Foreign Language Suggestions

So for a possible upcoming trip to a certain South American location, our family is learning Spanish...yep I said it.....Never thought in a million years I would say it, but yes...Spanish. Asrekyr already knows tons of Spanish because he grew up in Rowland Heights...a non suburb, suburb...ahem....where as I was from total suburbia So Cal....LOL...OC! So I don't know a lick of it.

Astrid has already had 4 years of Latin and 2 years of Spanish, so she is a great resource, but we need instruction, so I got this cute series for the girls (really all of us) which is called Kids love Spanish.

It is by two sisters that are from So Cal who grew up learning Spanish.

Our girls love it. The ladies look like Folk, they can relate with the kids and it is colorful, clear and fun. I recommend it to anyone having 2-5 yos wanting to learn Spanish.

Our next favorite is....of course...MUZZY! We have been using the German one for years (now because where we are visiting that is a common spoken language ) We have the French and the Spanish one (which is having trouble working). We have so much fun with it, I suggest it for everyone. I have a blast with it.

Finally, Lyric Language Spanish, it is awesome. It is all songs, but very catchy and it teaches all the proper grammar and usage. We had the cd many moons ago for Astrid when she was little and she still remembers the songs. We now have the DVD AND CD and the DVD ROCKS. It is a sing-a-long with both english and spanish words. I REALLY like it and it is right up there with Kids love Spanish, but for older kids. AND the main family is Folk, which is easy for the kids to relate to and non distracting.

Next is Rosetta Stone. It is ok. I don't like the overtly multicultural brainwashing. Also, all the "Western" languages are multicultural, but the "Eastern" strictly Asiatic representations.....hmmm..... Think China had a hand in that? The teaching in it is good so far, but when a learning program has political subliminal messaging that is contrary to your beliefs, it is down right distracting and makes it MORE difficult to use.

Another don't...well don't if you are a visual learner. It is a cd set called Spanish Complete by VocabuLearn: Language Power. The whole thing is English word and spanish word. No rhyme or reason. I don't really get it...lol....I guess I am used to organized teaching first you learn the ABCs, family words, etc...Not this one. Only thing that is good is the pronunciation, so repeating them constantly is helpful there. If you are auditory...like Asrekyr...it will be more for you. :)

There are two websites that excellent foreign language resources: edhelper.com and enchantedlearning.com . For kids that is. We have printed off worksheets and laminated all their flash cards. These are membership sites, but only $20 a year each...very cheap as far as curriculum goes.

Ok enough blathering...stay tuned...I will be posting more info on curriculum and what works and what doesn't.

BTW...Thank you Frithwulf (an Odinic Sister in Cordoba, Argentina), you have been a huge help...she has answered all my naggy stupid questions about her country :D!

FFF
Hyndla