Spanish after Song School Spanish and The Fun Spanish?

[2Peanuts]

(cross-posted with Bilingual Board)

 

Hi all,

 

I've been researching Spanish programs for my DS8. He *loves* Spanish and I'd like to keep up his enthusiasm for it.

 

This past year (his first year homeschooling; he's just wrapping up 2nd grade), he tore through Song School Spanish, opting to a lesson a day because he just really liked it. I've been working through The Fun Spanish (which was recommended here on the boards somewhere...thanks to whoever recommended it!), alternating between that and watching a segment of GA PBS' Salsa. So far, he's been enjoying both programs and doing quite well with them, too. At the rate we're going, I suspect we'll finish with them by the end of the calendar year.

 

My question is: Where do I go from here?

 

I was thinking about Galore Park's So You Really Want to Learn Spanish, but I read somewhere that it's written for middle school? Is that correct?

 

I'm also considering Espanol para Chicos y Grandes (http://allbilingual.com/product/espanol-para-chicos-y-grandes/).

 

DS is autistic so going hard-core with grammar & lots of "conjugate this verb" lessons will probably kill his joy. (Hence my not really considering Spanish for Children...but perhaps I'm wrong?) He loved Song School Spanish because he loves music. He loves The Fun Spanish because the nonsense sentences are hilarious and he gets to draw pictures. He loves Salsa because it's puppets and who doesn't love puppets? :)

 

We have dabbled with Duo Lingo and he's fine with it, but I'm afraid to use it as our primary program, since it's dry compared to the songs/humor/puppets that he's been using thus far. I pull it out whenever I need a filler or want a break in our routine.

 

So, given this info, does anyone have input on the 2 programs I listed above ... or on any other programs out there that might appeal to young, precocious learners?

 

Thank you!

Carol

 

[goldenecho]

I really liked the videos at Foreign Languages are for Kids.  It's full immersion, but done in a way that makes it easy to pick up words and phases and understand whats going on.  It's a little pricey but worth it.  You'll go through the videos quickly though (I have not used their supplementary materials so can't comment on those).

 

This is another immersion site all in Spanish.  I know enough that I could sit with my children and help them.  It has some fun games.  But he may need help with some of them depending on how much Spanish he knows. 

http://cvc.cervantes.es/ensenanza/mimundo/mimundo/default.html

 

Perro y Gato on youtube is really good (warning...when you search for that on YouTube you'll be looking for a cartoon with the purple cat and chihuahua, and you'll want to search when your kids aren't around, because a search for Perry y Gato on youtube also will also bring up real cats and dogs...um...doing things together you probably don't want to have to explain to your kids).

 

We also used the old version of Power Glide Spanish for kids...you can find it used, and I think there's a new version but under a different name.   It used tapes and an activity book.  I liked it, only I wish there was more story and less activities per story.  It was a lot to get through with my children.  But they liked the stories and the activities taught them a lot.

 

There's lots of games for phone and ipad.  Mindsnacks was pretty good...once your child can read well.  There's some ones for kids my child likes but they are using my phone right now.  If I remember I'll come back and tell you.

 

And there's always hire a Spanish speaking babysitter!

 

 

 

[wendyroo]

If you are looking for "fun" Spanish, then a couple things came to mind.

 

Muzzy - I enjoyed it 20 years ago when I was learning Spanish, and my kids enjoy it now.  I don't always know, though, how much my kiddos are getting out of it.  They find it funny and entertaining, but my oldest (who is about at the same Spanish level as your DS) will often kind of coast through the videos without learning much.  My son is also autistic, and I think he often misses some of the cues that are supposed to be teaching the vocab and syntax.

 

La Clase Divertida - This is a video course (that comes with worksheets and activities) that shows Señor Gamache teaching a small class of students.  He teaches them songs and chants, talks about Spanish culture, introduces vocabulary, does activities (that your students can do as well), etc.  One good thing about this program, is that if it works well for your student, he could continue through the three elementary levels and then transition right into Señor Gamache's online upper level Spanish courses.

 

I also highly recommend the book Getting Started with Spanish.  It is not "fun" at all, but the lessons are short and simple and do a great job of incrementally introducing Spanish vocab and grammar.  I am having my oldest son work through GSwS along with Rosetta Stone, Duo Lingo and an intro high school text, Realidades.

 

Wendy

[sjrbmom]

I have used Espanol para Chicos y Grandes some time ago when I tutored homeschoolers (before kids) and would be happy to answer any questions you might have about it!

 

Sent from my Nexus 9 using Tapatalk

[2Peanuts]

I really liked the videos at Foreign Languages are for Kids.  It's full immersion, but done in a way that makes it easy to pick up words and phases and understand whats going on.  It's a little pricey but worth it.  You'll go through the videos quickly though (I have not used their supplementary materials so can't comment on those).

 

This is another immersion site all in Spanish.  I know enough that I could sit with my children and help them.  It has some fun games.  But he may need help with some of them depending on how much Spanish he knows. 

http://cvc.cervantes.es/ensenanza/mimundo/mimundo/default.html

 

Perro y Gato on youtube is really good (warning...when you search for that on YouTube you'll be looking for a cartoon with the purple cat and chihuahua, and you'll want to search when your kids aren't around, because a search for Perry y Gato on youtube also will also bring up real cats and dogs...um...doing things together you probably don't want to have to explain to your kids).

 

We also used the old version of Power Glide Spanish for kids...you can find it used, and I think there's a new version but under a different name.   It used tapes and an activity book.  I liked it, only I wish there was more story and less activities per story.  It was a lot to get through with my children.  But they liked the stories and the activities taught them a lot.

 

There's lots of games for phone and ipad.  Mindsnacks was pretty good...once your child can read well.  There's some ones for kids my child likes but they are using my phone right now.  If I remember I'll come back and tell you.

