Language is primarily learned at home. And more and more children are growing to be bilingual or even multilingual. Thanks to technology and social media it’s now easier to expose children to different languages.
According to research, English is the top most spoken second language in the world. So it’s just practical and beneficial for your child to master this language apart from his mother tongue.
Being bilingual/multilingual has lots of benefits including the following:
- Increase brain power
- Academic advantage
- Builds self-confidence
- Awareness of other’s culture
- Better social skills
- Longer attention span
Now that we have established the positive reasons to learn another language, let’s delve more on how we can help our children develop their “second tongue”. Particularly, how to become proficient in English as as second language.
Top 5 Easy Ways to Learn English as a Second Language
- Watch movies and cartoons in English
Hearing words regularly and actually seeing how they’re used in actual setting makes it easier to learn the language in context.
2. Converse in English
Talk to your child in English whenever possible. Practice the words that your child has been learning in cartoons. You’ll be surprised at how much they’ve picked up.
3. Read storybooks
As you read, ask your child questions to check his understanding. Also, repeat the sentences and ask your child to do the same. This will help your child’s pronunciation.
4. Play games
Games such as ‘I Spy’ help your child learn descriptive words.
5. Use educational learning program like Talking English from Grolier
Talking English is an English learning program featuring a Reading Pen that promotes comprehension and improves speaking fluency.
It comes with 20 vividly-illustrated and fun-filled books with engaging content. Plus, it follows a thematic learning sequence based on everyday situations and common encounters.
Click here to find out more about Talking English.
There you go! Those are my top 5 tips to help your child master English as a second language.
I truly believe that with the right use of technology and learning programs such as Grolier’s Talking English, your child will be fluent in English in no time. I know this for a fact because this is how my nephew developed his “second tongue”.
How about you? What are your best practices to help your child learn a second language?
Happy learning,
2 Responses
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