Garfield Elementary School

I have been impressed by the level of attention and instruction by each teacher and staff at Garfield. I grew up being bilingual and bicultural in English and Spanish in the United States. However, it was because of my household that I grew up this way. I did not grow up in a place that made me feel welcome. At Garfield, my child thrives not only because of the dual language instruction, she thrives because she is able to be herself and be proud of her heritage. Garfield is a place where my daughter's background is celebrated, honored and respected!

A warm, kind, culturally diverse community of children, families, teachers, and staff. Garfield offers dual language immersion (Spanish) and is a "school of the world" that takes equity, inclusion, and knowledge of other cultures to heart.

My son went through Garfield (now a sophomore in high school and still in the Dual Language Program) and my daughter is now finishing her last year there. After 11 consecutive years as a family at this school I can tell you I would send my children no place else! In addition to being well-prepared for academic challenges (i.e. honors classes beyond elementary school), being supported regarding their special needs, and becoming bilingual, they have both received other very valuable gifts such as learning to value and celebrate diversity, understanding their own privilege, and gaining an awareness that they should promote social justice in the world throughout their lives.

This School of the World should be a model for other schools and districts. Instead of marginalizing non-English speakers, it puts everyone in the same boat with learning a language at an early age.

Hi! ¡Hola!
Our daughter is in her second year at Garfield, as a 2nd grader (2017). She LOVES Garfield - and so do we! The balance between respect, learning, challenge and socio-emotional development are all that I had hoped for when I made the decision to transfer her away from a higher-scoring school to Garfield. The communication with teachers and staff has always worked for us (although being proactive in our daughter's education comes naturally to me - I reach out regularly). The benefits of dual-immersion education is something I believe should be offered to ALL KIDS - ours just happens to be one of the lucky ones, who gets to actually have all of her learning take place seamlessly between Spanish and English. There is no need for translation, the learning just keeps happening. When I hear her jabbering away at home in Spanish (we are an English speaking family) - I know it is working for her. My concern of her being bored due to a lower 'rank' (test score wise) has been completely unfounded, due primarily to the dual-language. All of the kids seems to enjoy being at school - I don't get the sense that there is much school-prompted anxiety. The teachers are caring and attentive to each kids individual needs and the class-sizes are ideal for our current grade. There is always room for improvement of course, which is why I ranked it 4 instead of 5 - like we need an updated building and COVERED outdoor play area. I WISH the kids could play outside all year long!!!

~Kudos and Gracias!

Garfield is a wonderful school with a rich curriculum in cultural diversity. The dual language opportunities create more than bilingual, bi-literate students, they shape culturally responsive and socially engaged students.

Garfield Elementary School has an amazing diverse, caring community, of which I am proud to be a part. My children are receiving an excellent education and I am thankful to have this dual immersion school in our community!