One of the emerging trends in education today is the growth of language immersion schools. In these settings, children are taught curriculum in a foreign language. In this episode of The Lab, DadLabs visits the Magellan International School, a language immersion school where kids are taught primarily in Spanish. Educators from the school discuss the benefits of such a multicultural program, along with what makes it easier for children to learn a second language. Daddy Clay and Daddy Brad offer their thoughts on language immersion education. Is this type of education something all you parents out there would choose for your kids? Give us your thoughts on DadLabs.com. DadLabs Ep. 572 is brought to you by BabyBjorn.

Daddy Brad: This week in The Lab, we're looking at one of the latest trends in education, language immersion schools.

Daddy Clay: No cambie nada, tenemos información muy importante.

Daddy Brad: Yeah, what he said.

Daddy Brad: I'd like to thank our sponsor, BabyBjorn, You know Daddy Clay, no matter the language, BabyBjorn is numero uno.

Daddy Clay: That's good, because we're a real international operation here at DadLabs. And it's one of the reasons why we're so curious about this trend language immersion schools that seem to be cropping up everywhere. So to get the scoop, we went to the Magellan International School right here in Austin, Texas.

Maria Isabel Leon?: To be immersed in a language means that your whole experience, your whole educational experience occurs in a second language. So from the moment you walk into the door of the school to your social moments at recess, at lunch, during class time, you're constantly exposed to the language.

Erin Defosse: I mean, I went to the best blue ribbon, you name the award, public schools in our neighborhood. I went to private schools around town and I just went, "You know, there's something missing here." You know, one, why isn't anyone teaching foreign language seriously? Two, why don't we have a really multicultural international curriculum that is going to prepare kids?

Maria: So this is the only school in Austin that's doing PYP program as a curriculum framework and dual immersion. Kids here come and 80% of the time, they are being taught in Spanish. And only 20% of the time, they're working in English, which is their first language.

Erin: Kids have a very different mental situation going on where at this stage, basically, they're language sponges. And they're brain is literally designed to very quickly acquire languages.

Maria: The brain of a 3 year old, it's very plastic, it has plasticity. And so it has the synapsis, or it's designed for a very fast synapsis to occur. And those electrical connections help with language acquisition. A lot. And kids don't learn a language when they're 3 years old. They acquire it.

Erin: As adults, when we think about it, how would I feel if I was in the middle of a classroom and I didn't understand the teacher? We kind of think that would be stressful, but for kid's, it's a completely different experience for them.

Maria: We're not a language academy. We're not a school where you just come to learn Spanish. We're a school where you do the full academic program. And under the auspices of the PYP, then the curriculum and the scope and sequence you have to follow is quite rigorous.

Erin: Kids find this to be a fun environment. The fact that the teacher's speaking another language to them, is kind of like an interesting situation. And usually once the parents come in here and they see their kids and they see that they're happy and they're coming home singing songs, they go "Wow, they must be having a great time."

Daddy Clay: So lots of great information there from the folks at the Magellan School about language immersion programs. But the big question remains, is it something that you would do for your own kid?

Daddy Brad: Yeah, I would consider it. I think it's very important for the kids to learn another language because the world is getting smaller, Daddy Clay. Smaller by the minute.

Daddy Clay: Well, it's certainly true. And the things that they say about the benefits are really compelling. That's a great thing to do for your kids from a cultural standpoint, from an academic standpoint, it is just a little bit unfamiliar for me, and so I'm just going to choose a little bit more of a traditional route.

Daddy Brad: Hard to kind of push the envelope Daddy Clay.

Daddy Clay: I know. I see it, I recognize it as being beneficial, but I can't quite pull the trigger on it. I guess that's just me. Well, we'd love to know what you think. Tell us if you'd be interested in that kind of education for your kids. If you're seriously considering it or if you've set your kids to a language immersion program, talk to us about what the benefits you've seen are. Do that at DadLabs.com. Join the conversation there. It really is one of the best parenting conversation web sites happening on the Internet right now. We hope to see you there. And we want to thank our sponsors BabyBjorn for making that conversation possible.

Daddy Brad: Gracias.