Denver Language School

451 Newport Street

School District

Denver County 1
Grade

K-8
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:17
Type

charter

School Map for Denver County 1 School District

GreatSchools Rating

The school rating calculation is based on four ratings: the Student Progress Rating or Academic Progress Rating, College Readiness Rating, Equity Rating, and Test Score Rating each designed to show different facets of school success. Learn more about GreatSchools Ratings

Reviews

Submitted by other on December 12, 2023

I feel compelled to respond to the December 2023 teacher review. I am disappointed in myself for allowing my children to attend this school from K-8. But one of the reasons i am concerned is not only the bullying (one student was arrested in class and allowed back the following day, students have been attacked violently, heck the school made the news for the level of violence at least once).I’m concerned at how much the school has lost its way. Students in households that speak Spanish and Mandarin were NOT supposed to attend. This is NOT dual immersion. By allowing Spanish speaking students attend the school the entire point of immersion is lost. There are so many other things that are now wrong with this school. It’s far too long a list. Admin is over paid. They don’t care what the school is supposed to be, don’t care about the charter. Teachers are underpaid. Students are not properly supported and they are not safe here. Especially girls.
Submitted by teacher on December 12, 2023

Few native-speaking Chinese students make immersive learning difficult to achieve. Spanish classes are much better, and there are many Spanish-speaking families. There is a lack of emotional support. Bulling, problem students may appear in any school, but this school's response and management still needs to be improved.
Submitted by parent on January 18, 2023

Bullying continues to be a pervasive problem at DLS, particularly in the middle school. Whatever DLS has attempted to do about it is not working. Trauma from bullying can be long-lasting and the damage to self-esteem can be life-long. We wish often that we had made the switch from DLS to a different middle school, but we were invested in the language immersion model..but at what cost? I suggest that parents who are deciding whether or not to stay for middle school consider their own child's susceptibility to bullying before committing. It's a small cohort of kids who can't escape each other or simply move on to a new group of kids to hang with...they are stuck with the same few kids. For our family, it's been something to endure, not enjoy. The immersion model is wonderful. Many of the teachers exceptional. The school community is lacking in the upper grades. Perhaps if parents were around more and knew other parents better, the bullying wouldn't be so out of hand. But it is indeed out of hand.
Submitted by student on October 30, 2022

It was Amazing I loved it there, totally recommend it.
Submitted by parent on October 23, 2022

I have a 3rd and 5th grader in the Mandarin program at the school and am very pleased overall. I have been active on the PTO and the community is strong at the school. The staff are not paid as highly as other public schools, but they are there because it’s a special place, and they want to be there. Like anything, the more effort that’s put in, the more you get out. I feel like the staff and community put a lot into the school and my kids are thriving here. Not all perfect, but that’s when I put in more.
Submitted by parent on May 26, 2021

Terrible School! Below one star. No support for Visual Arts. Actually is Anti-Visual Arts. As a result, there were multiple art teachers in only one year. The majority of teachers are not certified. The administration is terrible. There is no communication or consistency. They make things up as they go. Building Principal at K-4 School and Director are unresponsive to real needs. I taught here and it took 8 weeks for a functioning computer, yet I was required to post 17 online videos per week (and 4 in-person classes). The art room was beyond dirty and there is no storage for art materials so junk is piled to the ceiling when I started. I received zero support to get the art room clean or functioning. I received my teaching "contract" 8 weeks into hire and received no orientation and no information from the HR Human Resources who is located in Connecticut and is the only employee working remote. Two administers decided to go Part Time when I was there and positions were not filled to bridge the gap, creating less support. This is not a true "Immersion" school, students do not know the target language and many teachers do not speak English. Huge turn over, I saw a dozen staff leave in two months. There is no professional development. I was approved PD and then the principal "forgot" I was going and asked why I was not at a required CROSS GUARD duty. I was told I can "Yell at the Parents" who drive thru the crosswalks with children and teachers in the walk with the stopping up. I witnessed many bad things about this school.
Submitted by parent on March 11, 2021

DLS is amazing. I am thrilled to have both my children attending this school. Yes, as a charter teachers do not need a CDE license, however, they need to be highly qualified (state standard testing). These teachers come from around the globe with culture, education, and enthusiasm. During a pandemic, this school has ensured that students' safety comes first. They work hard at building positive restorative practices in the classroom as well as a growth mindset. My oldest is thriving because he has teachers who care. Yes students bully but you find that at any school. I was sad to read some comments about how the school doesn't take action regarding student behavior, well they do. It takes a village not a department.
Submitted by parent on October 23, 2019

So far my daughter is having a good experience
Submitted by other on July 25, 2019

The finance department is inept, unprofessional and doesn’t seem to understand how education works. The ED takes no part in the school unless it involves funding. English teachers receive no support and are looked down upon even though they are challenged with getting middle schoolers caught up with their peers. Stay away from this school!!
Submitted by parent on March 05, 2018

My son is in the Spanish program. I had been scouting out DLS since he was not even 2 1/2 years old, hoping they would start an early learning center, because I knew how competitive it was to get accepted. When school choice rolled around, I never wavered putting DLS as our number one choice. I have witnessed first hand how dedicated the leadership team, PTA, and school board members are. They put in countless hours toward making the school a great place to be a student, as well as an employee. I am so proud to tell friends and family that my son attends such a diverse school, since we live in a Caucasian dominant neighborhood (while touring our local schools, this was one of my hangups). The academics are fairly rigorous, which is slightly intimidating because neither my husband nor I speak fluent Spanish. However, we just had parent-teacher conferences, and apparently my son is performing just as well as his peers. All of the parents I have come in contact with have been very friendly, and have interesting travel backgrounds (not surprisingly), and the teachers are always very friendly and willing to address parent questions/concerns. I am thrilled that the school offers life skills classes as well. There are many more things I could say, but there's no doubt this school has exceeded our expectations.
Submitted by parent on February 26, 2018

