Foreign Language Help

[AFthfulJrney]

I’m looking for some suggestions on where to start with a foreign language for my children, ages 9 & 7? I have no second language experience, other than a little bit of Spanish from high school. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

 

Thank you!

[73349]

Some things to think about:

Do you want them to get started on a certain language to work toward fluency by graduation, or simply offer some things to sample/dabble in so they can choose a language in, say, middle school?

 

Do you want to learn alongside them?

 

Have they already learned a fair amount about grammar in English, or not yet?

[midori]

Does a particular language make sense to pursue, based on your geography or their interests? ie, in Texas, Spanish is the obvious second language, since there's so many opportunities to encounter it here. Right over the border in Louisiana, though, it's rooted so much in French culture, that French would make more sense there. Latin is a good choice for someone interested in science, Rome, medieval studies, the Bible, or the early Church Fathers. If someone likes anime, Japanese would be an obvious choice; if someone likes Ancient Egypt, Arabic or even hieroglyphs would be doable.

 

One thing to remember is that when they get to college, many programs require four semesters of a language. Giving them a solid foundation in something not too exotic will help them. Many times, taking a language course at a community college will transfer (if it's an elective and not actually the major itself), and isn't as rigorous a program as a language course at a four-year college. So look at the languages offered by your nearby community colleges, and choose one of those, if you want a cheap way to free up sixteen semester-hours in the future. :)

Edited June 16, 2016 by midori

[Miss Tick]

At those ages I would shoot for high interest, low pressure. They will likely be required to take at least two years in high school, so that can fill in grammar gaps and strengthen writing. That means focus on vocabulary and conversation now with different resources to keep it fun.

 

Latin has a lot of homeschool-friendly options. Modern languages can be trickier, but The Hive is here to help, with whatever you decide on!

[AFthfulJrney]

Some things to think about:

Do you want them to get started on a certain language to work toward fluency by graduation, or simply offer some things to sample/dabble in so they can choose a language in, say, middle school?

 

Do you want to learn alongside them?

 

Have they already learned a fair amount about grammar in English, or not yet?

Such good questions to consider. I think I'd prefer them to sample some things so that they can choose which language they want to pursue in the upper grades.

 

I wouldn't mind learning alongside them, but it isn't necessary.

 

And no, they both need more teaching and practice with learning English Grammar.

[AFthfulJrney]

At those ages I would shoot for high interest, low pressure. They will likely be required to take at least two years in high school, so that can fill in grammar gaps and strengthen writing. That means focus on vocabulary and conversation now with different resources to keep it fun.

 

Latin has a lot of homeschool-friendly options. Modern languages can be trickier, but The Hive is here to help, with whatever you decide on!

I definitely want something low pressure. So, would you suggest I start with Latin then? Especially since my kids still need to work on their grammar skills in English...

[midori]

The thing about Latin is that it doesn't have word order. Instead, you know the part of speech based on the ending. So not only do you need to conjugate your verbs, but you also have to decline your nouns and adjectives. So whereas in Spanish, you might have four options for the word "white"--- "blanco", "blanca", "blancos", and "blancas"--- depending on what the white thing is, and whether it's plural or singular, masculine or feminine, in Latin, you have ninety different options for "white".

 

Latin will definitely help you with your grammar--- we tend to speak according to "what sounds right". We don't think about "pluperfect" or "ablative". But they also have elements that we don't really use in English as well, like supine and deponent verbs. Unless you're good at picking up languages yourself, I think Spanish would probably be the most low-pressure foreign language that comes to mind.

[Epicurean]

If they're fluent readers, try Duolingo. It's like Rosetta Stone but free. It'll allow them to dabble in different languages and find one they're passionate about before buying other programs.

 

Completing a Diolongo tree will get you to a B1 level on the CFER scale. That's pretty darn good. However, it doesn't teach grammar formally (you learn it by integration) so there's that.

[J-rap]

At that age, I let my kids choose any language they wanted.  We made it more about having fun than intense studying.  I purchased simple, cheap workbooks that taught basic vocabulary (numbers, days of the week, etc.), got labels that you tape onto various things in the house with the word in English and the same word in the language they were learning, and simple little songs that help you memorize basic words in the language.  I think we also had a fun animated game or two on the computer that worked with simple vocabulary for that language.

 

My kids really enjoyed that, and even though the lessons were quite simple and casual, they remained interested and eventually began studying the language more intensively.  Two of my children eventually became completely fluent in those languages.  One of my daughters still claims that one of things that even now helps her the most are the fun memory songs that she learned as a child.

 

Edited June 18, 2016 by J-rap

[goldenecho]

For the 7 year old, I suggest the videos at Foreign Language is for Kids as a good starting place (unfortunately, not free...but the have a free sample video).  My son loved them at that age, and learned more from them than other programs I'd tried.

 

Duolingo is free and might work well for the 9 year old.

[drjuliadc]

I would love to know examples or resources for simple songs with basic vocabulary.

[ByGrace3]

I would love to know examples or resources for simple songs with basic vocabulary.

 

 

Sara Jordan's bilingual song's are a hit with my kids.

[Loesje22000]

I would love to know examples or resources for simple songs with basic vocabulary.

 

Which language?

 

Head, shoulders... 

is an international one:

http://www.mamalisa.com/blog/head-shoulders-knees-and-toes-with-an-mp3-recording/