Before I was able to graduate from college I was required to learn a foreign language. Never one of my strong suites I struggle through several classes, eventually choosing to do a summer study abroad in France in order to immerse myself in the language and satisfy the foreign language requirement.
Foreign languages can be tough to learn, and as more and more foreigners move into the US a foreign language is always a good thing to try and learn. Your computer can be a valuable tool in a quest to learn a foreign language. I always learn a little better with a visual and listening aid, rather than trying to learn by myself from a book. Here are some great foreign language programs for beginners that can be run on your home computer and help with you or your childs quest to learn a foreign language.
This multi-media German class has twelve different sections with 92 different lessons in each section. The program has tests and tutorials to help you along the way, and by the end you should be almost as good at the language as a native German speaker. The Rosetta Stone language courses are used by NASA astronauts, as well as a variety of students around the world to master foreign languages. The Rosetta Stone classes are great for older high school students or adults.
Jumpstart Spanish is a Spanish program designed with younger children in mind. There are tons of easy to do games that will help your children learn Spanish vocabulary as well as a little about the Spanish culture. You won’t learn a tons of Spanish in this program as an adult, but this can be a great program to get younger children to start learning a language. Spanish is a good language for everyone to start to pick up, in at least a small amount, and can help your children aquire better jobs in the future.
EazySpeak language programs are designed primarily to teach vocabulary and basic conversation skills rather than a grammar and culture. The program will have you speaking at least a basic level pretty quickly, and the programs are reasonably inexpensive. These can be good programs to get older elementary school children or middle school students involved in a language.