Boca Beth Rocks in our House!

It's been a little over a month since we've gotten and used the Boca Beth program. It took me about 3 months to decide whether to purchase this program or not. It wasn't so much that I had doubts about the program. It was all ME. Oftentimes, I have to catch myself or else I'll buy up every Spanish learning book, cd, dvd, software or curriculum I come across.

I'm a Spanish learning product junkie!
LOL!

I had to decide if I should just try the program and buy one cd or dvd. Or, just go all out and buy the full backpack program. I decided to buy the full program because I had a plan in mind. I knew that I wanted to make my family's "Spanish Times" a little more interactive, productive, and cohesive. I knew that I wanted to create multimedia-type Spanish lessons for my girls--where we sing songs, we watch a show, we read a book, and do an activity all around the same topics.

So, Boca Beth's program fit the bill perfectly because her songs are about so many different topics. I wouldn't have to go on a scavenger hunt trying to find Spanish songs for colors, the opposites, the senses, time, days of the week, months of the year, animals (y mucho, mucho mas.)

Boca, your cd's and dvd's covered them all!

The first thing I played was the bonus music videos dvd. My girls loved it. They played with Boca the puppet and the maracas. In the video, "Movin' and Groovin'" Boca plays a little keyboard. We happen to have one too, and the girls love bringing it out for Boca to play. Our only disappointment was that the dvd was too short. Make more videos, Boca!!


The girls weren't as responsive to the "Animals" dvd, but they liked Boca Beth's class demonstration at the end. I appreciated that part too because it gave me an idea of what to do with my girls.

I must admit that at first I was a little critical. I told my husband that I hear more English than Spanish. He smiled at me, patted me on the back and said, "It's in there." He said that I needed to curb my expectations of total Spanish immersion where any English is a no-no.

He was right because the bottom line is--Are the girls learning Spanish from Boca Beth's program?--Yes, they are!

The other night I heard Jessie singing "¿Qué pasa? What's Happenin? No mucho. Not much. No mucho conmigo." And today, I casually asked my girls, "¿Qué pasa?" (without any singing or cues). Both girls paused for a bit and then Janai said, "No mucho." She went on to say, "No mucho means not much."

I'm very happy with my Boca Beth purchase. The program makes my lesson planning easier and more fun.

Check back often to see the Spanish lesson plans I post integrating the songs from Boca Beth and the many other Spanish resources we have, around topics and concepts commonly taught in early childhood.

¡Hasta luego!

Spanish Lesson Plans for Children: Shapes

Title: Spanish Lesson Plans for Children: Shapes

Materials needed:

• United States of America flag (real or picture)
• Puerto Rico flag (real or picture)
• Shapes cut-outs (circle, triangle, rectangle, and square) in the colors (yellow, blue, red, green, and orange.)
  
• Bebé Donald hace un amigo de nieve/ Baby Donald Makes a Snow Friend: Baby’s 1^st Disney Bilingual Book: A Book About Shapes
• Donald: Shapes Exercise #1 (Tuesday)
• Shapes Worksheet and Crayons-yellow, green, red, blue, orange

• Donald: Shapes Exercise #2 (Thursday)
• House Cut and Paste Activity (unrevealed)

Opening* (Transition from speaking English to speaking Spanish.)

In a plane we are going to Puerto Rico.
Fly, fly… (make it more fun by saying: fly high, fly low)
Bippity-boppity-boo
¡Hemos llegado! (We’ve arrived!)
Estamos en Puerto Rico (We’re in Puerto Rico. Hold up the Puerto Rican flag)

Welcome song (La cancion de bienvenido)
“Hola amigo”/ “Hello Friend” Boca Beth’s My 1^st Songs cd

Exercise/Movement/Active Singing/Games
(3-4 activities based on theme)

1. Song/Cancion: The Spanish Vowels song
2. Song/Cancion: “Yo sé mis formas”/ “I Know My Shapes” Track #14 Boca Beth More-Mas cd
3. Song/Cancion: “Veo colores”/ “I See Colors” Track #4 Boca Beth My 1^st Songs cd
4. Game/Juego: Yo espio/I Spy. Cut out the shapes (1 or 2 of each shape)—circle, triangle, square, rectangle--in the colors we learned in previous lesson and post them in different areas of the room. Then I say, for example:

Yo espio un círculo. I spy a circle. (After the child finds a circle, give praise and ask as a review:
¿Qué color es el círculo? What color is the circle?

Another example:
Yo espio un rectángulo amarillo. I spy a yellow rectangle.

