Bilingual Programs
Accelerated French Program
Ecole Bilingue de Berkeley’s Accelerated French Program (AFP) provides students who have no prior French language exposure the opportunity to acquire fluency in a second language, making them strong candidates for High School placement after 8th grade.
Why Language Immersion?
More than forty years of research consistently documents the power of immersion programs to help students attain high levels of second language proficiency. No other type of instruction is as successful. Young children especially thrive in this type of instructional environment.
How does it work at Ecole Bilingue?
In the Accelerated Program, instruction is divided between two high-quality classrooms at the beginning of the year: a bilingual classroom and a French accelerated classroom. The English teacher uses fifteen percent of the instructional time to teach English language arts; both French teachers use eighty-five percent of instructional time to teach French language arts, math, social studies, science, and other topics from the grade-appropriate level of the French Curriculum accredited by the French Ministry of Education. Children enrolled in this special program will quickly become comfortable and competent French speakers.
Entry Grades
- CP/1st grade
- CE1/2nd grade
Grades Offering Immersion
- CP/1st grade
- CE1/2nd grade
- CE2/3rd grade (when entered in Grade 2)
Selection Process
- The students will be interviewed and assessed by the English Curriculum coordinator. A test of language proficiency in English will be done.
- An interview with the family to discuss the family’s goals and involvement will be conducted by the Primary Head.
French and English are the only languages spoken on all five continents.
By 2050, French will be the second most spoken language in the world.
Admission and Tuition
- The Accelerated Program class includes three grade levels, combining students from 1st, 2nd and 3rd grades. By 4th grade, the students will be able to join the regular bilingual program.
- The AFP class holds a maximum of 10 students.
- Each AFP student is linked to a main classroom with a homeroom teacher.
- Students meet with their AFP teacher during French language classes and lessons taught in French five times per week.
- The AFP teacher follows a FLE curriculum to support the students in their classroom integration.
Curriculum
The EB-AFP curriculum follows the French Curriculum taught in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grades and is composed of:
- French language (oral language, reading, and understanding, writing, grammar, spelling, and Lexicon)
- Mathematics & Sciences
- Physical Education
- Visual Arts and Music.
The English Language Arts Program is aligned with the California Common Core Standards.
Assessment
Evaluation is conducted regularly and follows the FLE assessment scale, which is based on the evaluation of:
- Linguistic skills (knowledge and use of phonetic, lexical, and grammatical structures of the language)
- Discursive skills (knowledge and use of different types of speech according to a given situation)
- Referential (knowledge of the world and the relationships between space and time)
- Pragmatic (knowledge and appropriation of social behaviors and norms of interaction)
- Oral and writing skills (understanding through reading, listening, writing, talking)
During the second semester, AFP students may take the DELF A1. The DELF diploma (Diplôme d’Etudes en Langue Française) is an official qualification awarded by the French Ministry of Education to certify the competency of candidates from outside France in the French language.
Costs
G1/G2 tuition fees + additional fees of $2,750 per year which includes:
- One week of French camp in August
- Dedicated French language resources
- Learning materials (French copybooks)
- Small group instruction (5 times per week)
- Individual support inside the main classroom
- Access to social and emotional support (Counselor and SEL coach)
Contact
To get in touch with us, please contact Manon Johnson, Director of Admissions and Enrollment Management at (510) 549-3867 ext. 341 or email admissions@eb.org
Give your child the benefits of a global education with an accelerated program!
Ecole Bilingue de Berkeley
Elementary School Campus
All Are Welcome! (Anti-Discriminatory Policy)
Ecole Bilingue de Berkeley does not exclude from participation in, deny the benefits of, or subject any individual to discrimination on the basis of race, nationality, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, or religion. This policy applies to all programs, services, and facilities, including applications, admissions, and employment.
