual world where being able to speak more than one language is a powerful asset. Students who learn another language gain insight into other cultures, perform better in math and English, and achieve higher scores on the SAT and GRE. Additionally, studies from the Cornell Language Acquisition Lab suggest that speaking more than one language improves focus and “plays a key role in academic readiness and success in school settings(opens in new tab).” Second language proficiency can also be a powerful differentiator when applying to colleges or career opportunities.
As an independent school that nurtures students to become active and intuitive citizens, Staten Island Academy is proud to offer courses in three world languages starting at the Middle School level: Spanish, Latin, and Mandarin.
Unlocking the Power of Language Exposure
Immersive language experiences deliver powerful results(opens in new tab) – especially in child language learners. For this reason, Staten Island Academy offers language curricula taught primarily in the target language. In addition to carefully scaffolding students through ascending levels of language fluency, we offer learning units that foster cross-cultural understanding and competency, grounding students’ knowledge of their target language within a broader cultural context.
Our goal is to develop learners who are not only confident communicators in their target language but who understand the cultural nuances, history, and way of life with regard to their chosen language. This approach also helps them reflect upon their own native languages and upon language use and function more generally. For example, learning Latin unlocks an understanding of Romance languages and provides a valuable foundation in the terminology used in medicine, law, and more.
When embarking upon language study, students are placed according to their level of proficiency in the language – not necessarily by grade. They then study three consecutive years of a foreign or classical language and are welcome to take more than one language at a time.
Our Language Curriculum
Students at Staten Island Academy are able to take Spanish, Latin, and/or Mandarin beginning in Grade 5 and continuing through to Advanced Placement (AP) levels. Students are also invited to take language electives, including history and literature. These unique courses are designed to provide deeper insights into the history, form, and function of both modern and classical languages.
Such offerings include:
Middle School Curriculum(opens in new tab):
- Grade 5: students take a trimester of Spanish, Latin, and Mandarin.
- Grades 6-8: students take one of the three languages offered: Spanish, Latin, or Mandarin.
Upper School Curriculum(opens in new tab):
- Mandarin I, Spanish I, or Latin I
- Mandarin II, Spanish II, or Latin II
- Mandarin III, Spanish III, or Latin III
- Mandarin IV, Spanish IV, or Latin IV
- AP Spanish, AP Latin, or World Language elective
Broaden Your Language Horizons at SIA
The ability to speak more than one language equips today’s students with the skills to navigate our increasingly complex world. At The Academy, we work closely with students to help them become proficient at communicating in two of the world’s most widely spoken languages – Spanish and Mandarin – and use their knowledge of Latin as a springboard for further language learning or as a basis for linguistic analysis. To learn more about our language curriculum or visit a classroom in motion, call us at (718) 303-7803(opens in new tab) to schedule a campus tour.
