Did you know that PLS has been teaching foreign languages to Piedmont children for 40 years?

We kicked off a year of anniversary celebrations, and our “$40 for 40″ campaign with 150+ of our friends and supporters at a Cinco de Mayo party earlier this month.   The goals of our campaign:

• Celebrating our 40^th anniversary and looking toward the future

• Exploring new models to bring language to more kids K-6, beyond our currently self-funding classes

• Supporting PUSD as it develops and delivers its vision for K-12 world language

• Supporting professional development for PUSD and PLS teachers to deliver state-of-the-art instruction

• Identifying and supporting technology as a key supplemental learning tool

This report, prepared by PLS board members Abby Jorcino and Amy Weaver, provides a great overview of language learning K-12, why it is important, how it is being done in various schools around the country, what is new and exciting in the field (including the use of technology to support learning) and what opportunities and challenges exist for districts like Piedmont.

Towards a K-12 Vision for Language Learning

If you want to see more about the research on language learning and why it is important, see our resource list here:

PLS Resource List 2012