I have an early elementary schooler in the Spanish program. We have been very happy with our experience so far. My son did not test into the G&T program but is advanced in math and his teacher has been happy to give him enriched homework, which he loves to do. He has learned to read and write and is reading above grade level even in English, where he gets less formal instruction. We do not speak Spanish in the home but have some relatives by marriage who are native speakers and they are really impressed with how fluent he is! He has made good friends and gotten into chess thanks to DLS's outstanding chess program.
Submitted by parent on November 08, 2017

Our son is in second grade spanish and thriving! We do not speak Spanish at home and yet he can read, write and complete math all in Spanish. The leadership at the school is outstanding and the teachers have all been amazing and compassionate. Every year the school is working hard to improve on and build from previous years. We feel very blessed to be part of this great DLS community and highly recommend this school. Not only does our son receive a strong education but he is learning it all while learning a second language and being exposed to a multi cultural view point.
Submitted by parent on November 05, 2017

My Daughter is in first grade and has had a really good experience. This is not like any other school, and the full immersion model is academically rigorous, however the rewards are great. If you don't want your child to be in a school that is academically rigorous then this isn't the school for you. She's in first grade and doing math and science in Mandarin, and had no prior experience. I think this is a wonderful opportunity to give your child. The children take a life skills class that helps them deal with emotions and helps them to become more empathetic. The school does deal with bullying as well. We could not be happier.
Submitted by parent on November 02, 2017

School is racist. My child has been here for 2 1/2 years & received nothing but problem from teachers & students. My child gets bullied all the time then when my child does something back my child is the only one who is disciplined. They don't take time to make sure the kid is understanding either. We'll be getting out of here soon hopefully.
Submitted by parent on February 10, 2017

We've been incredibly pleased with Denver Language School. Our daughter has been there for three years now and our son will start kindergarten in the fall, both in the Spanish program. The school really supports the whole kid - it's not just teaching to the test. She's not only becoming completely fluent in another language, she's learning how to think critically, to be a leader and a global citizen, and to problem solve. The teachers and administration are very communicative and helpful any time I have any questions, and I love how proactive they are about creative a positive learning environment and providing for my daughter's needs before I even know she has them. I highly and without reservation recommend Denver Language School to any parent looking for a language immersion experience in the Denver area. I can't wait for the kids to learn Chinese in the 5th grade - I may have to step up and learn it myself!
Submitted by parent on February 05, 2016

I was/am attracted to DLS’ greatschools.com rating and to some of the existing parent’s reviews, and by the opportunities that will surely come from my kid learning a language – but, I've also found myself asking, at what cost? My personal experience is that DLS may not be a good fit if your kid doesn't already speak the language; if you are sensitive about your kid’s emotional wellbeing and safety, and/or if you get bothered by a headmaster's poor response rate to things like safety.
Submitted by parent on January 11, 2016

Safety is most important. My child got injured at this charter school, his foot bone broken in the PE class before 10am, teacher and all other teachers at this school, ignored his pain and suffering, didn't even give him a hand, no any concern, no any attention. Just let him hop around and walk that differently in pain for whole day. The school didnot call or inform parents, just let my son in such a pain for whole day. My child had cast for 6 weeks, when the cast removed, his right leg muscle was thin and soft, hardly to walk normally. It took long time to get recovered
Submitted by parent on December 18, 2015

For the academic thing, I dont know how the rating gets calculated. Daily bully here, school doesn't do anything help to the parents and the classroom teacher. Teachers at public schools all have the teaching license and get all the necessary professional training. But not for this kind of charter school. Most teachers have no teaching license, very rarely have the license. students have the behavior problems, school just ignored and let the bully happen everyday in the classroom. Once anything bad happened, Denver public school district has no power to handle this school, this kind of charter school is just a business. Be aware!
Submitted by parent on October 16, 2015

We have been at DLS for going on four years now. While I cannot speak for the Spanish program, our experience in the Mandarin program has been really wonderful. I do agree that if you have a child who has trouble with a highly academic, structured school environment, this is probably not the school for them. DLS expects a very high level of academic achievement from the students, and this shows up in their test scores. My daughter, who has just average ability in math (takes after me, unfortunately) is testing at a year above grade level due to the math instruction at DLS. Yes, parents are asked to read with their children in English for twenty minutes per night, but if you deliberately choose to place your child in a full-immersion language school, I believe that that is part of the commitment for which you are signing up. I don't feel that I have been "homeschooling" my kids in English, but we do commit to the nightly reading time, and they are now (in 1st and 3rd grade) both reading at grade level in English. The "specials" are great, especially art and music, and all the teachers my kids have had are very caring and rigorous instructors. We couldn't be happier with our experience at DLS.
Submitted by parent on September 04, 2015

DLS is not perfect but what school is? I believe that we need to give schools time to implement all the feedback given. I know this is true because I've been a public school educator for 15 year, 4 of which have been in DPS. The parent community is active at DLS and they offer many opinions. I found the leadership of Kathy and her team to be top notch. They have slowly but very thoughtfully implemented the feedback given to them. After all, they're the experts in language immersion, NOT parents. Rome was not built in a day, people. Let's leave the instruction and running of a school to the people who are experts.