Parent and Tot Language Classes are a Plus for the Whole Family

In some dusty corner of our house a Spanish Rosetta Stone box is dying away slowly.  By the time we actually remember to rescue it it’s technology will probably be obsolete.  The hubby bought this expensive, awesome program with good intentions and I saw him practice a few times with the telemarketer-like headset, but to no avail.  If we get a couple free moments, we’d much rather catch up on the latest episode of Hawaii Five-0 or Glee.
Thankfully we’ve had a lot more success with language learning by attending local classes with the kids.  You can’t help but absorb the language when singing head and shoulders knees and toes in a different language while your kids are standing with you making sure you actually pay attention.  A lot of the language is taught with actions, role-play and mimicking, an education method called “total physical response” and it helps you really remember what you’re learning. We’ve done Spanish and Japanese since the boys were teeny babies with classes like Sponge and Pollyglots and every week our family vocabulary has grown with a couple new words.  I like the way Pollyglots has a CD of all their songs and the crafts we do in class reinforce remembering the words at home and Sponge has the kids try and chat together during a snack time.

Most parent and tot classes are for the under 5 set, so I’m savoring the last year of this.  If you have a tot under 5 and want to actually learn a language, I totally think this is an awesome way to learn.  And if you’re going on a trip to a place that speaks a different language that you speak at home, this is a perfect way to start your pre-trip prep.

(PS if you calculate the cost of taking a language class for just yourself and the babysitting that you’d need for your kids, these classes are a steal! )

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