The French Immersion School of Washington is a preschool (age 2.5) through 5th grade bilingual, immersion school in Bellevue. Our curriculum is designed to cultivate students’ openness to the world and challenge them in a nurturing environment that encourages risk-taking. Taught in French 75% of the day, and in English 25% of the day, students learn to take the “traditional skills” that every school teaches and use them – to address new situations, to solve problems, to collaborate with others. Using these skills in real life situations helps students think critically, take initiative and use their imagination. Teachers encourage critical thinking by asking open-ended questions, allowing students to try, fail and succeed. The students are also encouraged to ask questions, and to develop the necessary skills to find the answers to those questions. At FISW, our education is divided into three cycles. Each cycle promotes specific developmental objectives and learning skills and enables teachers to accommodate each child’s diverse abilities and needs. Children are stimulated and engaged, learning at a pace that is challenging for them while becoming open-minded and adventurous. This structure of the French curriculum develops autonomy and critical thinking, opens a student’s mind to multiple cultures and the reality of diversity, and teaches them the rewards of resilience. Why bilingual? Studies show that children who learn a second language early in life have enhanced cognitive development. Bilingual students not only speak two languages fluently, but they have excellent mastery of their native language, often surpassing their monolingual peers. These studies also indicate that the regular use of two languages enhances a student’s ability in the areas of abstraction, symbolism, conceptualization, mathematics and problem solving. We would love to have you visit and find out more. Email admission@fisw.org to schedule a visit to our school.