 

And there's always hire a Spanish speaking babysitter!

 

Hi goldenecho --- Thanks for recommending Foreign Languages for Kids. I checked out their website and I'm intrigued! It definitely has appeal with the video component and showing Spanish in everyday life. I am definitely bookmarking that page. Maybe I can use it as a supplement to something more book-based. 

 

And thanks, too, for the Youtube video recommendation. I'll be sure to look for the cartoon animals and not the other one. :) 

 

If you are looking for "fun" Spanish, then a couple things came to mind.

 

Muzzy - I enjoyed it 20 years ago when I was learning Spanish, and my kids enjoy it now.  I don't always know, though, how much my kiddos are getting out of it.  They find it funny and entertaining, but my oldest (who is about at the same Spanish level as your DS) will often kind of coast through the videos without learning much.  My son is also autistic, and I think he often misses some of the cues that are supposed to be teaching the vocab and syntax.

 

La Clase Divertida - This is a video course (that comes with worksheets and activities) that shows Señor Gamache teaching a small class of students.  He teaches them songs and chants, talks about Spanish culture, introduces vocabulary, does activities (that your students can do as well), etc.  One good thing about this program, is that if it works well for your student, he could continue through the three elementary levels and then transition right into Señor Gamache's online upper level Spanish courses.

 

I also highly recommend the book Getting Started with Spanish.  It is not "fun" at all, but the lessons are short and simple and do a great job of incrementally introducing Spanish vocab and grammar.  I am having my oldest son work through GSwS along with Rosetta Stone, Duo Lingo and an intro high school text, Realidades.

 

Wendy

 

Wendyroo, I hear you on the social cues issue. My son struggles with that, too. I'll have to do some research to see if Muzzy, then, would be a hit or miss for us. Thanks for the head's up, since that kind of issue isn't always obvious when you watch the samples.

 

I have GSWS (bought it ages ago!) so your mention is a good reminder to me to dig it back out & see if I can use it. I wonder if it'll be too dry for my kiddo, though. 

 

I have used Espanol para Chicos y Grandes some time ago when I tutored homeschoolers (before kids) and would be happy to answer any questions you might have about it!

 

Sent from my Nexus 9 using Tapatalk

 

sjrbmom, I'd love to ask you more questions about the program. Mostly, I just want to know (a) how solid is the Spanish (i.e., will he learn how to read simple Spanish passages as opposed to bunches of nouns & colors only?) and (b) how much does it appeal to younger learners? For example, I previewed a lesson from Breaking the Barrier and the reading passage was something about Ricky Martin and how he's "muy guapo." I don't have a problem with that type of content except that my kiddo is only 8 and he has no clue who Ricky Martin is. So, I'd rather a text be written with less appeal to tween/teen interests.

 

Thanks for all your ideas!

Carol

[sjrbmom]

 

 

sjrbmom, I'd love to ask you more questions about the program. Mostly, I just want to know (a) how solid is the Spanish (i.e., will he learn how to read simple Spanish passages as opposed to bunches of nouns & colors only?) and (b) how much does it appeal to younger learners? For example, I previewed a lesson from Breaking the Barrier and the reading passage was something about Ricky Martin and how he's "muy guapo." I don't have a problem with that type of content except that my kiddo is only 8 and he has no clue who Ricky Martin is. So, I'd rather a text be written with less appeal to tween/teen interests.

 

Thanks for all your ideas!

Carol

Carol, IIRC, there will be nouns and colors but also simple sentences and conversations. I don't think there will be any passages (like paragraphs), but sentences.

 

No tween appeal! This was hard for me as a Spanish learner too since I was sheltered from pop culture :). It is probably a good level of information and interest for an 8 year old.

 

I'm not sure if you speak any Spanish, but the text should come with an audio CD too - not tons of "fun" stuff on it but solid pronunciation.

 

Sent from my Nexus 9 using Tapatalk

[2Peanuts]

Carol, IIRC, there will be nouns and colors but also simple sentences and conversations. I don't think there will be any passages (like paragraphs), but sentences.

 

No tween appeal! This was hard for me as a Spanish learner too since I was sheltered from pop culture :). It is probably a good level of information and interest for an 8 year old.

 

I'm not sure if you speak any Spanish, but the text should come with an audio CD too - not tons of "fun" stuff on it but solid pronunciation.

 

Sent from my Nexus 9 using Tapatalk

I forgot to ask you --- If you had to teach Spanish again, would you use this program? Was there anything you found lacking?

 

I admit I like that the audio is available as a free download! I am particularly interested in finding native or fluent speakers to model the language for my son since my foreign language is ASL. Not helpful at all for pronunciation! :)

 

Thanks for sharing your thoughts with me!

 

Carol

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[sjrbmom]

I forgot to ask you --- If you had to teach Spanish again, would you use this program? Was there anything you found lacking?

 

I admit I like that the audio is available as a free download! I am particularly interested in finding native or fluent speakers to model the language for my son since my foreign language is ASL. Not helpful at all for pronunciation! :)

 

Thanks for sharing your thoughts with me!

 

Carol

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I might use this program again. It was well laid out and easy to use. I did add mapping exercises and a book of songs/chants. I would say that the weakness of it was speaking portion - it did have speaking exercises, but they were short and there weren't enough to review if the student needed repetition/reinforcement.

 

Sent from my Nexus 9 using Tapatalk

[2Peanuts]

I might use this program again. It was well laid out and easy to use. I did add mapping exercises and a book of songs/chants. I would say that the weakness of it was speaking portion - it did have speaking exercises, but they were short and there weren't enough to review if the student needed repetition/reinforcement.

 

Sent from my Nexus 9 using Tapatalk

 

Thanks for sharing your thoughts with me!