Academy

At Cedar Cove Academy, our teachers are able to successfully educate the “whole” child because they use what they know about each child’s unique academic and personal needs when planning for instruction. Throughout the school year, our educators use a wide variety of assessments in order to specifically target where each child is on his/her learning journey. Cedar Cove Academy teachers design differentiated learning centers that allow children choice and experiential practice, and the students have the opportunity to carry out a wide variety of engaging projects throughout the school year. Students learn to collaborate, think critically and respond to the world around them as they gain independence and responsibility within a loving community.Since Cedar Cove Academy is a public school program, our teachers use the Common Core Standards for English-Language Arts and Math, Next Generation Science Standards, and California State Standards for Social Studies in order to determine what needs to be taught. We are not a textbook-based program. Instead, the teachers use the state and national standards to create an exciting curriculum that is more authentic, hands on, and personalized. Even though our students attend classes 4 days a week on our campus, Cedar Cove Academy is still a home-study program. Parents account for approximately 30% of their child’s education during the course of one school year.

At Cedar Cove Academy, we believe that children learn best by engaging in curriculum through real world and hands-on experiences. Learning centers seek to engage students through various learning styles and multiple intelligences including: kinesthetic, spatial, musical, verbal/linguistic, logical/mathematical, interpersonal and intrapersonal. Centers take real world materials and create meaningful learning experiences for students to work both independently and cooperatively. Centers span all subject matters and allow students to work at differentiated levels so every child can achieve success, build on prior knowledge and reach their individual learning goals. Centers are aligned with the Common Core and CA State Standards and span multiple grade levels. Centers are engaging in that they often take on the form of games, investigations and mini projects. Students look forward to participating in the centers daily, as they are both challenging and developmentally appropriate. Centers allow children to grow exponentially and they are always being modified so that learning stays fresh and exciting! You can find out more about learning centers by viewing some of the research done, which supports the use of learning centers in the classroom.

As a publicly funded school, our K-6 curriculum is based on Common Core and California State Standards. Our innovative teachers excel at designing differentiated, engaging lessons across the grade level subjects. Our project-based learning model fits in with the mission of the common core standards which is “…to be robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that our young people need.”

Parents are responsible for approximately 30% of their child’s education during the course the school year. This instruction takes place whenever there is a home-study day. Home-study days include every Friday and a few other days throughout the year. During a home-study day, children work on completing project components and/or other activities that the teachers assign. Our teachers provide detailed and scaffolded project directions so that the children and parents are clear on what is expected.

At Cedar Cove Academy, we strongly believe that everyone deserves to be respected no matter what happens. When an unfavorable situation arises during a school day, Cedar Cove Academy teachers and other staff members try to get to the heart of the matter. Those involved have opportunities to share their feelings, reflect on what happened, apologize when appropriate, and focus on problem solving in an attempt to make the situation better. Discussions about what happened always take place in a private way. Since we believe the all of the children are capable of solving their own problems, Cedar Cove Academy educators create a space for the students to show appreciation for each other and to help each other solve problems. This space is created in the form of weekly circle time meetings. The children share their feelings, frustrations, and concerns with each other in a very peaceful way, and they use “I” statements. We focus on building each child’s character at our program, so the children learn not only how to be while at school, but they also learn how to be in the world around them.

What is Dual Language Immersion in Spanish?

Dual Language Immersion in Spanish is a program where students are taught both literacy and content in two languages, with Spanish being the target language in our case. Instead of learning Spanish as a separate subject, students acquire the language through content-based instruction. Thanks to our highly trained teachers, students will master key concepts in the target language while developing the skills to read, write, and speak fluently. The ultimate goal is for students to become bilingual, biliterate, and to gain cross-cultural and personal competencies.

The benefits of Bilingualism

Participating in a dual language immersion program offers numerous benefits, starting with the most obvious—becoming bilingual. Research shows that bilingual learners develop greater cognitive flexibility, becoming more metacognitively aware and stronger problem solvers. Numerous studies have demonstrated that bilingual students often outperform their monolingual peers on cognitive function tests in adolescence and adulthood. Their brains’ executive functions are enhanced, leading to improved self-control and memory.

Perhaps best of all, bilingual students gain a deep multicultural understanding and appreciation, allowing them to form connections with people they might not have been able to communicate with otherwise.

JCS Dual Language Immersion

The 24-25 school year marks the launch of JCS Cedar Cove’s Dual Language Immersion program in Kindergarten and First Grade. We are implementing a 90/10 model, where 90% of instruction in these dual immersion classrooms is delivered in the target language, Spanish.

Each year, we will expand the program by adding another grade level. For instance, in the 2025-2026 school year, we will offer Spanish immersion classes from Kindergarten through 2nd grade. As our current dual language 1st graders advance to 5th grade, our experienced English teaching team will transition to become the English instruction component of our Spanish Immersion program. This approach allows us to retain our highly skilled staff while welcoming additional bilingual teachers to our team.

Our dedicated support staff and Educational Specialists will continue their roles, providing essential support to students both in the classroom and on the playground as we transition to a dual language immersion school.

For the foreseeable future, our TK program will continue to be offered in English, led by Mrs. Vega. TK students will be offered Spanish as an enrichment class twice per week.

Is Dual Language Only for Latino Students?

Absolutely not! Dual language immersion is for everyone. This program promotes what’s often called “additive bilingualism,” where the goal is to maintain and strengthen the native language while acquiring proficiency in a second language. It’s designed to benefit all students, regardless of their linguistic background.

How to support your child

Learning a new language can be challenging and takes courage, so your child will need your support as they embark on this exciting journey. Even if you don’t speak Spanish, the support you provide at home will be more than enough. The more they are exposed to Spanish through stories, apps, podcasts, and movies, the better! And don’t worry—what you do with your child in their first language will naturally transfer to the new language as they progress.

Stay in regular communication with your child’s teacher! While learning a new language can be difficult, the JCS Cedar Cove staff is fully committed to supporting you and your young learner every step of the way on their path to bilingualism.

Further Resources – Articles

• Response: Everything You Wanted to Know About Dual Immersion But Were Afraid to Ask
• 4 Benefits of Dual-Language Immersion Programs

Further Resources – Books

• Bialystok, E. (2001). Bilingualism in Development: Language, Literacy, and Cognition. Cambridge University Press.
• García, O. (2009). Bilingual Education in the 21st Century: A Global Perspective. Wiley-Blackwell.