Parent groups, individual parent volunteers, and older student volunteers can be very helpful in establishing and maintaining a vibrant Bilingual Village at their schools.
PK-12 Language Learners
How the Bilingual Village Works with PK-12 Language Learners and Their Families
How Community Partner Employees Encourage Language Learning
PK-12 language learners receive information from their teachers about upcoming class field trips and/or student and family visit opportunities to Bilingual Village Community Partners.
When students and their families visit a Community Partner, employees notice their Bilingual Village buttons and welcome them. Employees may call over a coworker if they don’t speak the language on the button.
Employees are trained to:
- stay in the language that the button shows–employees only use a different language if communication breaks down.
- be patient when language learners struggle with speaking.
Student and Family Visits to Community Partners
- Typically, visits occur during a one-month window when a Community Partner is focused on in class, for example, a bakery in September, the local library branch in October, etc.
- Some Community Partners suggest specific days/times for the visits when it’s slower so they can give more time to language learners.
Before Visits to Community Partners, Language Learners
- find out about upcoming class field trips or individual language learner visit opportunities to Bilingual Village Community Partners from their teachers.
- resources, such as written example sentences, are given to use during the visit if needed.
- rehearse the language they will need for the visit in their class.
- receive a Bilingual Village button that identifies the language they will speak while interacting with employees.
During Visits to Community Partners
- wear their Bilingual Village button.
- bring their language resources, such as the example sentences for ordering in a restaurant or asking about items in a grocery store.
- bring their Bilingual Village passport or use their Bilingual Village app to document their visit.
- approach an employee and begin speaking.]
How to Support the Bilingual Village at Your School
Operating Your Bilingual Village
- assisting teachers with organizing Bilingual Village class field trips and student and family visits to Community Partner establishments of the month.
- organizing a class gathering or event at a Bilingual Village Community Partner establishment, such as a meet-up for students and their families at a pastry shop to try different pastries.
- volunteering during class field trips to Community Partner establishments.
- facilitating technology for online Bilingual Village Speakers Bureau class presentations.
Expanding Your Bilingual Village
- informing teachers about local establishments with bilingual employees (or monolingual employees willing to encourage language learning).
- sharing a flyer about the Bilingual Village with businesses, organizations, and agencies they go to, inviting them to fill out an online application.
- connecting their teachers with bilingual community leaders, professionals, or artists, they know to invite them to join the Bilingual Village Speakers Bureau and present in their class.]
PK-12 Bilingual Village Resources for Language Learners
| Type of Establishment | Language |
|---|---|
| Ordering in a Restaurant | English |
| Spanish | |
| Visiting the dentist’s office | English |
| Spanish | |
| Ordering in a bakery | English |
| Spanish |
Need help during your visit?
If you need extra support during your experience at our Bilingual Village partners, you can download and print some of our free resources by clicking the button beside.