Does anyone have a basic spanish program or know of one? my 5 yr.old really wants to learn it and i am having a hard time finging worksheets or basic books. I would like to find a site take would have printable worksheets or buy a program from some one.

-- renee oneill{md.} (oneillsr@home.com), December 27, 2000

Answers

renee......on this one I would suggest spending the money on a tutor, a good one. Spanish isn't that hard to learn, but the pronunciation is different, and if she learns it with an upstate NY accent, she'll never get it right, and native speakers will always be giving her a hard time about it. But don't be discouraged. I really encourage you to teach her. Spanish is the fastest growing language in the US, and it will really be valuable to her in the future. I don't know of any programs for children, but as strange as this sounds, you might contact your closest Border Patrol Office. Especially if some of them have transferred off the Southern Border. They may know of a program you can use, and you may find one that is willing to work with you on the pronunciation. Good luck.

-- Julie (rjbk@together.net), December 27, 2000.

For teaching 2-12 year olds there is a program called "Teach Me Tapes". I have heard a lot of good things about the "Power-Glide Series" and now there is a "Power-Glide Series for Children" to teach ages 4 to 9. One place these can be ordered from is CBD. A catalog can be ordered by calling 1-978-977-5045 or visiting their web site at Christianbook.com. The catalog I have is "CBD Home School".

Hope this helps.

-- Terry (aunt_tm@hotmail.com), December 27, 2000.

I would suggest the tapes also. They work well and are used in a formal school setting as well as at home. You could listen and learn with your child.

-- diane (gardiacaprines@yahoo.com), December 27, 2000.

Renee, here's a translation link for you.Alta Vista Translations

I've used it lot's of times to translate French. Check it out.

-- Annie Miller (internethillbilly@hotmail.com), December 27, 2000.

I understand Julie on the importance of pronounciation. Lots of teachers, both in person and on differing media, dont get the pronounciation quite right,and that's how we end up with various 'accents'.They can still pretty much communicate, but methinks the closer to the native we can get with our verbalizing, the better. I in no way wish to discount those who can talk to others in their native tonque even with an accent; they are far beyond the most of us, even if they sound kinda 'foreign'. But if you can find someone who speaks Spanish as their mother tongue, this is the best thing. However, most of us do not have that opportunity, so do not despair if that is seemingly impossible.

Our unschoolers group learns Spanish by using a variety of media; they each are attracted to different approaches. We use a completely cassette system; a couple of different computer programs; some book- centered stuff; a friend who took Spanish for just four years from a native speaker; by living in and later, visiting southern California; a television language program, etc. I personally do not think much of 'worsheets' of any sort. Learning hands 0n, in action, seems to have the most long-term effect.....

Best of luck to you and yours,

-- Earthmama (earthmama48@yahoo.com), December 27, 2000.

Hi Renee,

Barnes and Noble has a good amount of books in Spanish, and carry a few "teach yourself...." tapes. I heard Muzzy was a good program for the younger set, but have not tried it myself. Also, PBS sometimes broadcasts children's shows in Spanish.

-- Sandie (Baker) Thompson (thompsonfarm@greatpoint.net), December 27, 2000.

Renee: We are homeschooling our 9year old granddaughter, and have three spanish programs. One is basic, Jumpstart Spanish, which teaches days of the week, colors, etc. in songs. One is Blast Spanish, a cheapo program we got for $4 or 5, I think. The one she isn't into yet, is SpanishNow, a more advanced Spanish program. If you email me, I can give you some more info. Jan

-- Jan in Colorado (Janice12@aol.com), December 27, 2000.

Are you wanting him to learn how to communicate with people of Mexican origin or learn a language perhaps for college? Funny thing is everyone assumes people from Mexico speak spanish....well they do but what we learn in school if formal spanish (like in spain) and most Mexicans can't understand it! They are a lot like we are....slang, regional sayings, slight variations in accent from region to region. The only way to learn 'conversational' spanish is to be around people that speak the language. That's how I learned the little bit that I know. Used to have an older Mexican fellow that worked for me and he genuinely enjoyed trying to communicate with me so I taught him a bit of English(american really) and he taught me some Mexican. LOL...once I could understand him I bit I finally realized what he kept trying to ask me...he wanted to know why I wasn't staying home making/raising babies! It is a totally different culture. I homeschool and we started trying to learn some spanish but eventually settled for a study of different cultures and customs. They just couldn't pick it up when they never heard it spoken.

-- Amanda in Mo (aseley@townsqr.com), December 28, 2000.

Renee - we've used various Spanish programs over the past 9 years and have had the best luck with Alpha Omega's lifepacs. Real workbooks, and plenty on tape. Plus, I didn't have to know the language in order for my kids to learn it. Granted, it's not conversational, but they've learned as much as two years of high-school Spanish would have taught them, and because we listened to language tapes for so many years, the bookwork was greatly facilitated. I know that if my kids were in a Spanish speaking home, they would pick up on the nuances pretty quickly. Don't hold off just because you can't get a tutor - any thing would be better than nothing.

