english fluency
Families tell us:
"The most important thing I have learned from Sunday Friends is how to speak English. I am very happy because my writing has gotten a lot better."
"Because of Sundays Friends, we now love to read at home. We try to read in English every day."
Sunday Friends is an "English First" program. We create an environment in which families will move out of their native language comfort-zone and make the effort to practice and develop their English skills. Of course, we have bilingual staff, bilingual volunteers and bilingual written communications to bridge the learning gap.
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English learning is fostered through:
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On-going interactions in English throughout every program. Even bilingual staff are instructed to communicate in English first, reserving Spanish conversation for situations in which it is really needed.
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A structured, patterned program that supports the repetition of certain English sentences and that allows the success of simple English communications, thus building confidence and prompting further learning.
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English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) Classes during every program.
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Extra ticket rewards for writing letters in English when English is not the native language.
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Bilingual newsletters and instruction – always with English first.
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Board games that teach English to children.
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Take-home English learning assignments for parents.
Our Program Evaluation demonstrates how successful Sunday Friends is with Developing English Fluency.