# At what grade level did your school first offer foreign languages? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 23, 2004, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275 "2004-12-23T03:30:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Omega\_Glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7c8e57/32.png) [@Omega\_Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omega_Glory)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/1 "2004-12-23T03:30:18Z")
Also: 1. What languages did they offer? 2. Where was your school, and when did you attend? 3. What was the socioeconomic status of the area surrounding the school? and if you can remember: Were the classes a requirment? This poll is related to [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=292865) GD thread about schools requiring students to learn spanish. Feel free to answer the poll for your children. It was surprising to see people who were surprised that elementary schoolers were taught foreign languages (for some reason I always assume that most Americans had the same school experiences as me). ---
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/2 "2004-12-23T03:39:44Z")
1. Hebrew, First Grade and onward 2. Hebrew Institute of Long Island, 1975ish 3. Middle class 4. Yes, it was required. (It was a Yeshiva ;j ) Zev Steinhardt ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/3 "2004-12-23T03:41:52Z")
1. 7th grade, French, Spanish, Mandarin and Russian (Latin was an option beginning in 9th grade). 2. Westchester County, NY, mid-1990s. 3. Mostly wealthy, but a few small rather poor neighborhoods also. 4. Required. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/4 "2004-12-23T03:44:10Z")
1. Spanish 2. Shuman Junior High; Savannah, GA; 1975 3. Middle class 4. Optional ---
**Author:** ![robinc308](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@robinc308](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robinc308)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/5 "2004-12-23T03:47:34Z")
The first school I went to, we were did Italian from prep (first year of schooling, 4.5 - 5.5 year olds) The second school I went to offered French from grade 3 onwards (it was, in fact compulsory), and then year 7 was compulsory French and Latin, year 8 was compulsory for any two of [French | Latin | German | Indonesian | Russian | Japanese], year 9 was compulsory for any one of the same 6 choices (but it had to be one of the ones you did in year 8) and from year 10, it was entirely optional (but with the same 6 choices). THe first one was Koonung Heights Primary School (no longer exists). Surrounding area was middle class, mainly professional people. The second was PLC - junior school from prep - 6, senior school from 7 - 12. Private girls school - the local area makes no difference - people came long distances (including some boarders). Most parents were pretty well off. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Fire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Silver\_Fire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Fire)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/6 "2004-12-23T03:51:00Z")
1. Spanish 2. 6th grade, Moose Lake, MN (public), around 1995 3. Middle class 4. Required ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Fire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Silver\_Fire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Fire)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/7 "2004-12-23T03:55:15Z")
After reading the GD thread, I’d like to add that in high school, students were allowed to choose a foreign language; I have no idea what the choices were at this particular school, but not everyone was forced to take Spanish. In sixth grade, when Spanish class **was** required, it was just something for us to do while our teacher prepared lectures and corrected homework assignments and stuff. It was very, very basic; colors, animals, the lyrics to La Bamba, etc. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![TVeblen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@TVeblen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVeblen)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/8 "2004-12-23T03:59:29Z")
This was back in the Pleistocene but… 1. French, starting in the fourth grade. 2. By seventh grade, the choices were French, German, Spanish and Latin. 3. It was a very mixed school district. It encompassed some _very_ wealthy neighborhoods, some solidly middle-class and some frankly dirt-poor–people who lived in barely more than shacks along the river. 4. Two years of a foreign language were required to graduate. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/9 "2004-12-23T04:00:21Z")
Grade 4 French Oakville, Ontario, Canada, 1971 Wealthiest community in nation An experiment – only offered to two students (time have changed for the better since then) ---
**Author:** ![Egad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Egad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Egad)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/10 "2004-12-23T04:02:13Z")
1. French 2. Ottawa, Ontario, Grade 2 3. Lower middle-class ---
**Author:** ![Kyyrewyyoae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Kyyrewyyoae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyyrewyyoae)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/11 "2004-12-23T04:03:28Z")
1. Spanish (starting with 9th grade) German (starting with 10th grade) 2. High School was in Iowa, Class of 97 3. middle class mostly, farmers for the most part 4. no foreign language requirement ---
**Author:** ![Lisa-go-Blind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Lisa-go-Blind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lisa-go-Blind)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/12 "2004-12-23T04:05:36Z")
1. French in 4th and 5th grades 2. Louisiana, mid 1990s 3. It was a mid-city public school, but it was also a gifted site, so you had people of all economic backgrounds. 4. Requirement Once we started middle school in 6th grade, however, our options were opened. We were given a variety of languages based on which school we attended - the one I went to in 6th grade had French, Spanish, German and Latin for sure and may have had others. We had a number of semesters we were required to take. ---
**Author:** ![davenportavenger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f8ce5/32.png) [@davenportavenger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davenportavenger)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/13 "2004-12-23T04:08:41Z")
1. Spanish and French, four years of each, high school level 2. Semi-rural southwestern Pennsylvania, 1995-99 3. Middle class basically, though like **TVeblen** ’s school it encompassed a wide range of different classes; I was middle class though 4. Two years of the same language were required to graduate; they recommended you take it during freshman and sophomore year, which I did (I picked Spanish) ---
**Author:** ![Omega\_Glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7c8e57/32.png) [@Omega\_Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omega_Glory)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/14 "2004-12-23T04:13:09Z")
1. 5th grade. Spanish was required. In sixth grade, one semester of Japanese and one semester of Latin were required, you got to choose which one to take in seventh grade. At least three years of classes were required to graduate from high school. 2. Spanish, Japanese, Latin 3. upstate NY, in the early 90s 4. Mixed area that was mostly middle class. In the late 90s they started requiring kids to take Spanish from first to fifth grade. ---
**Author:** ![TVeblen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@TVeblen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVeblen)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/15 "2004-12-23T04:24:22Z")
Oops, forgot to add it was in southern Ohio–Cincinnati area–in the mid to late 60s. ---
**Author:** ![psycat90](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@psycat90](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psycat90)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/16 "2004-12-23T04:26:15Z")
7th grade. 1. French and Spanish 2. Central New Jersey, I was in the 7th grade around 1982-1983. 3. This is sort of a trick question for me. The area surrounding the school was farmland. Pure farmland. And it was a 15 minute drive from my house, which was in between the part of the town that was considered ‘developed’ and the farmland. Overall, the town was middle class/upper middle class (lots of second generation NYC Italian and Jewish families) and Farm Folk. It was quickly becoming a retirement community mecca as well. ---
**Author:** ![pasunejen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/58956e/32.png) [@pasunejen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pasunejen)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/17 "2004-12-23T04:40:04Z")
7th grade Spanish and French (Spanish, French, German, and sometimes Latin at the high school level) Howard County, MD; late '90s The classes were not compulsory in middle school–in fact, you could only take them if you got a B or above in Reading in 6th grade. In high school there was a specific tech ed track for avoiding foreign languages, but it was kind of a pain to follow and was used only by those who seriously hated languages and had absolutely no desire to go to college. ---
**Author:** ![pasunejen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/58956e/32.png) [@pasunejen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pasunejen)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/18 "2004-12-23T04:41:12Z")
Sorry, the socioeconomic status of the area surrounding my school: mostly lower middle class, with a smattering of (very) upper middle. ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/19 "2004-12-23T04:59:43Z")
Spanish…Senorita Rosita…on TV…15 minutes a day. Elementary school…early 60’s Florida ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2004, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275/20 "2004-12-23T05:00:56Z")
Working class neighborhood. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-grade-level-did-your-school-first-offer-foreign-languages/281275.md?page=2)