-- glynnis in KY (gabbycab@msn.com), December 28, 2000.

Parlo.com (http://www.parlo.com/) has some good stuff. We use the French grammar lessons, but I suppose the Spanish is as good. They offer a daily email lesson that's excellent, offering lots of insight into the language and its uses. My daughter enjoys it and has learned a lot.

Parlo.com doesn't have any audio pronounciation guides, however, so for that we use Syracuse Labs Triple Play Plus software. It uses a lot of "games" to teach, and the quality is excellent. We've used the French version for a couple years now, and recently moved on to learn Italian with it. I got the Italian Triple Play Plus software on eBay for less than half what the list price was.

-- Julia (charmer24@juno.com), December 28, 2000.

Spanish for the Real World-CD-ROM program this is entertaining and fun. You will also learn the culture of Mexico. 1-800-877-9378 or 1-800-877-9378.

-- Judy (allsmile@ctnet.net), December 28, 2000.

Any of the tape programs will be helpful. I do think you ahould teach your child the "Mexican" version of Spanish as it is a heck of a lot more useful here in uSA. Just remember that there are as many dialects of Spanish as English. When I lived in LA the Mexicans from Baja spoke differently from the Mexicans from mexico City and now living in Texas the mexicans from Chihuaha and Nuevo Leon speak differently from the others and don't even begin with the Cubans and the three dialects from there...A good working knowledge of the language will get you through most any variation, but again I recommend against spanish from Spain.

-- Doreen (animalwaitress@excite.com), December 28, 2000.

I agree with Doreen. Mexican Spanish will be the most useful in the real world. By all means teach the child while he/she is young enough to soak it up like a sponge! Native Mexicans are not hard to find these days (even our little town has a real Mexican restaurant), and many are delighted to teach their language. And think about taking a field trip - to Mexico. Seriously, a couple of months there is worth a college degree.

-- spunky (turnip55a@yahoo.com), December 30, 2000.

I would try the jumpstart in Spanish. I have it in english and my kids have learned a lot from it. Of course the best way for them to learn would be to go to Mexico or a Spanish speaking country for a couple monthes. (not always possible !! Another thing you can do is put the names of all the things in your house in Spanish (kitchen, light switch,dog!, bed, etc). Do you or your husband know spanish?

Or if you have a t.v. have the kids watch cartoons or videos in spanish. learn and sing spanish lullabyes. buy food that has the ingredients written in Spanish (good way to learn the names of food in spanish) Invite a spanish speaking person (that doesn't know english ) to spend a month or two at your house.

Good Luck!!

Kelly (with 3 bilingual babies!!)

-- kelly (kellytree@hotmail.com), January 01, 2001.

our kids have really good accents because we lived in Costa Rica for a year. then we had a friend from there live with us for 6 mos.

Muzzy keeps the kids happy and interested for a year. But the best way for kids to learn spanish is from kids who speak it. Are there any Latino families around? Also Muzzy has a Madrid type accent. Any accent is good as long as they get the basics they can always improve When the need arises!

-- paul konstantino (ptkonstant@aol.com), January 03, 2001.

I was the same way when I was a little girl. I would tell my mom that I wanted to learn spanish and I would act as if I was speaking it, but not really. As most of you, my mother was born here and knew just the beginning spanish like the colors, numbers ect. She taught me all of what she knew and eventually I learned the alphabet and it's correct pronounciation. It's just like learning english, once you know the sounds for all the letters it's a piece of cake after that. The best thing you can do is teach the child whatever you already know and if the child is interested they will take off from there. If you don't know a single thing about the language and your child desperatley wants to learn then I guess it's time for you to start also. To know another language know days and I'm sure in the future is a great thing for everyone know. And it doesn't just involve giving them a tape and saying now you'll learn the language. If you really want to know the language and learn it well it's best to learn the people and it's culture even if it is quite different from yours. I am now 27 with my own 4 year old daughter and I can hold a conversation with a spanish person. I also know how to read and write it. And also, I never took a single spanish class. I listened to the music and even read through the english/spanish dictionary. I also made spanish friends because I am part hipanic. To be precise I am english, hipanic, and american indian. If anyone has any quiestions about the subject I would be obliged to answer.I would also be interested in helping teach the basics for learning spanish if anyone is interested, wether it be for yourself or your children. Carma

-- Carma Detweiler (Carma3detramos@aol.com), April 07, 2002.

Hola! Espanol es muy facil! Kids aquire second language through songs and games. This is what I recommend. Buy video tapes of her favorite cartoon movies in Spanish. they are all on Amazon.com or ebay. Also purchase tapes or CDs that are song based for kids. there are a slew of them on the market. your daughter is far more likely to retain and use the spanish she learns through "play" than a home spanish course. kids do not aquire 2nd languages the same way that adults do. that is a fact...i know, i am an ESL teacher! :) Good luck. you can email me if you want a list of really great resources.

-- Najia (najia274@yahoo.com), April 08, 2002.