Learning A Second Language

At what age is it approptiate for a pre schooler to start learning a second language?

learning how?

exposure to other languages is best done when younger...and if it is possible in a fun and enjoyable way. (not drill and kill.)

Many parents opt to send their children to mandarin/English preschools so their children will be exposed to and be able to practice both languages.


For my own experience, my husband and I are both Korean American, but we are both more comfortable in English (although we can speak Korean fairly well.) Our daughter has heard both languages, attends a local Korean preschool and is now at age 2.5 bilingual. She prefers to speak more Korean, but understands everything that I say to her in English.


There are many studies which show that the ability to learn a second language well is limited by the age of 12. Newer studies lower this age to 8 and what it means that - by age 8, the ability to learn another language well and be fluent is already limited. (I do have a masters in Education with a primary focus on bilingualism and secondary languages...so I have some research to back it up if you'd like)


so - the simple answer to your question - is - you should start now, before your child hits the upper limit. Of course, MANY people pick up languages when they are older and do quite well - it's just that it is THAT MUCH harder.


Good luck!

The Brain and Language Acquisition

The "window of opportunity" idea is widely accepted. Here is a very simplified explanation: From birth until puberty, the brain literally formats itself to perform various specialized functions, such as language, based upon the input it gets from the world. Neural networks gradually form, and they function more and more efficiently as they are used. If a second language is part of that input, networks for understanding and using it grow richer. Therefore, early exposure to a second language actually causes more connections to grow in a child's brain, and those connections, in turn, allow for easier additional learning in the second and first languages.


This "formatting" process, especially active in the first six years, ends at puberty, or around age 12, and the brain begins to shed connections it no longer uses. The capacity to distinguish and make sounds not encountered in languages the child speaks diminishes or disappears.


Many scientists believe that a newborn's brain is genetically "programmed" to learn language, just as a bird is programmed to sing or a spider to weave a web. No one actually teaches a child to talk. Rather, parents and others enable her learning by speaking while they interact with her. The interaction is a critical part of this process; merely hearing TV or radio is not enough by itself.


Baby talk by adults is part of this interaction. It involves simple sentence structure and vocabulary, exaggerated intonation and sounds, repetition, and questions, all of which help a child sort out meanings, sounds, and sentence patterns of a language.


During this early period, two languages can be learned simultaneously ­ as long as the child regularly interacts with speakers of both languages.


Pronunciation is more like that of a native speaker when language study begins early. Some experts believe this is due in part to physiological changes at puberty; by age 15, a child's facial muscles and bones are nearly mature, and his musculature loses sensitivity to phonetic distinctions that are not relevant to the languages he speaks. It is simply harder for the older student to make new, unfamiliar sounds. A psychological factor may also be at work: Older children are more inhibited in trying out new sounds and more concerned about making mistakes.


For further information on language and the brain, an excellent website is www.1worldlc.org.

Many thanks for the informative replies.....Does anyone know of a Spanish Class and/or teacher for a 2 year old?

Hi dd413. I have been looking for Spanish lessons for my 3 yr old since arriving a few months ago, with no luck. If you find something, I'd appreciate any info you can share. In the interim, I'm relying on CD roms and websites from the US.