(Praise and encouragement)
¡Buen hecho! Well done!
¡Lo hiciste! You did it!
¡Eso es! That's it!
¡Muy bien! Very good!

Vamos a descansar. Okay, let’s rest a little.

Story (cuento) Bebé Donald hace un amigo de nieve
Es la hora de leer un cuento. It’s time to read a story. Or, It’s storytime.
Vamos a leer un cuento. Let’s read a story.

(You can review rules for being good listeners in English.)

En inglés, Remember to be good listeners by sitting quietly and paying close attention to me while I read. Can you do that?

(Interaction with your child and the book).

Hay muchas formas en el libro. There are many shapes in the book.

Muestrame un círculo en esta página. Show me a circle on this page.

La pelota es un círculo. The ball is a circle.

La bola de nieve es un círculo. The snow ball is a circle.

los ojos the eyes

Muestrame un cuadrado. Show me a square.

los bloques the blocks

Muestrame un triángulo. Show me a triangle.

la zanahoria the carrot

los bloques the blocks

la cinta the hair bow (or ribbon)

(Other interactive questions)

Te gusta el cuento? Did you like the story?

¿Cuál es tu forma favorita? What is your favorite shape?

Mi forma favorita es … My favorite shape is …

(Praise and encouragement) En inglés, You guys were very good listeners today. Gracias. And when I say “Gracias,” what do you say? (Most likely she’ll say, “De nada.”)

(Transition) Ahora, es la hora de hacer arte. Now it’s time to do art. Let’s put the book away and go to the table.

Arts and Crafts
Tuesday Exercise #1 Shapes Review Activity

1. Distribute the shapes review worksheet printed out in black and white

2. Have fun naming the shapes (just mention that oval = óvalo)

3. Have fun pointing out which shape is “grande” “big” or “pequeño” “small” in Spanish.

4. Then color shapes using interactive questions, for example:

Muestrame el círculo pequeño. Show me the small circle.

Punta al rectángulo grande. (not sure if this is the correct way to say, "Point." Point to the big rectangle.

Colorea el círculo pequeño rojo. Color the small circle red.

Colorea el círculo grande verde. Color the big circle green.

Colorea el cuadrado grande amarillo. Color the big square yellow.

Colorea el cuadrado pequeno azul. Color the small square blue.

Colorea el rectángulo grande naranja. Color the big rectangle orange.

Buen hecho! Well done!

Thursday Exercise #2
House Cut and Paste Activity (unrevealed)

(Optional activities)

http://pbskids.org/dragontales/dragonfair/s_cassie.html

Find the Shape with Cassie from Dragon Tales (This particular game is not in Spanish, so just name the shape that Cassie is holding in Spanish, you could also say the color in Spanish and say: Let’s find the circles in this picture. Vamos a encontrar los círculos en esta foto.

Good Bye song

“Adios amigas, ya me voy.” Juguemos a Cantar cd

Closing Transition*

En avion volvemos de Puerto Rico (In a plane we are coming back from Puerto Rico)
Vuela, vuela.. (vuela alto, vuela bajo) (Fly, fly… fly high, fly low)
Veo los Estado Unidos (I see the United States)
Bippity-boppity-boo
We have arrived.
We are in the United States

* idea from Five Super-Easy and Fun Strategies to Immerse
Preschoolers in Spanish

¡Feliz Cumpleaños a Mí!

Happy Birthday to Me!

I just wanted to say that I had a blessed birthday today.

I got lots of hugs (muchos abrazos) and kisses ( y besos) and birthday wishes (deseos del cumpleaños) from my girls. I went to church. And, then I got a lot of rest (descansa) because my Mom came by.

¡Hasta luego!

Bilingual Celebrities—Who Knew?

Hola,

Did you know that Will Smith fluently speaks a second language? How about Kobe Bryant? Find out what languages they speak and which other celebrities have traveled the bilingual journey!

Bilingual Celebrities—Who Knew?

A foreign actor, diplomat, writer, or athlete speaking fluent English is not much of a surprise to American or British audiences. Perhaps a little arrogantly, we expect Penélope Cruz, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Roger Federer, or Charlize Theron to drop their native languages (Spanish, German, Swiss German, and Afrikaans, respectively) and chat in flawless English.

But you may be surprised by the number and the names of the native English-speaking celebrities who speak another language.

