Teach Your Child A Foreign Language
Zero to 5 is a critical age, a window of opportunity for second language learning
according to multiple continued studies, and shared by Dr. Kuhl, the UW professor of speech and hearing sciences and the UW’s Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences/ I-LABS.
A young girl walked over and told me, “I can count in Mandarin!” She counted all the way to 15, and her mother smiled as she gently told the girl that it was very good. Then, a preschool-age boy who stood next to this girl said, “I can also count in Spanish!” and he started singing a Spanish number song.
I was presenting a Chinese culture event for young children at the library, and it was packed. During the program, we sang and chanted in Mandarin. The kids participated wholeheartedly, with smiles and giggles, even though most of them don’t know any Mandarin.
An increasing number of studies show the many benefits of being bilingual. Bringing a second language to your family, therefore, provides a brain workout for your child on a daily basis!
Starting today and the next several days I want to share simple tips for introducing a second language to your young child. It can be Mandarin, home language, and community languages you are working on.
Here is tip #1
Start With Songs and Music
Singing is joyful. Music is universally understood. When you combine the two, you have a party! Singing is also a form of learning, and it helps build literacy skills. Start by introducing a second language to your child through songs and music. There are many online resources if you want to expose your child to a new language through song. Here are a few to start with.
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Mandarin Chinese songs
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Sing Together Chinese Song Playlist
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Mandarin Song Playlist for Big Kids
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Spanish songs
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Multilingual songs collection
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World music and songs
What are you going to add to your device now so you can share the joy of songs and music with your child right away?
Image by Jen Theodore
Teach Your Child A Foreign Language
