Scientists may finally have an explanation for why children reign supreme when it comes to learning new languages. Using MRI and animation technology to study the brains of children, researchers like Dr. Paul Thompson of UCLA have discovered that children are processing language information in a different region of the brain than adults.
There are different areas in the brain controlling different functions in our lives. When we brush our teeth, sign our names or drive a car, we don't consciously think: "move the right hand up and down like this," "capitalize this letter," or "turn the wheel 30 degrees to the left." These are examples of automatic brain function. When children acquire language, this same part of the brain, called the "deep motor area," is what they use, so the language is like second nature.
But when adults learn a second or third language, their brains operates differently. The window of opportunity to imprint information and skills in the deep motor region of the brain is widest during early childhood and nearly shut by the time we reach about 18. Therefore, adults have to store information elsewhere, in a more active brain region. As a consequence, adults usually think sentences through in a native tongue and then translate them word-by-word, instead of thinking in automatically in another language like a child would. Even for people with extensive training in a second language as an adult, who feel their speech is automatic, on a neurological level the brain is still operating differently from a child's.
Research into the neurology of language acquisition is proving useful because understanding the "geographic" differences of language learning in children versus adults may influence educators and their decisions about foreign language instruction. As an example, Thompson says simply teaching young children the sounds and accents of other languages at an earlier age may be valuable, even if they are not getting full instruction in the language. Learning those sounds later in life – from a neurological perspective – can be more difficult.
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( 3 / 104 )Over the years of teaching Spanish, one thing always comes across among my adult students: learning a language requires more time and effort than what they thought.
Leaning is a process; you can't rush it.The only thing that you can do is to stay motivated, learning something new every day.
You can learn a grammar point, talk with somebody, listen to a song or the radio, write something. Whatever you do, do something, learn something. Don't get lost that it is only one thing or 5 minutes. Five minutes everyday is more than one hour after a week.
So what are you waiting for?
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( 3 / 105 )According to my last entry, teaching colors as a vocabulary list doesn't work. Why? Because as soon as you start to make sentences, you also start to make grammar mistakes.
The best way to teach colors is in a context, in a sentence.
Pick a color. Probably it would be the best to pick your child's favorite color first. Then, look what you have at home with that color.
Make a vocabulary list with things that your child would like to talk about: his/her favorite toy, his/her favorite clothes, his/her favorite food, etc.
Translate it into Spanish.
Then start talking about.
Example: I will use "azul" (blue) just as example.
¿Cuál es tu color favorito? (what is your favorite color?)Blue. En español es azul.
Mira, tu carro (car) es azul. Tu bicicleta (bike) es azul. Tu pantalón (pants) es azul.
You can ask your child to show you more things. Remember, in Spanish, you don't need the subject: "Es azul" is correct. If your child wants to know something and you don't know, just say "I don't know" and go and look at the dictionary. You can have any dictionary with pictures. They are all good and a great way for your child to learn a new word, but only the word that he/she is interested on.
TIP: Show them, don't translate. Show them his/her pants or bike and say the sentence. Don't make difficult adding plural. Practice "azul" as masculine/singular.
After a while of saying the same sentences over and over again, you can add another color. And the whole process starts again.
Here is a link to a great online dictionary:www.wordreference.com
Good luck!
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( 2.6 / 140 )Colors are a pain! Yes, you heard me. Some of them have gender(masculine or feminine), some don't. All of them have number (singular or plural). So, let's make a list.
Colors that don't change genders
Azul (blue)
Verde (green)
Rosa (pink)
Violeta (purple)
Marrón (brown)
Café (brown)
Gris (gray)
Celeste (light blue)
Colors that change genders
Blanco/a (white)
Negro/a (black)
Rojo/a (red)
Morado/a (purple. It is the most used in México)
Amarillo (yellow)
As every adjective, colors have number (singular or plural)
Azul is azules
Verde is verdes
Rosa is rosas
Violeta is violetas
Marrón is marrones
Café is cafés
Gris is grises
Celeste is celestes
Blanco is blancos/blanca is blancas
Negro is negros/negra is negras
Rojo is rojos/ roja is rojas
Morado is morados/moradas is moradas
Amarillo is amarillos/amarilla is amarillas
So, does it make sense to teach colors without context, without a phrase?
Let me know what you think.
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( 3 / 124 )In my constant search for resources on teaching Spanish to children, I came across this fine website of the Multilingual Children Association.
http://www.multilingualchildren.org
It is an excellent site, mainly oriented to multicultural families. Although most of my students come from monolingual (English) families, this site provides advice, ideas, and the state of current research regarding bilingualism.
Are you interested in forming a play day with your children in Spanish? The site allows you to contact families with a similar interest.
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