What is the location of the classes?

The classes are held in the East Bay. Facing the beautiful San Francisco bay, in Alameda:
2201 Harbor Bay Parkway. Alameda, CA 94502.

What are the languages offered?

We currently offer: Spanish, Mandarin, French, Japanese, Italian, Korean, Russian and English.
Please note that not all languages are offered every day. Please check with the office for the schedule that will fit your level.

What age group do you teach ?

Our students are as old as 3 and as young as 99. Adults classes are offered in the evening and on week-ends as well as mornings.

Do you offer other classes?

Yes we offer art classes taught by artists and experienced art teachers.

If both parents work and cannot drop their kids at the Academy. Is there a way, they can still benefit from the program?

Yes, they could enroll in our after school program and be picked up by a non-affiliated transportation company. A number of parents asked us to assist them with transportation services. We will give you the information of the Alameda transportation company in charge of picking up your child form the Alameda school that he or she attends.

What is the schedule for pick up?

The transportation company will pick up your child from his or her Alameda school (a specific location will be given within the school)  at school dismissal and be dropped at the Academy. You will be as a parent/guardian responsible for payment directly to the transportation company.
Kindergartners can be picked up 2 or days/week, where as others can be picked up 2 to 5 days/week.

If I can drive my child to the Academy after school, can he be part of the after school program?

Yes your child could be dropped of at 3:10pm and picked up no later than 6:10pm
Your choices are 2 to 3 times a week for Kindergartners and up to 5 times per week for others elementary students as well as middle school students.

Can you tell us more about the after-school program?

After drop of (by parents or transportation company), students are invited to refresh and have their snacks (please ensure that your student have enough to eat). Students are then dived into groups according to the language(s) taught that day and to their respective levels and (a) will attend their language class or (b) art class or (c) be assisted in completing their school home work, (d) will have a guided outdoor activity. A team of instructors will be on site helping students achieving their academics goals first then engaging them in multiple extra curricular activities using their languages and Math skills.

What happen on minimum days (parent-teachers conferences, pedagogical meetings ,etc.. ?

Bay Language Academy will start its program earlier, for a nominal fee, on those days in order to accomodate the students schedule.

How do I enroll?

We usually schedule a tour to to visit the facility, then present the curriculum and discuss your expectations and goals.

I can't attend the guided tour, how do I sign up for classes?

Contact us and we will guide through the easy process to have you enrolled on time.

When should I register and when do I have to pay?

The earlier you register, the earlier your place is confirmed at the Academy.  if  classes reach the maximum of enrollment, we might not be able to accept you. You must submit a non-refundable $50 registration fee plus the first month's tuition. Each month, tuition is due on or before the 5th of the month. Late payments are subject to a late fee. You can pay by check, including online bill-pay. For adults classes of 10 sessions, the entire amount is due  before, the first class as well.

How long do classes last?

Classes are 60-minutes long for preschoolers and  75-minutes to 150-minutes for all other students.

What is the frequency of the classes?

The classes are tailored to your needs. You could choose from a once a week (Exploratory), twice a week (Proficiency) or three times or more a week (Fluency).

How long does the program last

Learning a language does not happen overnight, it takes time and effort. Our program is based on 10-month renewable program with the possibility of taking intensive classes.

Who are our instructors?

Our instructors are qualified professional, university trained instructors and native-speakers who take pride in immersing students in a foreign language. They are screened based on their degree, their teaching ability and experience as well as their personal qualities. They are native speakers, passionate by the language and the culture they teach and eager to transfer their knowledge.  Our instructors are trilingual, share a passion for languages and provide instruction through an engaging set of media interactive games, songs, art projects, total physical response and classical games.  Our team of educators are either linguists who hold Bachelor's degree with certifications, Master's degree, Ph.D degree or are credentialed teachers.  They are dedicated to provide our students with high quality instruction in a joyful environment. They all provide us a TB test and a live scan.

Are there attendance requirements in language classes?

Our language program has attendance requirements as well as excused absence. Research indicates that learning a language comes about through interaction (see article on Blog section, dated from July 5th, 2011).

What is the mode of payment?

Currently, Bay Language Academy  can only accept checks. Prices are listed on the homepage's table.The tuition is based on a ten-month program, September 2013-June 2014. Tuition is divided on 10 equal monthly enrollments even though some months have 3-weeks and other 5-weeks, over the course of the year it averages out.

How long does it take to learn the skills necessary to speak a language?

It really depends on the level you want to achieve, but research has shown that it typically takes 720 hours of speaking practice for an English-speaking adult with a high academic aptitude to become proficient in a foreign language (Omaggio-Hadley, 1993).
As a guideline, it takes about 60-70-hours of training to be certified at the basic the A1 level and about 200-hours to reach the A2-level.

What is the instructional philosophy?

The overall method is based on a modular teaching with an approach based on task, where a balance between practice and theory is achieved. The aim is to develop effective communication skills through the elementary development of the four basic language known skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing.

A number of instructional approaches will be used to teach the target language and will depend mainly on the students age/degree of maturity and level, among others: paired activities, listening to music and an array of activities will be organized around the theme of the song, role playing, educational games. Students will be actively engaged and will be expected to participate voluntarily. For the younger, games, songs and story telling will be used to enrich vocabulary as well visual cues for complete beginner. A specific curriculum is available at Bay Language Academy for each language and for each level. The primary objective of classes is to immerse students in the language and the culture in a fun and engaging way, by focusing on cultural beliefs, values and aspects of everyday life. Simple grammatical concepts, and practice in listening and speaking (individually, and in pairs and groups are implemented). The program usually start (for the beginner) with the basics such as the alphabet, numbers, greetings and simple sentence structures. The main focus being on the phonetic and developing a proper ear for pronunciation, then the classes evolves into studying grammatical rules, conjugation, etc...

By the end of the program, students are expected to have developed insight into the nature of language and analyze/use basic grammar as a tool for effective communication (conjugation, grammar, pronunciation and gained knowledge of the country’s culture and background).

What  if  if a student misses a class?

An e.mail will be sent with all the items that were covered during the missed class as well as the home work assigned for that day. Make up classes can only be scheduled in advance as a courtesy. Please inquire with the office.

What happen if I want to stop my classes?

All you need to do is  provide us with a one month written notice. Please inquire about the Bay Language Academy policy.

How do I find out more?

Visit our web site http://www.baylanguages.com or call the Bay Language Academy office at 510-306-4BAY (4229)


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