Vernon’s chosen second language is Spanish.
Ages 6-11
- Students receive instruction in Spanish from a Highly Qualified teacher for 40-50 minutes once per week.
- Spanish instruction is tied to the PYP Programme of Inquiry, with students learning vocabulary and concepts connected to their current unit of inquiry.
Ages 11-14
- All students receive at least 50 hours of instruction in Spanish per the IB requirements for the MYP. Eighth graders at Vernon receive four 50-minute classes of Spanish per week and are eligible to receive high school credit for their work.
- Students who come to the MYP from our PYP will be placed in one of three Language B classes – Beginning, Intermediate or Advanced. Placement will be determined by student proficiency and performance. Student placements will be reconsidered at the end of Year 1 (Grade 6) and Year 2 (Grade 7) and adjusted as needed. The Beginning class will follow phase 1 objectives as outlined in the Language B Subject guide for the first two quarters and phases 1 and 2 for the last 2 quarters. The Intermediate class will consist of students following phase 2 and 3 objectives from the beginning of the year. The Advanced class will consist of students following phase 4 and 5 objectives from the beginning of the year. Students in Grades 6 and 7 will be placed in multi-age groups according to their proficiency. Because of the high-school credit requirements, 8th grade students will be placed in single-aged classes, but still grouped according to their proficiency.
All Spanish instruction is taught by a Highly Qualified teacher and assessed according to MYP Objectives and Criteria.
In 8th grade, all students complete Standards-based Measurement of Proficiency to assess their progress in second-language acquisition.
To learn more about Vernon’s Language Policy, please