Confessions...the lengths this Mom will go for language!

As Moms, we occasionally have to be a little sneaky to accomplish things for our children we believe to be in their best interest. I mean, who hasn't added pureed veggies to meatloaf and spaghetti sauce?

Today, I have a confession about the latest "sneaky" thing I've done to my poor kiddos...
I am normally anti-workbook. I prefer introducing foreign language in a more organic way- conversation, games, activities, toys, music. But, my oldest is entering Kindergarten next year and he is not quite where I want him to be regarding his Spanish language learning. So I decided to get tough (in a sneaky sort of way). I added a few sheets from a workbook to his already dense pre-school homework folder his teacher sends home. It worked like a dream! He didn't question it. He simply worked through the problems and I sat with him and helped when he got stuck and we spent a good 15 minutes really working on Spanish. Next week, I'll add 2 more and we'll work our way through the Workbook I bought. I'll post follow-ups as we go. Certainly, if this works for my son, I'll look into adding workbooks to our children's Spanish books and learning materials at SmartMouthLearning.com

What sneaky things have you done to/for your children in the name of improvement? How do you feel about foreign language workbooks? We'd love to hear from you!

Let's start talking!

Consuelo Bova,
CEO, SmartMouthLearning.com

It's a small world, after all.

Sunday was a gorgeous day- breezy and cool.  The sky was that perfect shade of blue with puffy white clouds just like children love to draw.   "Get out!," I announced to my family "Everyone out!  It's a beautiful day and we're going outside to play!"

We headed out to the local park so the kids could enjoy the swings and slides.  No sooner had we hit the sand than my son reaches out and taps me on the belly, " Tag- you're it!" and off we ran!  Giggling and running, we were having so much fun I barely noticed the other little hand that soon tapped me on the belly.  A little boy wanted to play.  "Me?" he asked and pointed to himself in  question, could we include him in our game?"

With our new little friend we continued to run and play and soon discovered an important detail- this little boy had recently moved to Florida from China.  He spoke little to no English.  But, he spoke "kid", so he and my son played merrily for an hour or so.  I hung back and watched.  Fascinated by what I saw unfold in that short span of time.  In one short hour, that little boy was talking- his new vocabulary including words like "run!" "Me,too" "push" "slide" "my turn" and even "count! 1,2,3,..."- after my son introduced him to the wonderful new world of "hide and go seek" James was even repeating a few words back in Chinese- don't ask me what he was saying, I haven't a clue- but they were speaking to each other and it made sense to them- which I guess is what matters in children's language learning, Chinese or otherwise!  

Children learn so quickly. They learn particularly well from each other.  So the lesson of the day?  Get out there and play.  Maybe start a playgroup of children who are all trying to learn the same language, or even better- if your child is trying to learn a language, start a playgroup with children of that native language who are trying to learn English! Is there a part of town where the language you are trying to teach your child is spoken more predominantly?  Find a park there and go play- your children will quickly make friends and learn so much in the process- language, culture, friendship and so much more.   It's a small world, after all.

Enough with the chit-chat, let's start talking! 

Consuelo Bova,
CEO of SmartMouthLearning.com 

Part 2, Parent Resources: Spotlight on Foreign Language Children's Educators- An Interview with Lucelis Torres of Montessori Bilingual Academy in Orlando, FL

Unless the second language you want to teach your child is spoken fluently and as the primary, regular language heard in your home...chances are you will be in need of some "back-up"  in the way of foreign language education for your child.  Searching for the perfect daycare, preschool or elementary school and beyond is hard enough on parents- tracking down the right extra-curricular programs might be too much to ask of busy parents! So, I'm going to work on making that easier for you by doing some legwork to find the best programs available nationwide and connecting children's foreign language educators with parents by way of in depth interviews posted right here at SmartMouth's bilingual and foreign language children's education blog.  

I'm excited to print this second interview in our series with Lucelis Torres, founder and director of Montessori Bilingual Academy (MBA), a bilingual and Montessori-based school in Orlando, Florida.  MBA's program was founded in 1997, born of Ms. Torres' frustration with the lack of quality bilingual programming available to students in the area, and her enthusiasm for the Montessori schooling her own daughters (then 9 and 10) had received thus far.   Lucky for us!  Since over a decade later, Central Florida students have the opportunity to learn at what has become one of the most unique and effective Montessori programs in the area, marrying the Montessori philosophy with a complete, Bilingual education program. Read on to learn more about MBA's innovative programs, their inspiring  founder, and get some great advice about how to support your child's foreign language classroom learning at home (whatever program you choose to follow).

