A. Fantis School is pleased to announce it has been designated as NYC’s first Greek Dual UPK4 Program starting Fall 2021. Principal Tasoulas explained, “With nearly 60 years of experience teaching Greek language, culture and history, Fantis was uniquely positioned to initiate this program. This application was years in the making and we are thrilled to begin this work.” He also noted it is part of the school’s 5-Year Strategic Plan, an intentionally ambitious and comprehensive roadmap, which the school is on pace to fully execute by the 2023-2024 school year.

Dual Language (DL) classrooms target an equal blend of families, half with English and half with Greek as the home language. Similarly, the days are split equally between English and Greek instruction so all students have an immersive experience in both languages. This has been shown to promote balanced bilingualism and biliteracy. With this early childhood immersion model serving as a foundation, our goal is to enhance Greek language fluency for all students throughout their education at Fantis.

Ongoing research has demonstrated the ample benefits of bilingualism beyond simple language fluency, including enhanced executive functioning and cognitive flexibility. In addition, our dual language learners will be able to more fully experience the rich culture and history of Greece through the language and traditions. The UPK4 DL Program fully aligns with our school’s vision of graduates who are fluent in Greek with a cultural literacy that stems from over a decade of exposure to its traditions, values and history. Similar to a university “study abroad” program that is distilled over their education and culminates in a week-long senior trip to Greece!

All families are encouraged to apply to this program! Simply create an account on the MySchools website, find our school and you will see two options: PreK or PreK Greek Dual Language. You will have to select your home language, English or Greek. Families who speak Greek have several options to choose depending on their exposure and usage at home. If A. Fantis UPK4 is your top choice, you should apply to BOTH options—PreK or PreK Greek Dual Language—as admissions is competitive with over 10 applicants per seat.

Want to learn more? Visit our final Open Houses in March so you can apply before the deadline in early April, 2021.

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