Hearing William Shatner, for instance, speak fluent French would probably be about as shocking as a phaser blast. Or watching Kobe Bryant hold an interview in Italian as smooth as his jump shot —perhaps a bit surprising. Watching David Lee Roth do anything is going to be a little startling, but seeing him speak in Spanish? Go ahead and jump! (Read more)

Spanish Lesson Plans for Children: Colors

Here's my first lesson plan.

Spanish Lesson Plans for Children: Colors

Materials needed:

• United States of America flag (real or picture)
• Mexico flag (real or picture)
• Floor mats or construction paper: in yellow, green, red, blue, orange
• Colored props: pictures, scarves or objects to use during songs
• Amarillo y muy rico/Yellow and Yummy: Baby’s 1^st Disney Bilingual Book: A Book About Colors
• Pooh: Colors Exercise #1 (Tuesday) Worksheet and Crayons-yellow, green, red, blue, orange
• Pooh: Colors Exercise #2 (Thursday) Worksheet, Glue, Colored fish cut-outs

Opening*
(Transition from speaking English to speaking Spanish.)

In a plane we are going to Mexico.
Fly, fly… (make it more fun by saying: fly high, fly low)
Bippity-boppity-boo
¡Hemos llegado! (We’ve arrived!)
Estamos en México (We’re in Mexico. Hold up the Mexican flag)

Welcome song (La cancion de bienvenido)

“Hola amigo”/ “Hello Friend” Track #2 Boca Beth’s My 1^st Songs cd

Movement/Active Singing/Games
(3-4 activities based on theme)

1. The Spanish Alphabet song

2. “Veo Colores”/ “I See Colors” Track #4 Boca Beth My 1^st Songs cd

3. “Los Colores del arco iris”/ “The Colors of the Rainbow” Prof. Parrot Speaks Spanish dvd

4. Freeze Dance. Play music. Everyone dances or walks around. When the music stops, everyone gets on a color. Then I ask something like,

Who is standing on the color “rojo”?
Is anyone standing on the color “amarillo”?

(Praise and encouragement)
Que divertido! Oh, what fun!
Muy bien! Very good!
Vamos a descansar. Okay, let’s rest a little.

Story (cuento)
Amarillo and muy rico/Yellow and Yummy

Es la hora de leer un cuento. It’s time to read a story. Or, It’s storytime.
Vamos a leer un cuento. Let’s read a story.

(You can review rules for being good listeners in English.)
En inglés, Remember to be good listeners by sitting quietly and paying close attention to the story while I read. Who can be good listeners today? (Eventually, I will get the translation for this.)

(Read the Book)

(Interaction with your child and the book).

• Muestrame el color xx. Show me the color xx
• ¿Ves el color xx?Donde? Do you see the color xx? Where?
• ¿Qué color es éste? ¿Rojo o naranja? What color is this? Red or orange?
• ¿Qué color ves aquí? Azul o verde What color do you see here? Blue or green

(When asking open ended questions, give 2 choices to guide child's thinking or jog her memory)

(Other interactive questions)

• Te gusta el cuento? Did you like the story? (If your child answers yes or sí, you can encourage her to speak in a complete Spanish sentence by saying: When I ask you, “Te gusta el cuento?” you say, “Sí, me gusto el cuento or “No, no me gusto el cuento.” (Encourage child to repeat “sí” or ”no” Spanish sentences. Even if she just says, “Sí, me gusto,” that’s cause for applause.)

• ¿Cuál es tu color favorito? What is your favorite color?
• Mi color favorito es … My favorite color is …

(Praise and encouragement) En inglés, You guys were very good listeners today. Gracias. And when I say “Gracias,” what do you say? (Most likely she’ll say, “De nada.”)

(Transition) Ahora, es la hora de hacer arte. Now it’s time to do art. Let’s put the book away and go to the table.

Arts and Crafts

Tuesday Exercise #1:Colors Review Activity

1. Spanish Colors Worksheets

a. Get original, professionally-drawn Spanish colors worksheets when you sign up for my monthly e-newsletter Spanish Time! It's free.

Or,

b. Distribute this colors review worksheet (printed out in black and white)

2. Have fun naming the pictures in Spanish

• el pajaro bird (tweet, tweet like a bird)
• la hoja leaf
• el sol sun
• la flor flower (pretend to smell the flower and say, “Mmm, huele bien.” “Mmm, it smells good.)
• el pato duck (quack like a duck)
• los calcentines socks (everyone show their socks)

3. Then color pictures using interactive questions, for example:

• Encuentra la crayola del azul. Find the blue crayon. Good.
• Colorea el pajaro azul. Color the bird blue
• Y ahora, naranja. Now pick up the orange crayon.
• Colorea el pez naranja. Color the fish orange
• Donde esta l hoja? Where is the leaf?
• Colorea la hoja verde. Color the leaf green.
• Aqui esta el sol.
• De que color es el sol? azul or amarillo?
• Color the leaf green. Where is the leaf?
• Here is the sun. What color is the sun?
• And let’s color the apple red.

