At Caxton College the Early Years children are very much bathed in a bilingual environment.

The native English teachers deliver the British curriculum to an outstanding level, and also our Caxton community is mostly Spanish speaking, therefore the children are fortunate to hear both languages all day, every day. This creates a bilingual environment in which our children flourish.

Our aim for all students at Caxton College is that they quickly become bilingual, in fact many students are polyglots, as their home language is not Spanish or English, and they develop a strong proficiency in many languages.

The benefits of bilingualism are many and varied, and include cognitive development, cultural enrichment, creativity, academic performance, improved executive functioning and memory, and of course improved career opportunities.

Bilingual children’s cognitive development advantages include greater skills in critical thinking, pattern recognition and problem solving. They also develop a deeper understanding of their mother tongue by learning another language.

As part of the British curriculum, and through connections within our international Caxton Community, our pupils have many opportunities for cultural enrichment. These opportunities foster understanding, respect and empathy towards other cultures.

Being able to switch from one language to another increases neurological development on many levels, which in turn helps our pupils to understand and process complex concepts. This understanding and processing often results in better academic performance.

The executive function is a command system that uses skills that you use to manage everyday tasks like making plans, solving problems and adapting to new situations. Bilingual students are better able to sort out relevant information from irrelevant information, meaning they can focus better and be more effective thinkers and decision-makers.

As the career opportunities our pupils are able to access become more global, growing up in a bilingual environment has many advantages. Many employers prefer candidates with a bilingual background for roles requiring communication with diverse cultures and international clients.

In conclusion, encouraging children to learn a number of languages to proficiency, or bilingualism, unlocks many advantages for their future.