G.L.A.D. to Expand Their Horizons
Welcome to the Global Language Academies of Downey (G.L.A.D.)
Downey Unified’s G.L.A.D. dual language immersion program teaches children to think, read, write, and communicate naturally in two different languages with the goal to become biliterate in both English and a target language.
G.L.A.D. empowers students to achieve high levels of academic success and develop cross-cultural skills that will give your child various advantages for the rest of their lives!
The Benefits of Learning . . .
Career & Travel Opportunities
- Spanish is one of the most popular languages spoken worldwide
- You will be able to communicate with over 572 million people in the world
- Spanish is the world’s second most spoken language
Boosting Vocabulary
- Learning Spanish will familiarize you with English words that have Latin roots and help you decipher new vocabulary
- Similarities to other languages. Understanding Spanish makes it much easier to pick up on other Romance languages, like Portuguese, Italian, French and Romanian, since they all evolved from Latin and share grammar, syntax, and lots of similar vocabulary
Living in Southern California, enrolling in our Spanish program may seem like the obvious choice, but there are many benefits to learning French.
Career & Travel Opportunities
- More than 300 million people in the world speak French
- French is the most spoken language in Europe after English
Embrace a Culture of Art & Academics
- French is a common language in the arts from cooking to dance to architecture and more. If your child has shown talent in the arts, French may be helpful as they pursue their craft.
- France is home to top global universities, including Sorbonne Universite
Similarities to Other Languages
- Learning French can be a great starting point for learning other European languages like Italian, Romanian, and Spanish.
Understanding the IB Primary Years Programme
Carpenter Elementary G.L.A.D. is recognized as an International Baccalaureate World School. Carpenter follows the IB Primary Years Programme’s three guiding principles (holistic learning, intercultural awareness, and communication), with the goal of developing bi-literate, inquiring, knowledgeable, and caring young people who are motivated to succeed.
The IB programme helps create students who will:
- ask challenging questions
- think critically
- learn across disciplines
- develop research skills proven to help them in higher education
Have older students?
Sussman Middle School is an IB Candidate School for the Middle Years Programme.
G.L.A.D. Programs
There are multiple benefits to being multilingual, multiliterate, and multicultural in today’s global society. While only Carpenter Elementary offers the IB program, we have several schools that offer a dual language immersion program.
Application Process
The application window is now closed.
Subscribe to our email list for updates about the 2025-2026 window.
1. Attend a mandatory informational meeting
2. Complete and submit an application
3. Receive an e-mail notification if accepted or waitlisted
4. If accepted, complete online enrollment