Which language should I choose?

[Mommy2BeautifulGirls]

I am looking for a language that my whole family can learn. I'm thinking I will start learning first since my girls are so young, and then eventually they will be learning it, too. I'm just not sure where to start.

 

Latin seems like the beginning of it all to me. I think it would be a great language to have a better grasp of. I am a medical transcriptionist, so I already am familiar with many roots, prefixes, and suffixes, although I know there are tons more.

 

Polish would be a great fit, since my husband is Polish and my kidlets are half. His grandparents all spoke fluently, and I think it would be good for our family to take advantage of that heritage.

 

Spanish is popular among my girls. They are big fans of Diego (esp. my older one, since she wants to be an animal rescuer just like Diego when she grows up!), so they're constantly calling for help in Spanish or telling each other to climb in Spanish. My oldest can count to 10 and they both know many colors. She is also always asking me, "How do you say ??? in Spanish?" I've never taken Spanish, so I can't really help her!

 

So, give me your votes!

[Chris in VA]

Haven't read the other replies, but I'd say go with Latin, pick up Spanish later and add in some Polish if you want.

[LadyAberlin]

I picked Spanish because at least where I am it is an asset in the business world if you can speak Spanish as well as English.

[TracyR]

I would say start with Latin first. I am also half Polish . My father is Polish . His family came over from Poland during WWII . They were in one of the concentration camps . My dad was the only one born in the US . So he can speak English much better then the rest of his siblings . I grew up hearing Polish . Can speak a few words in Polish . But I KNOW it when I hear it that's for sure . Because I always heard my dad speaking to my uncle or his parents . So if your children are around it then will understand it and as they get older they will pick it up easier later on .

I think starting with Latin helps though to make learning a foreign language much easier . I would give it a few years and then switch over to Polish . Then maybe later on for high school do Spanish and just let your daughter watch her Dora and Deigo for now :>)

[runningirl71]

Since Latin is the root of the romance languages, I say learn that first. Spanish will be easier to pick up then! :)

[Stacia]

I'd say if you have family members available who can speak Polish, do that right away. Can your dh speak to the kids only in Polish? (That's similar to what my dh did w/ dd from the time she was born until she was about 4yo. Then, he kind of fell out of the habit & my ds has not benefitted from that at all, unfortunately. But, we also have dh's parents nearby & they speak to the kids in Dutch.) Anyway, if it's a family thing & available, just add it in, even if it's just conversational at this point. Are there others around who could also speak Polish to the kids?

 

Next, I'd add in Spanish. I think Spanish is fun for kids & there are plenty of practical applications for it these days.

 

If you want, add Latin a little later down the road. Or, study Latin & Greek roots if you decide not to pursue Latin all-out.

 

Like someone else said, I guess I'd vote for all three -- just stagger adding them into your schedule over the coming years. You can't go wrong by adding more languages, imo.

[Mommy2BeautifulGirls]

My husband's grandmothers both can speak Polish, but I don't think that they really do anymore. Maybe we should start with Latin and then move into Polish later on. Spanish is not really useful where I am - at least not as useful as Middle Eastern languages would be. However, I do understand that it is a very useful language.

 

For those of you who study Spanish, do you go with Latin American Spanish?

[Mommy2BeautifulGirls]

Here's another question. Have any of you used Rosetta Stone for Latin? Or would you recommend something different?

[Kay in Cal]

I was thinking Spanish... but my ds6 came in and said "No, mom... Latin, because it's so fun!" So there you go. One vote for Latin.

 

He also wants to tell you that he uses Minimus, and really likes it.

[proudmamma]

I agree with Angie... Latin 1st :001_smile:

[unity]

I have studied a number of languages, and I think they all help you learn each other. I started with French waaaay back when, which helped me learn Spanish. Then, in grad school, I had a need to learn Latin, so I studied that for a couple of years. My background in Romance languages helped me learn Latin. I see no reason why you need to start with the harder language (Latin) to help you learn the easier. If and when Latin ever becomes relevant to your kids, it will be easier for them to learn if they already know Spanish.

 

I have a Ph.D. in French, but I teach my kids Spanish. It's hard for me to justify teaching them French when Spanish is about a million times more useful. If they are ever dying to read Proust in the original, I'll teach them French. :-)

 

I'd vote for Spanish. Polish would be cool too, but I'll bet your curriculum choices are limited.

[Brindee]

I voted Spanish as well. There are a LOT of vocab books that teach you Greek and Latin roots, which are very helpful, without having to study the whole language for years! Not to put down learning it, I'm just giving another viewpoint. It happens to be my dh's viewpoint, so I did Latin with our boys for a year, but then needed to move on to other things! :)

 

Hopefully, learning Polish will come if family members speak it with the kids. You can do Polish that way and Spanish as a class at the same time.

 

Spanish may not be as relative to you right where you are, but it is a very widely used language, so almost anywhere in the US you go, especially the big cities, you (and your kids) would be able to use it. Also, if they know Spanish and English well, and Polish would be even better, they'd be more likely to get jobs for being bi or tri lingual!

[Starr]

I wish we had been more serious about a foreign language sooner. I think I would start them on Spanish since they are having fun with it.