A Guide To Distance and Language Learning
Most families are now in the midst of some form of distance learning. Working from home, parenting, and teaching kids all at the same time is an insane juggling act!
I’m currently home teaching my daughter, taking care of the house and working full time and sometimes I wonder how we’re going to make it through the day!
Despite the crazy times, I’m taking this as an opportunity to work on her Spanish skills.
Right now there are so many resources available to support language learning at home (for more of my home learning resources click here!)
If you aren’t a Spanish teacher or a Spanish speaker, it can be hard to support your child’s language learning.
Here is a quick start guide to help you get started with some Spanish phrases everyday.
There isn’t a day that goes by that you don’t use color words!
Here’s a way that you could start out working with colors:
“¿Cuál es tu color preferido/favorito?” or “What’s your favorite color?”
Tell your child that they can respond with, “Yo prefiero…” or “Me gusta…” (I like…). Even if they don’t know the color word in Spanish they can practice that phrasing, “Me gusta red!” If their favorite color is on the Quick Start Guide, encourage them to find it and use it, “Me gusta rojo!”
You can continue to talk about colors by pointing to things that you see and asking, “¿Cuál color es?”
Your child can respond with, “Es…” or “Es de color…”.
The more that you work with the phrases and practice using them around the house, the more that they will become automatic and you and your child will have them memorized!
As you become more proficient you can research more Spanish color vocabulary to support your talk about colors.
In order to boost your Spanish language time, it’s important to hear and engage with as much Spanish language as possible.
If you stick with the color theme there are several songs and websites that can support your vocabulary and learning.
Songs:
Little Baby Bum: This is a great source for Spanish nursery rhymes and translated songs in Spanish. Here’s one of their color songs.
De Colores: This is probably the most well known Spanish color song and this is an excellent version by Jose – Luis Orozo.
Guia Infantil – This site is made for Spanish families looking for resources in Spanish for their children. It has some great color songs and videos with “Osos Traposo”.
Websites:
Spanish Playground– There is a whole resource page dedicated to color activities. It includes book lists and printables for working with colors in Spanish.
Spanish Mama– This site includes a mini starter course in working with colors. It includes song lyrics and a variety of activities that you can try at home with kids.
Through constant immersion from a variety of resources, I was able to bring native Spanish language to my daughter. If you’re looking to start your own language-learning journey, check out some of these great resources to get started.
Happy Learning!
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