2025 MABE Dual Language Bilingual Education Conference

Discover how analyzing students’ writing in Spanish and English side by side provided deeper insights and better informed our writing instruction. Through video analysis, group activities, and scenario evaluations, participants will gain strategies to implement co-assessment cycles alongside co-instruction. Walk away with actionable ideas to strengthen teacher-teacher connections, leverage biliteracy as an asset, and elevate multilingual learners' progress. Join us to learn how collaboration and holistic practices create meaningful opportunities for impactful learning!

What does “good teaching” look like in dual language? Learn about the Four Cornerstones of Dual Language Pedagogy, and see it in action by participating in a model lesson. You will come away with effective strategies and a framework that can be used to guide dual language programs. This is a repeat session from the 2025 conference.

Discover innovative strategies to create cross-linguistic connections. Learn how to identify and leverage language skills to meet your lesson objectives effectively. Get inspired with a variety of extension activities designed to reinforce and expand learning.

We'll guide you through the entire planning process, ensuring you feel confident and prepared to deliver cross-linguistic lessons in your dual language program. You’ll have the opportunity to watch compelling videos that bring concepts to life and provide practical insights. See how these strategies are applied in classrooms, making the content relatable and actionable.

Don't miss this opportunity to elevate your teaching methods and connect with fellow educators.

Join this dynamic panel of district leaders as they share promising strategies and solutions to build and sustain Dual Language Bilingual Education (DLBE) programs in Massachusetts. Drawing from diverse contexts and experiences through the Western Massachusetts Bilingual Hub (WMBH) Partnership, panelists will discuss overcoming challenges such as staffing, funding, and community engagement. Attendees will gain actionable tools to advocate for bilingualism, enhance program models, and engage stakeholders effectively. This interactive session offers practical insights, networking opportunities, and a deeper understanding of how to navigate the complexities of DLBE implementation, leaving participants equipped to strengthen bilingual education in their own districts.

Discover how the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) can transform English language learning by creating personalized, efficient, and engaging teaching experiences. This session will explore practical strategies for educators to promote the ethical and responsible use of AI tools while training students to think critically and act responsibly in the digital age. Participants will gain insights into how AI can enhance dual language education by supporting bilingualism, biliteracy, and academic achievement. Attendees will leave with actionable steps to implement AI-driven tools in culturally responsive and equitable ways, ensuring a meaningful and inclusive learning experience for all learners.

"Organizando a los padres para una educación más bilingüe en Boston"
Esta sesión explora estrategias efectivas para involucrar y empoderar a los padres en la promoción de una educación bilingüe inclusiva y equitativa. A través de actividades dinámicas y discusiones prácticas, los participantes aprenderán a desarrollar iniciativas comunitarias, tomando en cuenta las campañas que estamos liderando en Boston, y cómo esto puede facilitar la comunicación entre familias y escuelas, y fomentar el bilingüismo como una fortaleza cultural. Los asistentes saldrán equipados con herramientas y recursos concretos para implementar cambios significativos en sus comunidades educativas.

The presentation will discuss the impact of music activities on bilingual education. Its approximate duration will be 75 minutes. The presentation will cover how teachers can use multicultural music in their lessons to support sociocultural competence, multilingual songs to support biliteracy and bilingualism, and singing/songwriting to reinforce subject areas outside of music support high academic achievement.

Through our years of experience, we have appreciated how teaching music works on the social and cultural area of our students. We have used both languages in the musical repertoires we choose to teach our lessons. We have held concerts in which we celebrate Hispanic heritage. We have recorded musical projects in Spanish to highlight musical styles such as la Bomba and el Festejo, genres highly related to Puerto Rican and Peruvian culture, respectively. Likewise, we have worked on Latin rhythms by using instruments such as the flamenco cajon, bongo, güiro, maracas, congas, etc.

As teachers in elementary schools with bilingual education programs, we have used music to help students develop vocabulary and translanguaging skills, as well as supporting early literacy and other content areas through the use of songs.

Attendees will have the opportunity to learn and practice songs from multiple languages, practice translation and translanguaging skills by examining song texts, and apply musical skills to their own content areas, developing songs that reinforce vocabulary and concepts from their areas.

Participants in this session will be provided with examples of what contributes to the development of biliteracy in the early years. Participants will be provided opportunities to engage in strategies that can be used in the classroom to increase language proficiency in both L1 and L2. They will also learn pedagogies proven to be effective in developing language that is directly related to literacy acquisition in L1 and L2. This session will be packed with the latest in the science of reading and its influence on bilingual education and the complexities of acquiring literacy skills while developing language in two languages.

Using science stories to develop inquiry, curiosity, and language in multilingual students
This session explores strategies from the NSF-funded SISTEM project to support STEM thinking in young multilingual learners and the importance of reading aloud science-related narrative stories. Participants will discuss and evaluate these strategies, create activities for students to share findings, and explore resources promoting inquiry. Bilingual science book titles (English and Spanish) will be shared.

Pura Belpré pioneered bilingual storytimes, using puppets and performances to resonate with her community. Through dynamic reenactments, we brought Belpré's inspirational biography to life and performed her beloved tale "La Cucarachita Martina." Students also participated in a creative puppet-making workshop.
This groundbreaking initiative addressed a critical gap in dual language education by providing kindergarten students with rare exposure to fluent academic Spanish outside the classroom setting. The event was designed as a multifaceted celebration that went beyond traditional language instruction. It combined literary appreciation with interactive activities, all conducted in Spanish, to promote language comprehension and cultural connection.
By showcasing a respected Latina author, the project provided students with relatable role models in the literature, reinforcing the value of their bilingual and bicultural identities. We drew inspiration from the pioneering work of Pura Belpré, the first Latina librarian in New York City, who created an educational space where learners could see reflections of Afro-Caribbean culture.
This approach aimed to boost students' engagement with the Spanish language and enhance their academic Spanish proficiency. The project's significance lies in its potential to bridge the gap between classroom language instruction and real-world language application. By creating an immersive Spanish language environment centered around literature and cultural celebration, offered a unique opportunity for students to practice and expand their language skills in a meaningful context.
This research project not only contributed to the field of dual language education but also addressed broader issues of cultural representation and inclusivity in educational spaces. The outcomes of this initiative provided valuable insights for educators and policymakers, potentially influencing future approaches to bilingual education and multicultural literacy programs.

Otheguy, García and Reid (2015) have defined translanguaging as “the deployment of a speaker's full linguistic repertoire without regard for watchful adherence to the socially and politically defined boundaries of named (and usually national and state) languages” (p. 283). But what are the implications of it to language teaching and learning? In this presentation we are going to dive into the concept of translanguaging, the prejudice around it, and its importance in a bilingual education environment. We will also explain it through the lenses of sociolinguistics - so that we can understand it as a social and cultural phenomenon.

Routines can be a great ally for teachers. They help educators teach, and students acquire content and skills, while integrating the cultural essence that is so important in dual-language teaching. Attendees will have the opportunity to participate and realize how routines may evolve from the early levels of education to the transition into middle school. The presenters will share bits of their experience so that other professionals can benefit from them and incorporate them into their classrooms.

We know that emotional well-being influences academic success, but what do we do to make our students feel better? Do we really know our students?
The objective of this session is to learn about the relationship between social-emotional well-being and academic success through scientific evidence, as well as to participate in activities that act as a bridge between the social-emotional and academic factors while we have fun and we get to know each other. In addition, the most effective strategies in bilingual education will be presented.
If you are interested in bilingual education and interpersonal relationships this is the workshop for you.