Buen trabajo! Good job!

Thursday Exercise #2: Fish Bowl Cut, Paste and Color Activity
unrevealed

Good Bye Song

“Adios amigas, ya me voy.” Juguemos a Cantar cd

Closing*
(Transition from speaking Spanish to speaking English)

En avion volvemos de Mexico (In a plane we are coming back from Mexico)
Vuela, vuela.. (vuela alto, vuela bajo) (Fly, fly… fly high, fly low)
Veo los Estado Unidos (I see the United States)
Bippity-boppity-boo
We have arrived.
We are in the United States!

Key
( ) Notes to myself are in parentheses.
Blue font = spoken in Spanish
Purple font = Spoken in English

* idea from Five Super-Easy and Fun Strategies to Immerse
Preschoolers in Spanish

You Can Teach Spanish to Your Child

If you're like me, a monolingual parent who wants to teach her child another language, you may have some insecurities. You may be wondering, "How can I teach my child a language that I don't speak fluently?" "What if I'm not pronouncing the words right?" "Suppose she asks me what something means and I have no idea what it means?" I will echo what the author of the following article says:

Proceed With Confidence

There is so much you can do to foster and support a bilingual environment in your home. We're doing it, and we're happy to share with you how.

"Calming the Anxiety of Parents Teaching a Second Language"
by Dr. Christine Galbreath Jernigan

I am a researcher of foreign language education, a foreign language teacher for over 13 years, and a mother raising two children to speak my second language. I have interviewed and “play-dated” with over 80 families raising children to speak a language that is not their first language. Before they begin, and even en route to exposing their children to a second language, parents come to me looking for support.

Often I hear parents say, “I’m not good enough at the language and I won’t be myself in another language.” I assuage their anxiety with, “You are learning the language with your children. Throw out the ‘perfectly fluent native speaker’ model of a language teacher. Communicate—listen to music, sing, watch videos, and read read read in the second language.”"
(Read more)

Preparation: Spanish Teaching Resources

What does it take for monolingual parents to raise their children to be bilingual?

Preparation
Preparation
Preparation
and Consistency

How are we going to accomplish this ambitious feat?

Well, for one thing, we are doing Spanish Time again. For Spanish Time we spend 30 minutes (oftentimes more) a day watching Spanish kid shows, listening to cd's, or trying to speak in Spanish. For two of those days we will do more of an immersion program-type Spanish Time. I'll explain more on another day.

I’ve laid out a simple plan to help us speak Spanish in fun and interesting ways. And this is everyday, conversational Spanish. First I made an extensive list of sentences and phrases that we use every day and got the Spanish translations. For the translations I used my knowledge-base (limited), the Altavista Babelfish website (the results are mediocre), and whatever Spanish I picked up from all of the programs I bought.

Then I gathered up all of those Spanish resources I’ve collected over the years. The most recent purchase being the BocaBeth program.

The picture below shows everything pretty much that I’ll be using for our Spanish Time.

Here’s a breakdown of what I have here:

1) My stack of Baby's First Disney Bilingual Books. We have 25 of them. Most I got when I joined Scholastics-at-Home Book Club. A few I recently purchased from Amazon.com. I like these books because the stories are simple. There are actually sentences to read aloud to your children. So, you not only learn Spanish vocabulary, but you and your child are learning how things are said in phrases or sentences.

2) The Spanish alphabet chart. This was the perfect chart for us because it has “ch” “ll” and “ñ” just like our Spanish alphabet song. I got this chart from Classroom Direct a while ago and as of today I see that it’s out of stock. There is a 5-chart package that it comes in as well, though.

3) My best friend, Lynn, lent me these Barron's Baby Bilingual Books: Spanish. The format is a flashcard-type format. They’re simple, colorful and are good for building Spanish vocabulary. It comes with a simple pronunciation guide.

4) Boca Beth’s Backpack Set program. What I found most attractive about this program is the variety it offers. The songs address many different topics ie. colors, opposites, animal sounds, shapes. There are music CD’s, video DVD’s, an activity book, a puppet, and simple instruments. I won't have to go on a scavenger hunt trying to find songs that will fit the story topics we'll be reading.

