thefragile7393 Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 My son will be in first grade later this year and has expressed that he would like to try and learn Spanish. Is there a program out there that would be good for a 6 year old....and if I could throw in the 3 year old preschooler that would help a lot too. Just something she could sit in with us on for a few mins and learn. Muzzy caught my attention but I've heard a lot of negative reviews about those. The company offers a trial for 30 days at 10.95 or so...but I'd like to see if there is something else out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taffnus Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 We are LOVING Salsa. It is FREE and my dd is loving it. She's about to turn 6 and begs for it. She even asked if I could wake her up with the video on my Ipod. Crazy. I'm supplementing with some Youtube videos and a great music cd I found (Joel Valle - Mi Guitarri). http://www.gpb.org/salsa http://edu.wyoming.gov/Programs/standards.aspx (look under "Foreign Language" for teacher's resources) Salsa takes some work on the part of the parent but I really like the immersion style. We're walking around singing in Spanish. It's great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ariston Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 I agree, there are a lot of great youtube videos. Also if you have cable, Sprout offers a lot of their kids shows in Spanish on demand and Univision has Dora and Diego and some other shows on Saturday morning in Spanish. For some reason my kids cannot get into the Salsa videos. I think they're too baby for my 7 year old, and he's very distracted by the sign language (and so am I, to tell the truth.) But they are great, and I WISH my kids liked them. Music has helped my kids learn a lot. We love anything by Jose Luis Orozco, and we like the Whistlefritz CD's. Whistlfritz also makes DVD's that look good, but I've never put the money down for them. (Same thing goes for Little Pim DVD's--though you can rent them through netflix.) My kids have also had a lot of fun with Usborne First 100 Words and then 1,000 Words. For some reason my kids love flashcards and have learned an enormous number of words that way, too. If you had money to blow you could splurge for Calico Spanish. It seems to be a great early elem. spanish curriculum. I've downloaded the sample and it looks great, but at $300 it is too much for me. Also if I remember correctly you need to at least be able to read Spanish. Que tengas suerte! (good luck!) Elena Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ariston Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Salsa takes some work on the part of the parent but I really like the immersion style. We're walking around singing in Spanish. It's great. Would you mind elaborating on the work it takes? I was basically just turning it on and walking away :D. I think i recall there was some teachers materials though...are they worthwhile? I think my son is a lost cause, but I might try in earnest to get my daughter to like them. I agree that the immersion is great. I was getting so tired of finding videos that were 99% in English! Elena Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 I advise against Muzzy. This originated as an English-language course presented as a cartoon. It has been dubbed into multiple languages and is sold as a course for each of those languages. As might be expected, however, the story line illustrates English grammar, rather than the grammar of the dubbed languages. So, for example, in the Spanish edition, there is nothing in the story to highlight the gender identity of nouns as male or female. That being said, my wife and I did use the German edition as a intro for our daughter when we started teaching her German. But we spoke German to her regularly. You can not set your child in front of Muzzy and expect him to learn the foreign language. For what it is, it is very overpriced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taffnus Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Would you mind elaborating on the work it takes? I was basically just turning it on and walking away :D. I think i recall there was some teachers materials though...are they worthwhile? I think my son is a lost cause, but I might try in earnest to get my daughter to like them. I agree that the immersion is great. I was getting so tired of finding videos that were 99% in English! Elena I must first state that we're only 3 weeks into Salsa and on episode 2. Also, my 8 yo dd started with us but told me she's too old for the videos so it's just my dd (6 this month) and me. With all that said, I print out the teacher's materials and review them for each class. There are wxplicit except uses to do each day to reinforce the vocabulary. If you speak Spanish, it would be much easier. I speak a very little so I just do the best I can. We watch the video together and do the rec. activities. The second day we watch the same video using their recommendations for "active listening." that makes it fun, interactive, and more memorable. She watched the first episode 5 times in less than a week because she was so interested. Once she found out there are more episodes though, she's not wanting to watch as many times - not that 5 times is necessary! So, I am an active participant with her. I figure she'll get much more out of it that way. She then has computer time in the morning when I'm working with the older and she watches something in Spanish - Martha Speaks, Curious George, Phineas and Ferb. She must watch them in Spanish but it's never a problem. It could be with another dc. Anyway, I hope that helps. I really want her to learn to speak Spanish so I feel i need to throw myself in there too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thefragile7393 Posted March 15, 2012 Author Share Posted March 15, 2012 That's too bad that Muzzy does not teach proper grammar...bleh. I will look into Salsa for sure, thanks for the recommendation! