shmily Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 So, I'm looking for Spanish programs for my kids. I've looked around but there are so many different programs! I was hoping maybe those who have experience with teaching their children Spanish could offer some suggestions or pros/cons. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pitterpatter Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 Not to sound snarky, but good luck! It's a crap shoot. I'm frustrated with the lack of good material. What grades/ages are you looking for? Do you know the language at all? Here's what I've written on my blog at Spanish. What I've been using has been fine, but I'm not quite sure what to do next. http://bluehouseschool.blogspot.com/search/label/Teach%20Them%20Spanish - Read the oldest post first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamabear2three Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 has anyone used song school spanish? I was wondering if it was any good, in the meantime, we are using Salsa episodes http://www.gpb.org/salsa/term/episode# Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
junepep Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 We spend about 30 minutes a day combining Salsa Spanish (with the lesson plans from http://edu.wyoming.gov/searchresults.aspx?SearchQuery=salsa) and Spanish for children. After each lesson we use flash cards for vocab building. Then on Wednesdays we're part of a co-op spanish class that meets once a week that really motivates them to learn the language because they get to see other children speaking it. It seems to be working well, but I'm not aiming for fluency, I'm simply aiming for them to be understood if they travel to a Spanish speaking country. We're also going slowly because I'm learning along with them. I took french and latin in school, so spanish is a stretch for me. I expect that both programs will take us about 2-3 years to complete at our current rate, but we're enjoying ourselves and I think that's the most important thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haiku Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 I don't know how old your kids are, but here are some suggestions for varying ages: Getting Started with Spanish Berlitz Self-Teacher Spanish Espanol para los chiquitos/Espanol para chicos y grandes Poco a Poco (free from Google books, also has a teacher manual) Avancemos! (Holt middle/high-school Spanish), also has an extensive website with supplements at go.hrw.com HTH! Tara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetted4 Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 http://www.spanishdict.com/learn Spanish Dict is a free web site for learning Spanish. Takes a step by step approach and only lets you progress to the next lesson once you've earned enough points (by watching the instructional video and then taking a variety of quizzes). If you work with them, or their are old enough to be able to remember Spanish spellings, this is a useful site. We go back and redo quizzes peridocally in order to keep the material fresh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TarynB Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 Lots of great suggestions already. I'll also add Visual Link Spanish as an option. There's a link to it in my signature below. It is computer-based, combines visual images with properly-spoken auditory training (great for my DS), engaging, appropriate for (mid?) elementary all the way to adult, not terribly expensive, and you can try it for free. We tried several others before we found this and it is working amazingly well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shmily Posted April 21, 2013 Author Share Posted April 21, 2013 Thanks for your suggestions so far. I didn't think to mention how old my kids were. My oldest is 8 but the younger ones would be listening in as well. At such young ages, they soak info up like a sponge so I thought if they could learn it at the same time, well...yay! ;-) Oh, I took a year of Spanish back in high school, but that was a while ago lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoo_keeper Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 We did many videos like Salsa episodes, First Step Spanish (and some of the following levels), Elementary Spanish, Whistlefritz, El Perro y El Gato, etc. Right now we're using Song School Spanish. We have Getting Started with Spanish waiting in the wings. Oh, and we have but lost steam on Learnables and The Fun Spanish. Spanish for Children is also on our horizons... Sigh, I must stop buying curricula at some point... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyforlatin Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 I think DD is learning more from having a daily tutor (just in the 2 months) than anything we've been doing up to that point, but that's not to say that she's not learning more grammar from a book. We use Practice Makes Perfect workbooks to give some direction in her casual conversations with the tutor. I really like Poco a Poco, but it's not easy if you are not proficient. There is a lot of practice in the form of conversations and it's one of my favorites. I do have DD ask the tutor about certain words and phrases that I can't figure out. She did learn enough in GsWS to continue with other books. I do like Twisted Doors by Dr. Dior but I'm not sure how great it is with younger kids. This could be used after GsWS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom0012 Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 La Clase Divertida would be great for your kids' ages. That's what we started with. We did levels 1 ans 2 and then we went through GSWS, which I loved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DandelionPrincess Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 cant figure out how to quote, but thank you to whoever posted the link to lesson plans for the salsa episodes! we really want gsws, but its just not in the budget quite yet. anyhow, thanks!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pitterpatter Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 Are you looking for something where you learn alongside your children? Or, something that's totally independent? That makes a big difference. I took several years of Spanish between high school and college. I was never fluent by any means, but it was enough that I understand how the language works. I use Forvo.com to make sure I'm pronouncing words correctly. I even download and play MP3 files of native speakers saying the words as DD learns them. I strongly considered this curriculum set before choosing another path. http://www.christianbook.com/puertas-abiertas-spanish-kit/jenifer-heflin/9780972334129/pd/428002?product_redirect=1&Ntt=428002&item_code=&Ntk=keywords&event=ESRCP There's also Flip-Flop Spanish. I would start with the absolute youngest level, if you got this route, even though your oldest is 8. The ages are misleading. I have the higher level, but haven't used it yet. It doesn't fit our structure well and seems like it would be better for larger homeschooling families. It comes with audio files, so that might be helpful to you. You can buy the paper version several places and the eBook for cheaper from CurrClick (you download the .mp3 files). http://www.flipfloplearning.com/ Thanks for your suggestions so far. I didn't think to mention how old my kids were. My oldest is 8 but the younger ones would be listening in as well. At such young ages, they soak info up like a sponge so I thought if they could learn it at the same time, well...yay! ;-) Oh, I took a year of Spanish back in high school, but that was a while ago lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pitterpatter Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 I haven't yet, but it's on my list. Did you download the sample? That would probably help in your decision. It involves a decent amount of writing, so I'm waiting until my DD is a tad older. I think one complaint that I've read is that they didn't use native speakers. Otherwise, I think it's pretty much the same as their Latin program. has anyone used song school spanish? I was wondering if it was any good, in the meantime, we are using Salsa episodes http://www.gpb.org/salsa/term/episode# Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pitterpatter Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 One problem I've found with starting young (not so much of a problem, but a big annoyance...ok, maybe it is a problem), is that due to the lack of good material for the younger grades is that you have to choose wisely and go at a moderate pace in the beginning or you'll fly through the material and then be left with only programs that are too difficult in terms of reading and writing. I have found that Spanish programs progress from being fun and hands-on to writing-intensive and boring very quickly. There is a huge niche here that is begging to be filled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shmily Posted April 21, 2013 Author Share Posted April 21, 2013 Again, thanks everyone. I am currently using Fluenz to learn Spanish, but it isn't really geared toward children. For the kids, I guess I'm looking for something that is more immersion learning with dvd's and then I can reinforce the lessons with some sort of worksheet or hands-on type lesson. I kind of liked the looks of Whistlefritz and they have free downloadable lesson plans/worksheets for homeschool use. Anyone else have more input on this program? Also, what is GSWS? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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