In the Lincoln Public Schools Foreign Language instruction occurs in grades 5-8 at both the Lincoln School and the Hanscom Middle School. Spanish and French are offered at both campuses. The program is best described as a proficiency-based model of instruction which stresses learning in the context of purposeful communication through speaking, listening, writing and reading. This "proficiency" approach gives priority to active communicative experiences. The goal of the department is to have our students communicate meaningfully and in real-life situations as soon as possible. In a proficiency-based model, assessment is based upon what the student can do with the language not just what a student knows about language.

Currently, faculty members are preparing thorough curriculum descriptions for our Foreign Language program. This work is guided by the standards found in the Massachusetts Foreign Language Curriculum Framework.