Navigating Dual Immersion - by Valérie Sun (Paperback)

About the Book

New to dual-language immersion and want to gain insider knowledge to these programs as a stakeholder? Look no further!

Book Synopsis

New to dual-language immersion and want to gain insider knowledge to these programs as a stakeholder? Look no further! In part one of the series Open Letters to Dual-Language Immersion Stakeholders, Valerie Sun writes to a teacher audience to explain the steps to obtain a teaching credential, have a successful interview, and offer research- and practice-based methods to thrive in the first (few) years as a dual-language classroom teacher. She offers tips and considerations for connecting with students and parents while encouraging the reader through major milestones of the school year. An easy-to-read manual complete with lesson templates and examples, the readers build confidence and are guided in their craft.

Review Quotes

"The information contained in this book is priceless! Valerie brings the unique view of having been a practitioner in the trenches to the more reflective discourse of a researcher. Highly recommended for all new teachers and excellent for those teachers who want to improve and reground their craft."

- Gregg Roberts, Director of Dual Language Studies, American Councils for International Education

"Dr. Sun's book, Navigating Dual Immersion: A Teacher's Companion for the School Year and Beyond, is a user-friendly roadmap for teachers entering the world of dual immersion programming. By using personal letters as the vehicle to share information with the reader, the author is able to walk a prospective language educator/advocate from the teaching credentialing and interviewing process all the way through the entire first year of service. The resource will benefit anyone seeking to better serve emergent bilingual and multilingual students in an immersion setting."

- Dr. José Medina, Chief Educational Advocate, Dr. José Medina: Educational Solutions

"Navigating Dual Immersion: A Teacher's Companion for the School Year and Beyond is chock full of helpful and heartfelt advice to dual immersion teachers of any target language. It is a practical compilation, in the form of letters and checklists, that is infused with Dr. Sun's own experiences as a former French immersion teacher, observer of other immersion teachers, and collaborator with both fellow immersion teachers and subject-area colleagues. Through the letters and checklists, the author prepares and champions teachers through such events as the first day of school and back to school night and deals with such challenging topics as dealing with parents, assessment in the immersion language, and strategies for teaching special needs students. This book is an extraordinary resource for new immersion teachers and for experienced teacher new to the immersion classroom."

-Dr. Ann Snow, Professor, Charter College of Education, California State University, Los Angeles

"Navigating Dual Immersion: A Teacher's Companion for the School Year and Beyond provides guidance for prospective teachers who are considering a path to teaching in a dual language program, taking them through the complex issues that come up when they walk into their first classroom. Through a series of letters, Dr. Sun tackles things like job interviews, the first day of class, back-to-school night, giving advice on things that new teachers might not even think about before they are confronted with them. She then provides checklists to help teachers get organized. This book will be a valuable addition to any new prospective or new teacher's toolkit. I wish I had this advice when I started out."

- Dr. Sharon H. Ulanoff, Professor, Bilingual/Multicultural and Literacy Education, California State University, Los Angeles