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted March 15, 2012 Share Posted March 15, 2012 Another board member and I are currently working on making worksheets to go with each lesson of Salsa Spanish. I will be making Beginner worksheets for K-1st that has very little to no writing, more matching, circling, etc. I am also making Regular worksheets for 1st-2nd that involve actually writing the vocabulary in Spanish, etc. I will let you know as soon as I have them finished, but it's a slow process. I might just keep updating as I finish them so people can use them as needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susie in MS Posted March 15, 2012 Share Posted March 15, 2012 Due to bandwidth restrictions I am unable to use Salsa. If I had the extra dough I would get Speedy Spanish Primer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rasa Posted March 15, 2012 Share Posted March 15, 2012 Another board member and I are currently working on making worksheets to go with each lesson of Salsa Spanish. I will be making Beginner worksheets for K-1st that has very little to no writing, more matching, circling, etc. I am also making Regular worksheets for 1st-2nd that involve actually writing the vocabulary in Spanish, etc. I will let you know as soon as I have them finished, but it's a slow process. I might just keep updating as I finish them so people can use them as needed. We use Rosetta Stone Spanish with our youngsters. They both love engaging photos and instant feedback. Plenty of repetition boosts confidence. Both kids are making steady progress, even the 4-year-old can effortlessly translate simple sentences (such as "My apple is green") to Spanish. The seven-year-old just started level 2; it took him about 6 months to go through level 1. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thefragile7393 Posted March 16, 2012 Author Share Posted March 16, 2012 Another board member and I are currently working on making worksheets to go with each lesson of Salsa Spanish. I will be making Beginner worksheets for K-1st that has very little to no writing, more matching, circling, etc. I am also making Regular worksheets for 1st-2nd that involve actually writing the vocabulary in Spanish, etc. I will let you know as soon as I have them finished, but it's a slow process. I might just keep updating as I finish them so people can use them as needed. Thank you SO VERY MUCH! I would be excited to use these....as the lesson guidelines from the site just...I only have 3.5 days a week to homeschool...I don't have the time or the energy to make my own stuff up lol. 26.2mom, I was considering Rosetta Stone....but I feared that it would be too much for my 3 yo..of course I don't except a lot for her age except exposure but you said that your 7yo is starting level 2? That gives me some confidence that maybe my kids could do it... Looking into that speedy spanish primer too...that's a good buy.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eschuetter Posted May 18, 2012 Share Posted May 18, 2012 So excited to have found this thread -- my kids will love this! Thank you for sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murrayshire Posted May 18, 2012 Share Posted May 18, 2012 Another board member and I are currently working on making worksheets to go with each lesson of Salsa Spanish. I will be making Beginner worksheets for K-1st that has very little to no writing, more matching, circling, etc. I am also making Regular worksheets for 1st-2nd that involve actually writing the vocabulary in Spanish, etc. I will let you know as soon as I have them finished, but it's a slow process. I might just keep updating as I finish them so people can use them as needed. I would love to have a copy of these when you are done! That's awesome that you ladies are doing this! Thank you.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Tick Posted May 18, 2012 Share Posted May 18, 2012 In our house I have set up a mix to keep everyone's attention and so we don't burn through any one curriculum. Here are some of the things we do: Our library has Muzzy online which I can access for free. Once a week we play some of the games and watch a segment of the video. I recognize the grammar criticisms, but this is a nice exposure to vocabulary and it does have little "break-out" discussions of all sorts of topics. I wouldn't buy it new, but for free it is a great bargain. We watch an episode of Salsa once a week. I don't usually mess with the teacher stuff (I don't have the time), but I do generally watch it with them and we stop and talk about it once in a while. Twice a week we go over a letter, the sound it makes, words that start with it. This will build up to phonics in a few more weeks. I try to keep these sessions short and to the point. One day a week we talk to a native speaker, and/or watch Pocoyo on Youtube, read a Spanish book from the library (although it is hard to find *good* ones - preferably not translations, not too much text, topical, etc.) Spend some time thinking and talking with your ds about your goals. Fluency takes a LOT of study. Would it make sense to spend a year working on vocabulary and basic sentences? Is it going to be a top priority for you both, mostly independent study for him, twice a week, only when everything else gets done? All those factors can help you decide the best approach to studying the language in your house. Buena suerte! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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