I have a 7 yr. old and a 10 yr. old that I would like for them to learn spanish but I don't know where to start. I speak and understand spanish but I'm not comfortable enough to teach them what I know. I don't want to teach them wrong. Does anyone have any advice.
2006-09-13 08:05:07 · 20 answers · asked by Mom of three 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
First, ignore all of the close-minded, ignorant bigots on yahoo. As you know, there are other reasons to learn Spanish besides "aiding and abetting" non-english speakers in our country. Contrary to what was said above, research shows that if you don't begin to speak a language before the age of 12, when the facial muscles finish developing, you will never be able to fully produce the sounds of that language. So get them started now!
I would start with lots of nouns - label everything you can in Spanish, and teach them how to pronounce the letters. They may be fascinated (as I was) to learn that it is so regular, that there are not 10 different ways to pronounce the letter "e", for example, the way English is!
Simultaneously you can start working in some greetings, feeling words, etc. If you can find a bilingual buddy who would be willing to talk to your children, even better, so they can hear some native pronounciations. If you have nothing better in your area, you can always bring them to a Mexican restaurant - the employees in my favorite always seem tickled to chat with little kids in Spanish!
Good luck and good for you for introducing your children to a rich and valuable language. I am pregnant (my first), and planning to raise my child bilingually (I'm a native english speaker). All the best, suerte!
2006-09-13 10:42:03 · answer #1 · answered by mthompson828 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Rosetta Stone is said to be a pretty effective system for teaching languages. I suggest you take them to a languages school where they can learn it and of course I congratulate you on wanting you kids to be cultured, because knowing a second language is always important, no matter what everyone else tells you about Spanish, if they learn a new language you are helping to expand their horizons, and if you get them to learn some other language that's even better.
Congrats on being a great mom, and good luck!
2006-09-13 15:15:47 · answer #2 · answered by White 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
personally, i think that it is good that you want to teach your kids spanish, but i think that you shoud try to teach them somethings, even if you're not comfortable with it. This way they will already be comfortable speaking with you before they have to speak to a stranger.
Im not even latina and i want to share my knowledge of spanish with my kids in the future.Even though people are trying to make everyone speak english, you can still conserve part of your heritage if you speak your native tongue. I hope this helps.
Oh, by the way, im seventeen and i learned spanish in high school, and im in intermediate spanish in college. So if you don't want to teach them yourself, they'll probably end up learning it in junior high and high school anyway. Hope this helps.
2006-09-13 15:47:43 · answer #3 · answered by brooklynladee 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's good to learn other languages, and more if nowadays Spanish is very important, since most of the inhabitants of this continent speak it...
why don't u get them a tutor, or buy cds and books to teach them...
2006-09-13 15:17:38 · answer #4 · answered by badtz 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There are cdrom's you can buy for the computer to teach languages (one being spanish). Or better yet, contact schools for tutors, I'm sure you can find someone willing to teach your children. And sometimes it is best to teach them yourself, as you can make learning more fun plus if you speak "slang", then that's better than having them taught proper spanish and the spanish make fun of the kids.
2006-09-13 15:07:54 · answer #5 · answered by GirlinNB 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
My advice is to wait until they are in middle school. Studies show that children who grow up knowing how to speak two or more languages have a more difficult time learning another language as an adult. On the other hand, if they learn an additional language after they have a firm grasp of english, it helps them to learn a third language (or more).
2006-09-13 15:09:07 · answer #6 · answered by Danzarth 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
There are many softwares that offer a crash course on a language. Go to Amazon and search.
Also they will learn spanish in middle school and highschool so don't worry about that.
2006-09-13 15:12:52 · answer #7 · answered by R man 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A friend of mine has a child, they are in a bicultural family. Her husband is from Mexico and she is a white American. She just told me a bout a daycare that she found that has a spanish teacher and music teachers too. There are classes available too for children. I suggest that you enroll them in classes. It is important for them to pick up the grammar side of it first. Then introduce them to native speakers...like go to a Mexican restaurant and have them order in Spanish...or take them to a Peruvian festival. There are lots of things out there!
2006-09-13 15:29:49 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
well, you could find other kids their age that speak spanish and make play dates, also you can buy dvds in spanish and with subtitles for them to see and listen, talk to them in spanish and tell your relatives that speak spanish to talk to them in spanish too, and enrol them in spanish lessons with a tutor..
It's really great that you want your kids to learn another language..
2006-09-13 15:17:13 · answer #9 · answered by Manina 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
look for tutor places where they can learn spanish. teach them spanish at home n let them learn english in skool.
2006-09-13 17:24:11 · answer #10 · answered by NoName 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