1. What do you see as the biggest challenge in teaching children a foreign language?

In the beginning, gathering materials and teaching tools to operate a bilingual classroom (particularly one for the younger children) was a real challenge.  I traveled back to my home country regularly to acquire Spanish language children's books and materials for the school.  Today, my biggest challenge is the competing role "English" plays in my students lives (particularly in the case of students whose parents are bilingual but opt to speak English at home anyway), given the few hours I have to present them with Spanish each day.

2. What have you found most rewarding? What has been the biggest achievement for MBA so far? 

My students.  When I look at them and give them a two or three part command and they respond with the right actions- that is when I know they're getting it.  In the classroom, it often happens that a teacher is speaking to one student on one end of the room, and then you hear echoes from the other side of the room as other students repeat what they just heard- we just have to look at each other and laugh.  It's such an "Aha" moment.  I especially love when a student I know has no Spanish background looks at a classmate and says, "Eso no se hace.!"   There are just so many rewarding moments!

3.  What makes MBA unique?  Our Spanish culture in the classrooms.  The students live and work in a fully bilingual environment

4.  What are some of the details parents should know? At MBA, classes are taught in a fully bilingual format, but also employing the philosophy of Maria Montessori.  We are located in East Orlando, Florida and teach from ages 2 (pre-school) to 3rd Grade. 

5.   Do all or most of your students come from bilingual homes? Does your method or approach differ when students have no background in the second language? 
Our students are so diverse- they come from so many different backgrounds  We are a true melting pot here- so no, not all students are bilingual English/Spanish. Our method does not differ- we approach all students using the same curriculum and methods regardless of whether they are familiar with Spanish or not.

6. What advice do you have for parents- what can they do at home, to support the bilingual or foreign language education their children are receiving at school? 
 My advice is to listen to Spanish music and Spanish tv channels.  Especially when you don't have the support for the language at home.  Use visual and auditory resources to help you out.  If you are a Spanish speaking parent, then speak Spanish with your child.  Reading Spanish children's books to them or buying Spanish children's books with an audio or CD component (for those that don't speak the language themselves).  

 

7. How can parents find you? You can find MBA online at www.MontessoriBilingualAcademy.org  to find out basic information about our school and our contact information.  Call us anytime to schedule a visit or parent conference so we can discuss if our program will meet your child's needs.  (*Please note: visits cannot be arranged during school hours as this would be disruptive to students)

Thank you to Lucelis for these helpful insights!  To our readers, I can't wait to hear your comments and feedback.  Do you know of other schools which should be featured?  Please send your comments and suggestions so I can follow up, and share the wealth with all of our parents!  

Enough with the chit-chat, let's start talking!

Consuelo Bova, 

CEO of SmartMouthLearning.com 

Paris ne c'est pas fait en un Jour (or "shoe", if you're my 2 year old)

Music is one of the best (and fastest means of getting your children excited about a second language).  The trick is to make it easy on the ears (your children's and your own).

I use my daily commute to and from school as "language learning time" for my kids.  I have a small collection of really great music CDs in Spanish (and French) that my kids love to listen to.  A few, I merely tolerate, but there are several that I LOVE.

Putumayo Kids puts out a variety of multicultural and foreign language music CDs for kids that are very "easy on the ears" for adults and children alike.  Their French children's CD, "French Playground"  is so much fun.  No sooner than I have her buckled in her car seat than my 2-year old daughter begins her daily chant, "Can I hear the French songs?  PLEEEEASE!"  And it is certainly a delight for me when I hear her singing- she knows all the songs by now, including my favorite, "Lutece," where my daughter belts out about how Paris wasn't built in a shoe ("Paris ne c'est pas fait, en un Shoe!!!")

What are your favorite children's music CD's in Spanish? French? Other foreign languages?  Share your favorites, we'd love to know!

