Our Bilingual Program
Two Languages. One Whole Child.
At Orlando Montessori Bilingual Academy, Spanish isn't a subject, it's the air the classroom breathes. From Primary through Upper Elementary, children move through their day hearing, speaking, and learning in both English and Spanish, guided by teachers who are native or fluent Spanish speakers.
The Case for Bilingual Education
The U.S. is more linguistically diverse than ever. As of the 2024 U.S. Census, nearly a quarter of the population speaks a language other than English at home, and Spanish is now spoken by close to 45 million Americans, more than quadruple the number in 1970.
The benefits of growing up bilingual go well beyond communication. Neuroscientist Albert Costa, author of The Bilingual Brain, found that babies raised in bilingual households begin distinguishing their two languages within hours of birth. His research also points to a lifetime of cognitive advantages: bilingual brains show measurable changes in grey and white matter, bilingual children tend to switch between tasks more skillfully than their monolingual peers, and perhaps most strikingly, one widely reported study found the average age of Alzheimer's onset was four years later in bilinguals than in monolinguals.
Psychologist Ellen Bialystok, one of the most cited researchers on childhood bilingualism, has found that bilingual children as young as three can outperform monolingual peers on tests of focus, flexible thinking, and working memory; advantages that show up well before a child ever forms a full sentence in their second language.
Research in this area is still evolving, and not every study finds the same size of effect. But the broader pattern is consistent: growing up bilingual shapes how children think, focus, and relate to others, not just what languages they speak.
What Immersion Looks Like at OMBA
- Full immersion, not translation. Spanish is used naturally throughout the day — in lessons, songs, transitions, and Grace & Courtesy routines — the way children absorb their first language, not as a subject taught in isolation.
- Age-appropriate progression. Younger children absorb vocabulary and sounds; older children read, write, and hold complex conversations in Spanish.
- Native and fluent-speaking guides lead instruction, ensuring authentic pronunciation and cultural context.
- Montessori + immersion, together. Montessori already emphasizes sensory learning, repetition, and independence at each child's own pace — an unusually natural fit for true second-language acquisition.
A Program Available at All Three of Our Campuses
- Orlando — 61 S Dean Rd
- Clermont — 355 Citrus Tower Blvd, Suite 116
- Oviedo — 261 S Central Ave
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