Last week, I started teaching Spanish to a 6 year old friend of mine. We’ll meet once a week, and I leave him with recordings and homework to practice until we see each other again.
I thought I would need an initial week to get him enthusiastic about learning Spanish and do some fun intro activities, but when I walked in the door that morning he was so excited that he shouted, “Hey, SPANISH!!” : ) Kids crack me up… Not only did he eat up the family member vocabulary I taught, he read right through a beginning reader in Spanish! Not phased at all by words he’d never seen before, simply repeating the words correctly when I helped him with pronunciation.
The stage of learning he’s in right now is PERFECT for learning a second language. Because he is still learning to read fluently, he’s not afraid to encounter unfamiliar words or try to pronounce something new. I plan to develop my own curriculum for 4 – 7 year-olds as the weeks go by, and offer kindergarten level Spanish language acquisition classes in the future! The knowledge I gained in college about second-language acquisition lays an amazing foundation for teaching young children.
Something in me comes alive when I’m able to use the language. As I was making a mix CD of educational songs in Spanish, I couldn’t help but sit there and sing along with songs I used to play every day in my bilingual kinder classroom. I praise God for the experiences He’s given me, and pray that He will continue to use me as He sees fit.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Cheryl, this is awesome! I would love to do something like that! If you do end up making that curriculum, maybe you wouldn’t mind sharing…?
I’m sure she would love to share. I am also very excited about what the future holds for Cheryl and teaching. The Lord has gifted her in mighty ways.