5) Muzzy in Spanish. I bought this when my daughter was less than a year old. I learned a good deal from it. But I wasn’t quite satisfied. With Muzzy, I found the storyline was a bit mature for my kids (the princess and the gardener are in love and run away together) That’s for kids?? Also, after watching the DVD’s for about a month or two the show got tired. I was looking for a kid-friendly program with variety (songs, and videos) and some depth and breadth to it.

6) I also have CD’s like Beth Manner's Magic Spanish and Fun Spanish for Kids cd's. I usually let it play as background music while the kids are playing.

7) Someone had recommended Professor Parrot Speaks Spanish. The DVD was entertaining for about a month. It has cute songs and dances. We liked the "Parts of the Body" song the best. Still, we needed something beyond "como se llama," numbers and colors.

8) Visual Link Spanish. The disc shown here is just one of 10 cd’s and cd-roms that come in the program. The program also comes with a mini-Spanish manual, which I found excellent. It compiles all the lessons on the cd’s in one mini-manual. Check back often because I will be taking Visual Link up on their 30-day guarantee.

9) The Cat in the Hat Beginner Dictionary in Spanish. I used to just read through this dictionary to build up my vocabulary. But Jaida knows that this is a Spanish and she'll sit down with it to look at the pictures. I'll try to use it more with her during our Spanish Times.

10) The cd with a picture of two squirrels on it is from Juguemos A Cantar, a Spanish-immersion music and preschool program in Brooklyn's Park Slope. The songs are beautifully sung and the tunes are catchy. My girls and I like to dance to this cd. The only thing is that the disc did not come with lyrics--Spanish or English. So it's hard for me to understand what she's singing sometimes. I can understand fully and sing maybe 5 (out of 19) of the songs. But that's all right because we enjoy dancing to the music.

11) We recently discovered a Spanish PBS station called V-me. We find it on Ch. 199 on Cablevision. From 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mon-Fri., they show Spanish preschool programs. Our favorites are Las Tres Mellizas Bebés (The Baby Triplets) and Jim de la luna (Lunar Jim). They also show Plaza Sésamo (Sesame Street) and Los Pies Mágicos de Franny (Franny's Feet).

12) A good source for worksheets and coloring pages written in Spanish can be found at Primera Escuela (Preschool in Spanish). The English language sister site is First-School Preschool Activities and Crafts.

13) And of course, there's always Nick Jr.'s Dora and Diego, PBS Kids Dragon Tales and Maya y Miguel, Playhouse Disney's Handy Manny. The Nick Jr. website has very helpful ideas for teaching Spanish to children. It has short video clips, coloring pages and plenty of activities.Please click around to learn more about the various Spanish programs, shows and websites that we're using to help us raise our children to be bilingual.

And in my Spanish lesson plans for children, I'll show you how I incorporate all of these resources into Spanish Times that are simple, interactive, easy-to-implement, and most of all FUN!

Let us know what you think. Also, if you have other resources to recommend, please by all means, write a comment. We'd love to check them out.

¡Hasta luego!

Jessica

Top Ten Benefits of Learning Spanish (or Another Other Language) Early

In a previous post I promised that I'd respond to "Why go through all of this--the time, the energy, the money to teach my children Spanish?" A desire for my children to be able to speak another language is my prime motivation. Aside from expanding their potential circle of influence in the global economy, I think having them learn another language is excellent brain exercise. I’ve come across many interesting articles on the benefits of learning a second language. Here’s one …

Top Ten Benefits of Early Language Learning: "Top Ten Benefits of Early Language Learning

Ten Great Reasons to Start
Learning a Language Now

Learning a new language at any age is an enormously rewarding experience in many ways. While language learning is an enriching experience for all ages, children have the most to gain from this wonderful adventure. Quite simply, starting early offers the widest possible set of benefits and opportunities.

Children understand intuitively that language is something to explore, to play around with, and to enjoy. Their enthusiasm is both infectious and effective. The quickness with which they pick up their first language is nearly miraculous—and such a joy to watch as a parent. As children grow, all parents can attest to how much fun their children continue to have as they sing new words they hear and even invent new ones with a huge, bright smile. The joy with which children explore their first language makes childhood the ideal time for a second language—even if all the other reasons for an early start didn't exist!

But there are many other reasons, and while this list does not exhaust the number and variety of advantages starting a language early can provide, these are some of the most notable benefits." (Read more)

A Concern About ISB

Just wondering what you think,

Last summer the International School of Brooklyn moved into a bigger building with more classrooms, bigger windows. Moving into the new location was an exciting time for them. I was extremely happy as well. They were still at the old building when I went on the interview and tour.

