How Do I Start?
Here are some simple ideas that you can adopt with your child to make learning a second language fun and easy!
Children are great mimics - surround them with the sounds of a foreign language and they will
naturally copy what they hear and learn with no effort. Songs and rhymes are great for this!
Read stories with accompanying CDs.
Familiarise your child with the story in English first - children are quickly able to repeat
the story to you! Then listen to the CD of the story in French -
your child will know what the French means because he knows the story off by heart!
Play CDs in the car - give your child the accompanying story book or song book to keep them entertained.
Introduce common words and phrases into everyday situations.
Choose a theme, such as colours, and ask your child what colour various objects are throughout the day.
Play games that use phrases in the foreign language.
Show lots of interest and enthusiasm about other languages in order to encourage your child's learning.
If your child says a new word in a second language, get excited and make a fuss!
Your child will feel a great sense of achievement!
Learn to sing songs in the foreign language by listening to CDs, or search for children's songs on-line.
Watch TV shows or cartoons together - a really simple way to absorb another language.
Many digital services, such as Netflix, allow shows to be watched in foreign languages.
Increase your child's daily exposure to the second language as much as you can.
Why not form a playgroup or coffee group with other mums and children who are learning to speak
the foreign language?
Play on-line language learning games together - there are many free offerings available.
If you know a foreign language, simply begin to speak it in short, frequently used phrases.
You will be surprised how quickly your child will catch on!
You know those words and phrases we say a thousand times a day?
Well, your child hears them a thousand times too!
Translating those phrases into a foreign language is a fast and natural way to give your
child experience with a foreign language.
And if you don't know the language yourself,
learn along with your child by working on a new phrase each week...