Benefits of learning Spanish at preschool

It is wonderful to start learning Spanish in preschool. Children have a window of opportunity to become familiar with Spanish before they realise they are learning a new language. If you can develop a foundation and familiarity in Spanish at a young age (before 6 or 7), children can rapidly accelerate their knowledge of Spanish in later years by tapping into various resources like songs, cartoons, and videos.

If you wait until second or third grade, children can certainly learn Spanish fluently, but there may be some resistance to immersing them in Spanish. For example, watching a program like “Blue’s Clues” (Las pistas de Blue) or "Bob the Builder" (Bob Constructor) is a great way to provide extra reinforcement in Spanish, but older children may not watch these as readily, preferring something in English instead.

Learning a Spanish at an early age...

1. Has a positive effect on intellectual growth.

2. Enriches and enhances a child's mental development.

3. Leaves students with more flexibility in thinking, greater sensitivity to language, and a better ear for listening.

4. Improves a child's understanding of his/her native language.

5. Gives a child the ability to communicate with people s/he would otherwise not have the chance to know.

6. Opens the door to other cultures and helps a child understand and appreciate people from other countries.

7. Gives a student a head start in language requirements for college.

8. Increases job opportunities in many careers where knowing another language is a real asset.

Learning a second language not only provides the benefits of being more competitive in a global economy, but research shows that learning Spanish also improves reading, vocabulary and comprehension in English. In addition, learning Spanish has been shown to improve math abilities.  Learning a second language is amazingly stimulating for the brain and may help a child’s development in many social and academic areas.

Spanish Champs, Spanish curriculum for preschoolers

Spanish: the global language of the future

Though English remains, for the moment, the primary language of international commerce and pop culture, there’s another language that’s shooting to the top of the popularity charts – and no, it’s not Mandarin.

Spanish is currently one of the most popular languages for students and professionals alike – and it’s only becoming more useful, especially in the United States.

A 2013 report by the British Council, titled "Languages for the Future", identified Spanish as the most important language for people in the UK to learn, above Arabic, French and Mandarin. There’s certainly plenty of room for improvement, as the report states that just 4 percent of adults in the UK say they speak Spanish well enough to hold a conversation.

There are more than 400 million native Spanish speakers in the world, making it the second most widely spoken language, with official language status in 21 different countries. An additional estimated 60 million people speak Spanish as a second language, bringing the total number of speakers to well over 500 million.

More than 20 million students study Spanish as a second language. Many of them are in the United States, where Spanish is by far the most popular language studied.

But the interest in studying Spanish isn’t only growing among university students. Research conducted for the Telefónica Foundation found that bilateral trade increases by almost 300 percent when Spanish is the common language of commerce, suggesting that it is in the best interest of countries and companies looking to expand into the fast-growing Latin American markets to ensure they have Spanish-speaking employees and representatives.

Spanish is so important in the US that it has become part of the conversation for the 2016 presidential candidates. Democrat Hillary Clinton has produced videos and content for her campaign website in Spanish, while Republicans Marco Rubio, who is bilingual, and Jeb Bush, who is fluent in Spanish, have made media appearances speaking in Spanish and even used some Spanish in speeches.

Though the US is the biggest source of Spanish learners – which makes sense, considering its proximity to Latin America as well as the demographics of the country, where Hispanic and Latinos account for 17 percent of the population – it’s not the only country with its eyes and textbooks swivelling toward Latin America.

According to a Chinese government official, demand for Spanish language instruction in China has “increased 30-fold” over the last 15 years. Lu Jingshen, the government’s National Coordinator for Spanish, told the audience at the Foro Internacional del Español that there are many job opportunities for Spanish speakers, particularly teachers, in China.

“The increased demand is dizzying, besides the Chinese government has decided to extend its policy of liberalising the economy and Spanish is able to obtain greater benefit from it”, he said.

With several official state visits and multiple trade deals announced in recent years, China has been making inroads into Latin America, a policy move that may help explain why Spanish has suddenly become so popular.

Some experts simply see the growing global interest in Spanish as an indicator of major geopolitical and economic shifts.

"The axis of communication and, therefore, culture has shifted from the Atlantic to the Pacific where most of the world’s population is concentrated", said Jesús Juan Ciro Martín Sanz, president of Plataforma del Español, a network of Spanish-speaking companies, speaking at the same forum.

"The 21st century is the era of the Pacific, that’s why the Spanish language should have a more prominent presence in the region."

https://www.studyinternational.com/news/spanish-the-global-language-of-the-future

Children should start learning languages at age three

For years it was thought that teaching foreign languages to children as young as three was futile. Research findings indicate quite the opposite.

There are incredible psychological benefits of learning another language. These benefits extend way beyond being able to order a cup of tea abroad.

Longitudinal studies by Harvard University confirm that learning additional languages increases critical thinking skills, creativity and flexibility of the mind in young children.

