How NOT to force your kids to learn a second language...
While it is true that children are best at learning foreign languages before the age of 5,
experts agree that before the age of 7 or 8, language learning should be fun and non-competitive. Strict classroom training is wasted on the youngest students. This means that you can't measure achievement quantitatively or expect instant results. Parents need to lighten up, and understand that while children under age 5 may be suited to language class, they can't be forced to "perform".When teachers and parents overload children with tests, kids begin to associate learning
with stress
.
Associating stress with language learning can be counter-productive at any age.
That being said, there
are many things parents can do that will encourage a lifelong love of language learning without all the stress. Here are a few:
- Encourage playdates with children who speak the target language,
- Read to your kids (even if you are not fluent). The more exposure your child has to the language the better.
- Visit libraries that have a good selection of children's books in the target language.
- Play songs in the target language
- Explore restaurants and help your child say the names of things he/she wants to order.
Most importantly, you should not rush your child to exhibit his or her knowledge. Children often feel like they have to "perform," which can have negative results in the long run. If your child is enrolled in a program, it's not realistic to expect instant results. Even if your child hasn't picked up many foreign words by the end of the program, it's not a waste, as they have probably picked up other important concepts, like phonetics and cadence.
Strive for progress, not perfection. Encourage children to express their own thoughts and speak in complete sentences about topics that interest them. Make those sentences more complex, with sentence frames.
Even for advanced speakers, sentence frames can simplify higher-level grammar like the conditional tense or the subjunctive.
If you are playing a board game with your child, for example, you could introduce simple sentence frames such as "It is _____ turn"
(
my / your / Carolina's
), or "___ move ___ spaces" (
I move five spaces. She moves two spaces). Your child will begin to use these simple sentences in a natural way, while playing. This is the key to developing a lifelong love of language learning!
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