One thing I have always wanted to do was speak multiple languages. I wanted to travel the world and talk to people from different cultures. I wanted them to see that I genuinely cared to learn about their world by speaking to them in their native tongues. Unfortunately, I never became fluent in Spanish, Latin, or Japanese (the languages I took classes for in school). It was only in my pursuit of helping my children gain this valuable skill of speaking more than one language that I learned how to actually learn a language. One of the best ways is through immersion. So I enrolled my children into a Mandarin Chinese language immersion school and they thrived. However, once the world went on lockdown I had to figure out a way for them to keep their Chinese skills and to learn Spanish from home.
The first thing I needed to do was set a foundation. In language learning, it needs to be functional in order for the brain to actually keep the information. Communication is a two-way street. Therefore, it is crucial to have online classes with someone who fluently speaks Spanish. You can dialogue with them and improve your skills. I enrolled my children (and myself) into Homeschool Spanish Academy. It is an online Spanish language learning platform where you schedule classes with native Spanish speaking teachers.
I highly recommend taking classes at least once a week. More is better, but once a week is the minimum to really gain the skill. I have partnered with Homeschool Spanish Academy so that the parents in my community here can receive a discount from their classes. If you are interested in the classes CLICK HERE for the affiliate link with the discount.
When it comes to practicing your Spanish speaking skills outside of the classroom you need two things: applications on your phone, and books. It is so important to read in Spanish to correct your accent by learning the proper sounds of the language and practicing them, as well as expanding your vocabulary. I like to use the app for my kids called Kids A-Z, which is a standard app for leveled reading books. However, this app also has a Spanish section with leveled books. The book is read to you, then you have the option of reading the book independently. Finally, you are able to answer questions about the book once you are passed “level aa”. Homeschool Spanish Academy also has workbooks that have reading passages in them. The intermediate level is the one I received and it is called “Adelante”. If you are interested in their classes then check out their workbooks as well.
An app that I really love to use for Spanish language review is called “Fluent Forever“. It is based on the book “Fluent Forever“. This book was instrumental in teaching me how to help my children learn another language, since I had never done it myself. The app has a spaced repetition system algorithm that helps you maximum learning and retention of vocabulary.
For more tips, tricks, and to see my 5 year old daughter reading in 3 languages (Spanish, Mandarin and English), check out my Youtube video linked here.
