When I was researching how to create a French language program for young children, there were two books that really helped guide my program. "The Bilinual Edge" by Kendall King and Alison Mackey (both Linguistics Professors at Georgetown University) and "Help Your Child with a Foreign Language" by Opal Dunn, a Bilingual Education expert. I found the following insights helpful as I started teaching my kids french and developing an effective program:
- Children can start picking up a second language with as little as an hour of practice a week, however this interaction should be with a person. DVDs, television programs, or computer games are not a substitute.
- A parent, regardless of her language ability, can start to teach her child a second language. A parent knows her child well and can tailor language learning specifically to her child. A child may be less self conscious with a parent and will get more one-one time than in a classroom setting.
- When young children learn their first language, they first listen and start to understand, then start saying single words and short phrases, and finally start to speak in full sentences. Similarly, when learning a second language, the listening and understanding stage takes some time before your child can spontaneously communicate in French.
- Games and activities are important in helping your child learn a second language.
Both of these books gave me the confidence to start teaching my boys French. If you are already or are thinking of teaching your child a second language, I highly recommend you take a look at these books - I found them both at my local library.
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When I was researching how to create a French language program for young children, there were two books that really helped guide my program. "The Bilinual Edge" by Kendall King and Alison Mackey (both Linguistics Professors at Georgetown University) and "Help Your Child with a Foreign Language" by Opal Dunn, a Bilingual Education expert. I found the following insights helpful as I started teaching my kids french and developing an effective program:
- Children can start picking up a second language with as little as an hour of practice a week, however this interaction should be with a person. DVDs, television programs, or computer games are not a substitute.
- A parent, regardless of her language ability, can start to teach her child a second language. A parent knows her child well and can tailor language learning specifically to her child. A child may be less self conscious with a parent and will get more one-one time than in a classroom setting.
- When young children learn their first language, they first listen and start to understand, then start saying single words and short phrases, and finally start to speak in full sentences. Similarly, when learning a second language, the listening and understanding stage takes some time before your child can spontaneously communicate in French.
- Games and activities are important in helping your child learn a second language.
Both of these books gave me the confidence to start teaching my boys French. If you are already or are thinking of teaching your child a second language, I highly recommend you take a look at these books - I found them both at my local library.