FLES

The Foreign Language in Elementary Schools (FLES) program was started at Colin Powell Elementary during the 2015-2016 school year. FLES is an approach to language learning that allows students to develop basic communicative skills in a language while reinforcing and enriching content in other disciplines.

At Colin Powell Elementary, students in Grades 1-3 receive FLES instruction for 30 minutes once a week which focuses more on meaningful and purposeful communication than on grammatical mastery, as well as developing intercultural competency skills. Students are encouraged first to understand and then to produce in the language.

Research studies have indicated that the early study of a second language results in cognitive benefits and gains in academic achievement, and increases in self-esteem, creativity, and positive attitudes toward diversity.