Learning a language

sturll

I have been thinking for some time how i could increase my childrens chances of employment and better their cultural awareness. I have a 2:1 in Law and Accountancy and remember myself just how hard finding employment in a good job was.
These days degrees seem to be ten a penny and i feel it would be a shame for my kids (or indeed anyones) to go through school and college and then UNI only to be left unemployable.

So, my children are 1, 4 and 7. I was thinking how if as a family we learn a language it could only be beneficial to all of us. (not so much my toddler) I have been thinking Spanish - i speak German to a conversational level but i cant really think how German would be more beneficial than Spanish.

So my question is has anyone got any experiance regarding this - and what would be the best sorts of publications/cd's etc to use? Or what are the best ways of approaching something like this?

Thanks in advance

froggy27_2

I know that Muzzy, the BBC language course for children, is supposed to be quite good but quite expensive.. maybe you can Google it and have a look on Ebay .....It is aimed at children so you could learn at the same time... Good luck!

markelock

i got french muzzy for daughter number 1. wasn't impressed and sent it back. I felt it was a little surreal, and badly drawn.

it must work for some people of course.

now daughter number one learns french at a local class on saturdays, and also when we go to Paris each year.

bryanb

I would (seriously) recommend Chinese as the useful language of the future. How to go about learning it is another matter.

Voyager2002

I agree that Chinese and German are likely to be more useful for jobs than Spanish. Pity, because Spanish is my language and I find it beautiful rather than practical.

There are various summer courses that combine organised fun with language learning, although they tend to be for ten years and above. I think that spending time in an environment where the target language is spoken is likely to be the most effective way of learning.

Tojo_Ralph

......
Mandarin gets my vote, with Arabic a very close second.

sturll

Thanks for the advice.

The thing about Mandarin is that supposedly its near impossible to learn. I thought Spanish would be ideal since its spoken in somany more places than languages such as German - Practically the entire of South America - and those who have been to Western USA will notice it seems to be more widely spoken than English!

miss_edith

I would also think German is much more useful than Spanish. That said you'd need to be fluent to even apply for a job involving a language, I have a degree is German and Spanish but couldn't find a job using either.

kb36

If you really want your kids to learn a second language the key is continuity - it really is no good starting with the best intentions and then stopping!!

I think the best way to do it (if you both are monolingual) is to have regular input from a native speaker of your chosen language. I do think Spanish is a good one as it will facilitate acquisiton of others -French and Italian... Native speaker input beats any class where conversation is stilted - I learnt french for 8 years at school and could only muster up what flavour ice cream to buy and 3 nights at the youth hostel at the end of it!

The best way (my opinion only) is to have someone chatting regularly, reading stories, taking them to the park etc. Au pairs are great if you need the childcare but if not a local teenager speaking your target language who can have them for a couple of hours (sort of babysitting) would be good. It mirrors the approach used by bilingual families everywhere!!

My kids are just beginning to appreciate being bilingual (6 and 8) as they see it as a tool that just makes life easier. A massive proportion of UK residents are bilingual so I think you are right in thinking this will help!

What about at their school....?

Good luck

simonSE15

a work colleague recommended Michel Thomas's CDs as a starting point for Spanish.

http://www.michelthomas.co.uk/

you can get em on amazon or wherever.

nico26

Rosetta Stone do loads of languages and a lot of people say it is very good. You can send away for a trial cd of the language you wish to learn. Will give you an indication of the learning technique.In fact michael Phelps just on TV advertising it.http://www.rosettastone.co.uk/offer/phelps.Worth a look.