Spanish Immersion
Bienvenidos
The Spanish Immersion Program (SIP) at Moravian Academy was initially launched in 2014 with a kindergarten class. This year, the program spans Kindergarten through Grade 4 — with one immersion class for each grade.
The Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition at the University of Minnesota found a well-established positive correlation between bilingualism and divergent thinking skills, pattern recognition, and problem-solving in young people. Dr. Ellen Bialystok, a neuroscientist and professor of psychology at York University in Toronto, also found that bilinguals have a stronger executive control system in the brain, which allows them to selectively focus on what is necessary and not get distracted. This, among other research, helped to mold the school’s program.
“Students who are given the opportunity to express themselves in more than one language will likely experience many advantages if they begin and develop these skills early on — as early as possible — at infancy or toddlerhood being the ideal starting point for second language acquisition,” said Melika Matlack, the academy’s lead Spanish Immersion kindergarten teacher. “The importance of learning a language at a young age is crucial for tapping into improved cognitive skills and hone the basic capacity to fluently speak them.”
List of 6 members.
Merle Smith Campus
Upper School
4313 Green Pond Road, Bethlehem, PA 18020
4313 Green Pond Road, Bethlehem, PA 18020
Downtown Campus
Lower & Middle School
7 E. Market Street, Bethlehem, PA 18018
7 E. Market Street, Bethlehem, PA 18018