Children benefit from exposure to a foreign language in the early years, even if the exposure is limited. Simply by watching programmes in the foreign language and listening to CDs in the car, you will be amazed at how much a young child will learn.

Of course, languages are meant to be spoken, so why not learn along with your child to make it even more exciting! Just repeating some of the words and phrases you are learning will bring the language into your child's everyday life and reinforce the message that languages are fun! And remember - it doesn't bother young children if they do not understand every word they hear! They will work out the meanings through repeated exposure, just in the same way as they worked out how to understand English. So, don't feel you need to understand everything yourself - just relax and delight in your child's achievements.

See our ideas on how to make a start...