A big thanks to Andrea, who is letting me guest blog here to share some things about teaching foreign languages in the homeschool. Yesterday, I gave some objectives for the early elementary grades. The goal at this point should be simply to introduce your child to a particular (or several) foreign languages. This is an important point to make because it means that you, the homeschooler do not need to spend money on a big curriculum at this point. Here are a few teaching ideas on how to get started:
Vocabulary: You can usually check out from the library various picture dictionaries in other languages. Titles are things like, My First 100 words in Spanish, or something similar. There are also several worksheet sites that have printable picture dictionaries in other languages as well. Enchanted Learning is my favorite.
You can focus on phrases that your child may hear often or would use often but this is not the time to start teaching a whole conversation. It MUST be relevant to the child’s world. So if your preschooler is not introducing themselves yet in English–don’t teach them to do it in Spanish!
Choose one environment to learn vocabulary for at a time. We always start with the kitchen because I love to cook. . .but it doesn’t really matter. Play games with the words asking your child to point to what you’re saying. For example, I may say to one of my twins “Encontra la concina” at which point they go to the kitchen. NEVER encourage direct translation (e.I. what is the English word for la cocina?) unless absolutely necessary. Always associate foreign words with pictures or objects rather than their English equivalents.
Field Trips: Make a point to check out what other cultural resources you have near you. We are very fortunate in that we live in a major metropolitan area so this has never been an issue for us. Most cities have Cinco de Mayo celebrations, but really make a point to attend anything that communicates the diversity of our world. (Understanding the culture of the target language is key to eventually speaking the language.)
Get out the map and talk about where the foreign language is spoken. Find pictures of traditional costumes and work on making connections between anything your child understands and is familiar and the foreign culture.
Consider cooking an authentic meal or a version of something authentic. Talk about why that food might be local to the people. (What is it about Japan that makes rice and fish such a staple?)
Also consider making a craft that is representative of a culture of the language you’re studying.
It is fine to switch languages with young children. If they decided that they wanted to learn Chinese one month and Spanish the next. . .you should encourage it as long as you can find at least some resources to use.
Related Articles:
Teaching Foreign Languages: What the Research Says
Teaching Foreign Languages: Intro