Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Bilingual Celebrites and their Children

Here's another article about celebrities and how they're raising their children to be bilingual. Madonna's piece was a little funny to me because her kids have "secret" conversations with each other in French while she and her husband don't understand a word they're saying.

That won't be our situation, right? Because we're learning Spanish along with our children. And, I hope this blog gives you the help you need to keep the Spanish fun going.

Famous Multilinguals and Their Stories

“If you know two languages, the level of your intelligence is multiplied a hundredfold in other people’s eyes.”

--Bill Cosby, actor

Read on

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Quality vs. Quantity Spanish Language Exposure

Do you feel that your child doesn't get enough exposure to the minority language?

Remember, it is not only quantity, quality matters too.

I really appreciated this article because sometimes I feel that my kids will learn Spanish better if they were in a Spanish-immersion program or playgroup. But until I'm able to make that happen, there's plenty our family can here right at home to provide a rich Spanish-learning environment.

Read on and be encouraged too!


5 Ways to Improve The Language Interaction

No, you don't need to speak differently to your baby, but bear in mind that he can tell if you're engaged and enthusiastic. However, if you feel your baby is getting only a limited amount of the minority language and you want to be as 'effective' as possible in the way you communicate, here are some useful pointers.

Speak TO your child


The sheer quantity of speech addressed to the child is the single most important factor in learning language, regardless of how many languages you are working with. It doesn't help if you talk on the phone all day or make the baby watch television (although TV can be great for preschoolers). Babies will only make sense of what they hear if the words refer to something they can directly relate to -- the here and now. Particularly for young infants, face-to-face contact is key. Babies are absolutely fascinated with human faces which make language even more engaging for them. As early as four months, babies have already started linking sounds to mouth movements, although they can't see how their own faces move. Maybe this is why babies love to be imitated so they can finally see what their faces must look like when they make their sounds. So, coo back to your heart's content."

(Read more)








Saturday, March 1, 2008

How do you say "Glue" in Spanish!!

Hi, I just needed a moment to vent about some frustration I'm having.

I'm trying to find out how to say "glue" in Spanish. I always thought that "glue" was "pega" in Spanish because when my daughter went to her Spanish playgroup, the teacher had a container of Elmer's School glue labeled "PEGA." And I heard her say "pega" when referring to the glue.

So, I've been telling my kids that "pega" is the Spanish word for glue.

But when I looked up "glue" in a Spanish dictionary online recently, "pega" didn't show up. I remember watching an episode of "Handy Manny" and finding it interesting that Manny said "goma is the way we say glue in Spanish." I've seen "cola" and "pegamento" and the closest "pegue" as the meanings of "glue" in Spanish, too.

Which word is it?

Thanks