-Consuelo Bova
CEO, SmartMouthLearning.com 

Part 1, Parent Resources: Spotlight on Foreign Language Children's Educators- An Interview with Brita Schumacher, President of Futura Language Professionals

Unless the second language you want to teach your child is spoken fluently and as the primary, regular language heard in your home...chances are you will be in need of some "back-up"  in the way of foreign language education for your child.  Searching for the perfect daycare, preschool or elementary school and beyond is hard enough on parents- tracking down the right extra-curricular programs might be too much to ask of busy parents! So, I'm going to work on making that easier for you by doing some legwork to find the best programs available nationwide and connecting children's foreign language educators with parents by way of in depth interviews posted right here at SmartMouth's bilingual and foreign language children's education blog.  

I'm excited to print this first interview with Brita Schumacher, President of Futura Language Professionals.  Her enthusiasm for learning foreign languages rivals my own- she's infectious!  And isn't that just what you need when teaching children?  An obvious love and enthusiasm for the subject taught?  Futura's program is a community-based  school currently operating throughout Central Florida, Michigan, Texas (S. Texas & Houston), Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Illinois (Chicago), offering several thousand students the opportunity to develop fluency in Spanish and even Mandarin Chinese (in limited locations).  Read on to learn about Futura's innovative programs, their amazing founder, and get some great advice about how to support your child's foreign language classroom learning at home (whatever program you choose to follow).

1. How did "Futura Language Professionals" come to be? I studied at Universities and prestigious language schools throughout Mexico.  I have also lived, traveled, and volunteered extensively in Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean and Asia- building an ever increasing passion for language and culture.  I taught kindergarten in South Korea and was amazed at how quickly the children could speak English and how eloquently they could switch between the two languages. It made me think that we are remiss in the U.S. starting foreign language at the middle school level.  When I moved back to the U.S. in 2001, I started Futura in a little office space in Wauwatosa, WI with 6 students (we now have several thousand nationwide!)

Brita during a volunteering with children in Guatemala

2. What do you see as the biggest challenge in teaching children a foreign language? Children are so involved in multiple activities these days, which is great. Yet, with foreign language it is also a challenge, as families usually don't have more than one day a week to commit to Spanish instruction. Obviously budget cuts at the school level dramatically affect  foreign language learning for children as well.

3. What have you found most rewarding? What has been the biggest achievement for Futura so far? 

Getting out to the classroom is so rewarding. Seeing our program working and in action is amazing! Kids are singing and playing songs in Spanish and having so much fun. This is completely rewarding, as one of our goals is to create lifelong language learners. I believe that if kids are having fun and enjoying Spanish, they will continue to study it and feel confident about learning a language and they will go on to high school and college Spanish and hopefully study abroad. Seeing my first group of students graduate our level 10 class was also amazing! These forth and fifth graders were reading and writing in Spanish and conjugating Ser and Estar.

Also, each fall training new teachers is incredibly invigorating. This week I am training 110 Futura teachers in Milwaukee and Minnesota--It is a room full of energy and so much experience. Collectively we have traveled the globe. Furthermore, bi-annually I lead a group of community members to Guatemala. This is also an incredibly enriching experience, as I think travel, especially Third World travel can truly change lives.

4.  What makes Futura unique?  We have a unique method called the Building Block Method of Learning. In a nutshell, this method uses dynamic, interactive approaches to language instruction and puts conversation as first and foremost. Each class also incorporates elements of culture, as we believe culture and language cannot be separated.
 

Also, I think our program is unique in that we have a long-term solution to parents and schools where budgets do not allow for Spanish to be taught during the school day. I also take pride in making our program affordable to the average middle class family and for providing need-based grants and payment options for families.

5.  What are some of the details parents should know? We teach Spanish in all locations and Mandarin in limited locations for children in Kindergarten to Middle school.  Enrichment programs last 16 or 20 weeks before or after school.  We also offer integrated programs that last throughout the school year.  

All Futura programs feature a set curriculum and it is extensive. For the elementary program we have an adventure theme-based curriculum, which is incredibly fun. We also have a 10 level series of more traditional classes. In addition to elementary, we have a very comprehensive middle school curriculum which is used by our integrated teachers who instruct Spanish during the school day. Furthermore, we have a preschool program as well as two fantastic camp program offerings. I think we are up to 25 books now, which is so exciting! 

6.  What can students/parents expect when attending one of your classes? They can expect a lively, dynamic atmosphere where students are learning without it feeling like 'school'. I once walked into an upper level class where the students were learning how to conjugate verbs. The teacher had the class divided into a volleyball game with a team of verbs and a team of pronouns. The pronoun would hit the ball to a verb and they would have to conjugate the verb correctly before hitting it back. "Yo bailo!" "Tu bailas", etc. I heard a little girl say, "This isn't even Spanish." I thought Perfect! We have absolutely tricked these kids into thinking they are having so much fun playing volleyball that they don't even realize they are learning something complex in Spanish.

