I just read that my little suburban school district has students speaking more than 80 languages.

[pnwmom]

In Seattle, it's 129 languages. In Los Angeles, more than 240.

Wow. If I'm remembering right, the Seattle area numbers are about twice what they were when my kids started school.

I wonder what it's like in the middle sections of the country? And the south and southwest? Is this part of what makes red and blue states so different? Or is this happening everywhere?

How many languages are spoken in your school district?

[49jim]

1. Our granddaughter attended a pre-school

in New Britain, CT last year and there were 15 students in her class. Languages that were spoken in the room-English, Spanish, Polish and four dialects from India. Many of them were learning english for the first time.We went to her pre-school graduation and it was certainly eye opening. She is now starting kindergarten and a regular part of the curriculum is spanish class.

[Spider Jerusalem]

2. It's negligible in the middle of the country

in most school districts most students will be native English speakers; those who aren't will be Spanish speakers. The numbers of foreign-born residents (and first-generation children of immigrants) is much higher in a few specific places because there are already immigrant communities there (and more job opportunites, etc). Here's a map using census data from 2010 to show the percentage of foreign-born residents in US states:

[pnwmom]

5. That map obscures some of the differences because the most diverse areas

are metro areas (like the Seattle metro area), whether or not they're in a state that is diverse.

[Blue_In_AK]

3. Anchorage School District has nearly 49,000 students,

More than 50% are minorities. Students speak 91 different languages at home. After English, the five most common languages are Spanish, Hmong, Samoan, Filipino, and Yup'ik.

[pnwmom]

4. Wow. 91 in Anchorage! n/t

[Blue_In_AK]

6. Anchorage has a really diverse population for a city it's size

(a little less than 300,000 people). In fact, Anchorage's Mountain View neighborhood was recently named the most diverse neighborhood in the country. http://www.adn.com/2013/04/06/2855271/hometown-u-data-show-mountain.html

A lot of people are surprised by that.

[pnwmom]

7. I had no idea. I guess I was assuming that people from places

like Samoa would be put off by the weather. Shows what I know!

[Blue_In_AK]

8. Lots of Samoans, lots of Koreans, lots of Thai, Laotian, Hmong, Filipino

People from everywhere. We've recently had quite an influx of Somalians, as well. It's one of the things I like about Anchorage, that the neighborhoods are so multi-cultural.

[pnwmom]

9. It sounds much more like Seattle than I realized.

Except with a few more mosquitoes.

[Blue_In_AK]

10. We sometimes call Seattle "Anchorage South."

Of course, we also sometimes call Anchorage "Los Anchorage." Lol