¡Quiero mi plátano! (I want my banana!) is an excellent book for introducing or reinforcing the Spanish verb querer, to want. I read it to my children when they were small, and I use it in classes with children learning Spanish. The story is about a monkey who has lost his banana and wants it. The jungle animals offer him other fruit, but he only wants his banana. The repetition of quiero (I want) and [...]
The Spanish verb querer, to want, can be used in many daily interactions with your child. In Spanish, verbs change to match the subject of the sentence, and it is important to model these changes for your child. Children learn Spanish verb forms if they are exposed to them, that is, if they have the chance to hear the different Spanish variations of the verb. One of the simplest ways to expose a child to [...]
Children sing this short song to the tune of La bamba as they wash their hands. The idea is that by washing the whole time they sing, they wash their hands thoroughly. They also learn Spanish vocabulary and Spanish grammar. Singing the song they associate the Spanish verb lavar with the action of washing their hands. Touching the water and the soap helps them learn the Spanish words agua and jabón. Children wash their hands [...]
In Spanish, verbs change to match the subject of the sentence. Children learn Spanish verb forms if they are exposed to them, that is, if they have the chance to hear the different Spanish variations of the verb. One of the simplest ways to expose a child to verbs forms is to use the yo (I ) and tú (you) forms of common verbs in situations where it is obvious what you are saying. A [...]
The game “rock, paper, scissors” is played all over the Spanish-speaking world. In most countries it is pierda – rock, papel – paper, o tijera -or scissors. (In Peru it is called janquenpón, from the Japanese yan-ken-pon, and in Chile it is called cachipún.) Teach your child to play this simple game in Spanish. The actions reinforce the meaning of the Spanish words. In addition, rhythm aids pronunciation. It is a great way to use [...]
The verb phrase vamos a + infinitive ( the base form of a verb), translates into English as “let’s + verb.” It is a good way to introduce new verbs. Hearing this common Spanish phrase in situations where the meaning is clear, children can begin to understand many Spanish verbs. Some of the first verbs I teach are: Comer – to eat Vamos a comer. – Let’s eat. Correr – to run Vamos [...]
This video, made for Spanish-speaking preschoolers, is perfect for learning Spanish color words at any age. Objects in a simple drawing fill in with two or three colors as you hear the words pronounced. Next the drawing is animated for a moment and then a new drawing appears. Listening to native speaker pronunciation, like the children on this video, is how children learn Spanish sounds. There is lots of repetition, and the video is paced [...]
I was fortunate enough to find these books by Creative Teaching Press when my kids were preschool age. The Spanish versions are intended to introduce native Spanish speakers to basic science and math concepts. I bought them in a bookstore packaged into the math series, the science series and the fun and fantasy series. Each set had about six of these little books. They were fabulous when my kids were learning Spanish and I still [...]
Reading a wonderful picture book is a powerful experience. Language, color, and ideas come together to create a world that captures a child’s imagination. Brown bear, brown bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr., illustrated by Eric Carle, does just that. Oso pardo, oso pardo ¿qué ves ahí?, the Spanish translation of this classic, is every bit as absorbing as the original. The question-response structure, the rhythm and rhyme, and Carle’s beautiful illustrations [...]
Children learn Spanish grammar and vocabulary by exposure to correct grammatical structures. Hearing the questions that follow the photograph, your child can learn Spanish verbs and learn Spanish phrases. Look at the picture with your child. Read the questions that follow and answer them together. Don’t worry about understanding every word in the questions. You can often understand the main idea without understanding each word. To learn Spanish, children need to develop the ability and [...]
Children learn Spanish colors in context as they hear stories and play games. The words for colors are adjectives and agree in number and gender with the noun they describe. (For more information see this explanation.) These Spanish online activities include colors in context so that children can hear the words pronounced correctly and are exposed to the correct Spanish grammar. ¿De qué color es? In this activity, click on the crayon that answers the [...]
Drawing, or coloring, with your child can be a wonderful Spanish language activity. The key is to talk about what you are doing in Spanish. The picture clarifies and reinforces the meaning of what you are saying. Also, the process offers the opportunity to repeat Spanish vocabulary and structures many times. 1. Draw or color a picture with objects that your child know the name of in Spanish or that are words that she is [...]