7. How long before students achieve fluency in the second language? I think it is important to be realistic in language learning--It takes a lifetime dedication to achieve true fluency. However sticking with language instruction from kindergarten and beyond is the first step.

8.   Do all or most of your students come from bilingual homes? Does your method or approach differ when students have no background in the second language? I would say that a lot of our families come from monolingual homes. I think it is wonderful that families of all kinds are recognizing how critical it is to learn a second language in this day and age. Our approach is the same for all students and they seem to blend wonderfully together in our classes.

9. What advice do you have for parents- what can they do at home, to support the bilingual or foreign language education their children are receiving at school?  Reinforcing at home is important as well as giving your child opportunities in the world to see the value in learning Spanish. For example-traveling to a Spanish speaking country or if that is not viable, simply visiting a local neighborhood where people predominantly speak Spanish.

10. What if no one in the home speaks the second language? What advice for those parents? Sit in on classes if you can. Travel somewhere together. Use the internet to hear pronunciation, but more than anything support your child in this journey.

11. How can parents find you? Do you have a website or email address I can publish? In the event of multiple franchises, how do they locate their local learning center? You can find all of us at www.futuraadventures.com. You can reach me directly at britak@futuraadventures.com

Thank you to Brita & her team for these helpful insights!  To our readers, I can't wait to hear your comments and feedback.  Do you know of other schools which should be featured?  Please send your comments and suggestions so I can follow up, and share the wealth with all of our parents!  

Enough with the chit-chat, let's start talking!

Consuelo Bova, 

CEO of SmartMouthLearning.com 

We are LIVE! There is a new home for bilingual parents & foreign language (fun)loving kids online!!

I am so proud to announce that our site, SmartMouthLearning.com has gone LIVE!

SmartMouthLearning.com is OPEN for fun language learning!

Our new store has so much to offer bilingual families and children in the midst of learning a new, foreign language:

• TOYS, DOLLS, & Other fun accessories for language learning- everything about teaching children a foreign language should be fun, accessible and not over-bearing.  What a better place to start than with toys!!  The holidays are around the corner- give your child the gift of a second language!
  
• BOOKS:  Bilingual and foreign language additions of your child's old favorites (and some soon-to-be favorites)!  We feature books in Spanish, French, & Chinese- with more languages coming soon!  
• Music, DVD's, Computer Media- it's all coming soon

The goal for us is to make sharing a second language with your child easier and more fun.  Please let us know how we're doing- if there are products you'd like to see, let us know!  We're adding new products all the time and we certainly want your feedback about what new products you would like to see.  Leave your comments below, join our Facebook community, or send us email to CustomerService@SmartMouthLearning.com

Please visit us soon & join the language learning fun!

Thanks,

Consuelo Bova,

CEO, SmartMouthLearning.com

Want to teach your children Spanish? Don't delay, SAP to it!

If you're like me.. I feel a tiny bit guilty when my children are sitting in front of the TV set- shouldn't they be doing something a little more productive?  Certainly I limit what they watch to the children's shows with a slightly more "educational" spin (think "SuperWhy!" for reading, or "Curious George" for Math & Science- check local listings).  But when they are home, I also want them to be working on Spanish learning with me.  Solution?  If I "can't talk" (making dinner, for example) - a little TV is fine.  And the Spanish learning can happen to... just SAP to it!  Remember that funny button on your remote for SAP?  Aha!  It's actually useful.  SAP stands for "Secondary Audio Programming" and is often used for Spanish language programming.  Many childrens' programs are SAP enabled (check on the lower part of the screen when the show begins- you will see a "SAP" symbol if SAP is enabled for that program).  All you have to do is set your TV to SAP, and SAP enabled programs will run in Spanish-  including their favorite children's shows and cartoons!  Besides watching shows they already love in Spanish (win!)- let's be honest, they probably have many of their favorite episodes memorized, right?  Great!  It's easier for them to make the connections and understand the program in Spanish if they are already very familiar with the language used on the show in English. 

So what are you waiting for- SAP to it & you'll marvel at how quickly your children start "hablando"!

-Consuelo Bova,
CEO, SmartMouthLearning.com