¡Hola! I am so excited that you are here. You being here speaks volumes about how much you value your child's education and their future.

I'm Maria, the founder of LingoStars. As a child, I emigrated from Mexico to Chicago and have lived in the United States since. I've called Naples home for the last five years and have three bright and passionate children, Emma, Caleb and Luci.

Why do I care about language learning? My passion for language learning began as a child as I eagerly devoured English books to help me learn what was completely foreign to me back when I first arrived in the United States. In high school, I became enamored by the French language and went on to major in French and Economics at Northwestern University. Later on, the travel bug got me and I learned Italian as a means to get around and loved every minute of it!

Why teaching? It may sound cliché but teaching has always been a passion of mine. In fact, my nickname was la maestra (teacher) when I was a little girl. In college, I spent the majority of my four years in the school of education with the goal of becoming a foreign language teacher. Today, as a mom of three, teaching the Spanish language to my children is not just a byproduct but a mission. From birth, I have sought every opportunity to teach them Spanish through commitment and dedication.

The same commitment and dedication is what I hope to build with LingoStars.

I am not simply passionate about language learning and immersion education but have lived it through. Prior to moving to Florida and getting married, I served as the Assistant Director at a local French immersion school in the Chicagoland area for five years. A few years later, I helped found its sister school, a full Spanish immersion preschool and kindergarten program.

Today, my hope is to put that experience to practice and give children in the Naples area the opportunity to learn a new language at an optimal age.