Program teaches young Waukegan students to speak in two languages; ‘An opportunity to become bilingual and multicultural'
When a meal or some other delivery arrives at the Waukegan home of Anisa Jordan and the driver appears uncomfortable speaking English, it is no problem for her twin, fifth-grade sons — Charles and Matthew Jordan — as they ask the delivery person if they speak Spanish.
Once Charles or Matthew sees the smile and the Spanish words easily tumble out of the driver's mouth, the rest of the transaction goes smoothly.
'If they don't know English, we know how to speak Spanish,' Charles said. 'We ask if he knows Spanish. When he says 'yes,' we speak Spanish.'
Matthew and Charles are two of the students enrolled in the Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 two-way dual language program at Andrew Cooke Magnet Elementary School in Waukegan, which they started as kindergartners.
Elisabeth Ambrogio, the district's director of bilingual and multicultural programs, said the two-way dual language class brings students whose first language is English and those speaking Spanish from birth together to learn in two languages with a goal of becoming fluent in both.
Started at Cooke during the 2019-2020 school year, Ambroiggio said the initial cohort is now in fifth grade. A second program began a year ago for preschoolers at Oakdale Elementary School. Both are open to anyone starting preschool or kindergarten.
Half the schooling is done in English, and the other half in Spanish. She said all subjects — from math to science, to social studies, to language arts — are taught in both languages. The goal is to enable those in the program to have an Illinois Seal of Biliteracy on their high school diploma.
'It's doing wonderfully,' Ambroiggio said. 'They can speak, read and write at grade level in both languages. This gives them an opportunity to become bilingual and multicultural. They (generally) perform better than their monolingual peers on state assessments.'
Both Matthew and Charles said when they need extra help with a subject like math or science, the teacher will switch to their first language to help them get a better understanding of the concepts.
Not to be confused with the dual language program for English learners (EL), Ambroiggio said approximately 7,000 students whose first language is other than English are in a program to develop their English skills to a level with their peers.
While in both high school and college, Jordan said she took Spanish and had an opportunity to study abroad in both Honduras and Mexico. She felt putting her sons in the two-way dual language program would give them a valuable life skill. She is pleased with the choice.
'I felt if they knew Spanish, it would really help them,' Jordan said. 'They can have conversations in Spanish. They understand a lot.'
Charles and Matthew said spending their sixth year together with the same classmates has helped them develop strong friendships. Becoming bilingual is 'cool,' but the friendships are special.
'It's really fun being with really good friends,' Matthew said. 'They are very good friends, and I like being with them. A new kid came in second grade, and now he's my best friend.'
Both boys play soccer. Some of the athletes are Spanish speakers, and others speak English. They like the fact they can understand both. Their coach is bilingual and uses the appropriate language depending on which player is the recipient of his comments.
For the 2025-2026 school year, Ambroiggio said the district hopes to have a program in a third school. It starts with preschool or kindergarten, depending on whether the elementary school has a preschool program. Not all do. No deadline is set for registration. There will be an information session at 5 p.m. on March 18 at Glenwood Elementary School.
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