After it was obvious that I would have to enroll Jaida in another school, I decided to drive by ISB's new location. (So that I could visualize Jaida going there next year.) My desire for her to go to that school, though, came to a crashing halt...when I saw that the school is right next to and above a dry cleaning facility. I thought to myself,

"What about perc and other chemicals seeping through the walls?"

Man, even if I could enroll Jaida in that school, I wouldn't do it. Perhaps there are newer, safer developments in the dry cleaning industry, I don't know--but for now ISB is no longer an option.

If anyone from ISB would like to address that concern, please feel free to comment. I still love what you're doing and wish you all the best.

¡Qué le vaya bien! May everything go well for you!

The REAL Reason I Started This Blog

I started this blog because I was upset that I couldn’t get my daughter enrolled into the International School of Brooklyn (ISB). Read on the find out a little bit more about this challenge.

I began searching for Spanish-speaking, immersion-type preschools/programs from the time Jaida was born. I took her to a program Musica Para Mi, when she was 9 months old. While I liked Musica Para Mi, there came a time when I wanted a program where I didn’t have to be present in the class. I came across Juguemos a Cantar. They too had a music program for young children, but what interested me the most was their extended playgroups. The playgroup met once or twice a week for 10 weeks. And best of all, it was a drop-off Spanish immersion class that lasted 1 ½ hours. They also had a preschool program where you can choose how many days your child would attend. So Jaida attended the extended playgroups once a week in the afternoon for 2 or 3 semesters.

When Jaida was around 2 years old, I received an email from Musica Para Mi announcing that a group of parents wanted to open a bilingual immersion school for English and Spanish or French. I went to their first meeting. With 3 babies now and no steady babysitting, I couldn’t commit to the group. But I would occasionally check on them to see how the school's opening was progressing.

For 3 years I set my sights on enrolling Jaida into that school by the time she reached kindergarten. I felt that Jaida and my other children needed more Spanish language exposure than I could give. I knew that the tuition would be hefty, but I felt we had time to plan, save, start a home-based business or something. Things didn't work out for Jaida to enroll.

Today the ISB has grown from just offering playgroups to a thriving school in a bigger and brighter location with 2nd grade added on. Again, things did not work out for Jaida to go. While I was disappointed for a time, I remembered that when things don't work out, my God has something even better in store (Ephesians 3:20.) That's why instead of being burnt about it, I’ve decided to buckle down and re-commit to teaching my children Spanish the best way that I know how with whatever resources and supplies I have at the moment.

All along my husband, James, insisted that we could teach them. But I wanted her to get into that school real bad. James helped me to keep my goal into perspective. Our goal is for our children to be bilingual, not to get them into that school.

My daughter just started kindergarten in public school. I’m so tickled because this is the school that I went to as well. I’ve asked the teacher’s aide to speak to my daughter in Spanish when she can. And, the class is taking French! Praise the Lord, my daughter is working on being trilingual!

Why go through all of this? What’s the benefit of spending so much time, effort, and money to teaching your child a second language?

The next time we meet, I’ll share with you some interesting findings about teaching your child another language and how those findings may be ringing true for my daughter.

Chao!

Kick Off the New Year with Fun and Easy Ways to Learn Spanish!

Happy New Year! ¡Feliz Año Nuevo!

As I spend this week preparing Spanish lesson plans for my children, I thought I'd share this article with you. It gives advice on what to look for when shopping around for language programs for your children. Enjoy!

Introducing your child to a new language with Boca Beth is fun and easy: "New Year - New Language - New Benefits for Your Child
Presented by Beth Butler/Creator of the BOCA BETH Program

Remember those language learning labs in junior high school? Those labs with headsets, the classrooms with written workbooks full of verb conjugation and a teacher who followed a curriculum vs. her students' capabilities combined to create absolutely the worst (and least) effective method used to teach a second language. That is why those of us who took languages back in the days of middle school being called junior high school remember just a few choice words (and probably pronounce them incorrectly!).

Today, as parents and as educators, we know the importance of raising our children to be bilingual. We see and experience this ever-shrinking world of ours and encounter endless opportunities to test our own bilingual skills. We know from recent research and the barrage of studies thrown at us that the secret to success is introducing the new language early in life. Why, even TIME and NEWSWEEK Magazines ran feature articles on the window of opportunity to introduce a new language is between birth and around the age of ten to twelve." (Read more)