Pupils who learn a foreign language outscore their non-foreign language learning peers in verbal and maths standardised tests, indicating that learning additional language is a cognitive activity not just a linguistic one.

The brain, like any muscle, functions better with exercise. Learning a language involves memorising rules and vocabulary, which helps strengthen that mental muscle.

When children join the preschool class of Moreton First at three years of age, they are exposed to four languages.

The rubrics of spoken English are practised and enhanced through songs, stories and nursery rhymes, and modelled and explored as the children enter their make believe world of role play.

French lessons are introduced and, without even realising they are learning a second language, the children follow the story book adventures of favourites such as ‘Bob le bricoleur’ and the ‘La Chenille qui a très faim’. Using the mediums of music and drama, the children can be heard spontaneously singing along to French songs.

‘Mr China’, nicknamed by the children, arrives in our pre-prep class with props and games and Mandarin Chinese begins. Ni hao! At the age of three and four, our youngest pupils engage in game-like activities and within a short time become familiar with the language that now dominates the international business world.

The preschool home corner is dotted with Spanish and English labels. The children have the opportunity to play there accompanied by a fluent Spanish teacher. As the children create imaginary games she models Spanish, encouraging the children to copy her. It is fun and learning is incidental.

However, further exciting research on the benefits of this early learning has come from Dr. Pascual-Leone, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.

His study provides an important first step in understanding the impact of learning a second language and the ageing brain. This research paves the way for future causal studies of bilingualism and cognitive decline prevention.

But why should learning another language be started at such a young age?

Simply, the younger the learner, the better they are at mimicking new sounds and adopting pronunciation. The brain is open to new sounds and patterns in preadolescence.

At this age, young children have time to learn through play-like activities. Language lessons can be informal and children’s minds are not yet cluttered with facts to be stored and tested. Before children become self- conscious they can try out their newly acquired languages without fear of embarrassment.

Children who grow up learning about languages develop empathy for others and a curiosity for different cultures and ideas; prepared to take their place in a global society. Furthermore, in later years, career opportunities increase for those with additional languages to offer.

As the academic year gets under way and most schools gear up to accommodate the Government’s directive for Autumn 2014 – that every seven year old child should have lessons in a foreign language – I ask: why wait until seven?


Catherine Ford, head teacher of Moreton First Prep School




http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationopinion/11151726/Children-should-start-learning-languages-at-age-three.html

Benefits of teaching your child Spanish

Introduce your young children to a second language, and you give them
a chance at greater fluency and access to countless professional
opportunities later on. Spanish, a language spoken from the streets of
Madrid to the foothills of the Andes, is one of the most popular
languages for children in the US to learn today. Here are ten ways that
teaching your children Spanish will expand their minds and enrich their
lives.

Talk to more people. According to census reports, Spanish is the second
most-spoken language in the world. With 387 million native speakers,
more people on earth speak Spanish than English. The opportunities for
Spanish speakers across the globe are endless!

Develop early language skills. Take advantage of the critical time in early
development when acquiring language skills comes naturally and easily.
A child’s capacity to pronounce unfamiliar, foreign sounds and to absorb
new grammar rules is highly enhanced prior to age six.

Get an academic advantage. Spanish is the most commonly taught
second language in public and private schools, and it’s offered as an AP
test and SAT II subject test. Start your kids early, and they’ll ace their
clases de espanol.

Understand English better. Both English and Spanish share roots in Latin.
Studying Spanish increases children’s understanding of the English
language and how different languages evolve, which can also help with
learning English vocabulary.

Get to know your neighbors. Spanish is also the second most-spoken
language in the United States, with more than 35 million speakers across
the country. Cities like New York, Miami, Los Angeles, and Chicago brim
with Spanish speakers and Spanish culture.

Increase opportunities for travel. Spanish is the official language of 21
countries worldwide, and those countries are home to many exquisite
and fun travel destinations. If you speak Spanish, you can stray from the
tourist path and explore local culture with ease. Travel stress is also
minimized when you understand directions and menus, and countless
doors open to travelers who speak the native language of the country
they’re visiting. Prepare your child for aventuras!

Broaden cultural horizons. Give your child access to Spanish films, music,
and literature. World-renowned singers like Juanes and Gloria Estefan,
filmmakers such as Pedro Almodovar, and writers like Gabriel Garcia
Marquez are all native Spanish speakers. Knowing Spanish will help your
child understand and appreciate other cultures and Hispanic cultural
contributions.

Expand future employment options. Knowing Spanish is always a bonus
when looking for a job. The earlier children start learning, the easier it will
be for them to become fluent.

It’s easier than you think. Hundreds of words are the same in both
English and Spanish. Animal, hospital, actor, color and doctor mean the
same things in English and Spanish; they’re just pronounced a little
differently. For English-speaking children, there’s no easier second
language to learn than Spanish.

http://www.leapfrog.com/en-us/learning-path/articles/10-benefits-of-teaching-your-child-spanish