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Kids are so transparent . . . and so is mom!

Cindi Simmonds (October 5, 2011)

Kids are so transparent. Need I say more?

Nick: "Mom you're the best cook in the whole world."

Mom: "Thanks honey."

Nick: "Can I have another one of your yummy cookies?" (I could have seen that one coming a mile away).

Katie: "Mom, I love you as big as a house. You're the best mom in the whole world."

Mom: "I love you too honey, as big as the universe."

Katie: "Mom, can I watch a cartoon?"

My kids are so transparent, which is probably a good thing. I shudder to think of the day they become less so; at least now I know when I am being manipulated.

Nick and Katie are big fans of cartoons—what kid isn't? As the voice of reason in our household, I carefully monitor what they watch and when. Last February they started taking Spanish in addition to Mandarin at Language Stars. I love that I can easily obtain Spanish cartoons. I have managed to get a few cartoons in Mandarin, but that involves a trip to China Town and serious guessing! Since the information about the cartoons is in Mandarin, whether or not I find something my kids will enjoy is hit or miss. So far, mostly miss. Spanish, however, is another story.

I discovered three of their favorite cartoons are shown in Spanish on Saturday mornings: "Dora the Explorer", "Go Diego Go", and the "Backyardigans ." I set them to record every weekend. Nick found it fascinating that this version of Dora is mostly in Spanish with a little bit of English. I explained that the cartoon was designed to teach children who spoke Spanish a little bit of English, just like "our" Dora was mostly in English, with a bit of Spanish for him to learn. "Cool," was his reply.

My personal favorite, in both English and Spanish, is the Backyardigans. It is about a group of five friends who go on "adventures" together in their backyards—finding mermaids, sailing the seven seas as pirates, exploring caves, etc. Like all good adventures, they end with a snack (a fact most moms will appreciate). One night I allowed Nick to watch the Backyardigans (in Spanish) right before bed. He had seen this particular episode in English, so he was able to follow it in Spanish quite well. Before the cartoon started, I warned him that this was the only cartoon—and then bed! (Actually, it was already bedtime, but I was in the middle of something I needed to finish—enter the electronic babysitter!).

When the cartoon finished, he smiled and said, "¿Mama, uno más, por favor?" Seriously!! How could I say no? Of course, I didn't. I started another one.

A few days later, I overheard the following conversation between Nick and his grandmother.

Nick: "Hey Grandma, I have something silly to tell you."

Grandma: "What Nick?"

Nick: "You know how I can get Mom to let me watch another cartoon, even if she already said, 'No'?"

Grandma: "No, tell me."

Nick: (in a conspiratorial tone) "I just say, '¿Mama, uno más, por favor?'!"

Grandma: (laughs)

I laughed too (but not too loudly). He's got me totally figured out! Yes, kids are transparent. But, in this case, so was his mom!

Cindi

Time for a Siesta!

Courtney Glantz (October 3, 2011)

If you're a parent and you're committed to giving your child the experience to learn something new, very little can make you happier than when you actually SEE results.

I went into Logan's experience at Language Stars not expecting miracles. It's more about exposing him to the second language at a young age and hoping for the best. I'm not expecting fluent, but I am expecting some things will stick and ultimately that his experience there will help him when he begins Spanish at public school.

So the expectations are reasonable. I hope he has a great time and I hope, from time to time, that I hear a bit of Spanish sneak into our daily lives (bonus if it's funny).

The other day I had to drop something off at my dear friend's home. She is fluent in Spanish, as is her nanny and two boys. (I have brought them up before as I appreciate their support with this and with helping in terms of exposing Logan beyond his weekly time at Language Stars.) The nanny was home but both boys were in school. As we were leaving, Logan started to fixate on what nanny could possibly do without the boys home for her to watch (The thought of dishes/laundry/disorganized toys just doesn't come automatically to a 4 year old).

Logan then asked if nanny would be 'taking a nap.' I laughed and tried to explain to the nanny what he had said. She smiled back at me but I don't think my words translated correctly. Then, as we turned to walk down the path I hear Logan call back to her 'enjoy your siesta!'

Seriously? Major points, kid. Not only did you pull a Spanish word out of your hat, but it was hilarious.

¡Adios!
Courtney

Frère Jacques

Kate O'Connor (October 3, 2011)

This was the last class of the summer session before a break. The kids started the class by coloring with markers, singing the 'Bonjour Les Amis' song in a microphone, and then each child was greeted by name. For this class, there were five kids including Jacques. They reviewed greetings ('how are you?'), names with the beach ball, and some body parts.

This was the first class I've ever heard Miss Clementine speak English (during class). It was during the choo choo train (the kids get up and follow her going fast or slow) when the train began to derail and she had to remind some of the young children what the rules of the class were.

I've noticed that the three-year-olds seem to have an incessant need to wiggle more so than the older kids, but all of the kids have to 'shake their sillies out' at some point or another! There are plenty of opportunities to do so, but when they do take a moment to sit down, sometimes the younger kids are all over the place (my son included!) It seems that children do better in class in the morning when they're fresh after a hearty breakfast as opposed to the afternoon after a full day. We had a make-up class in the afternoon and my son wasn't able to pay attention and focus as well as he had in the morning classes.

A poster full of children and their cookies was studied closely. Each child had a different number of cookies on his/her plate and they were demonstrating the fairness, or lack thereof, of cookie allocation. (It's a good thing a handful of goldfish during snack time looks like the same amount!) After snack time they sang the good-bye song to each child.

Class was pretty standard and well done. One the way home, from class, Jacques blurted out (WITHOUT any prompting!), "Je m'apple Jacques!" (again, not his real name). I was so excited to hear him say that! I thought that was pretty good progress in my humble opinion! To me, it's a big step going from repeating phrases to saying one by himself. I referred to the Language Stars 'Learning Ladder'. He's progressing just as it says! My forte is not childhood development so it's very interesting to me to watch these stages of development.

Another sign of progress was that he started singing some French songs. I'd taught him 'Frère Jacques' and then there's the song from class 'Bonjour Les Ami' which is also on the Language Stars CD. 'Frère Jacques' can also be found on YouTube so I let him watch the animated version a few times so he'd learn it. There are several good short videos for kids which might help them learn colors, numbers, etc. (Type 'song for kids in French' in the search box on the web site or click here.)

I remember when I was a child, listening to that song (and others) on a record player! I think this is what we had click here

Those songs take up a special quadrant in his brain too because he sang nothing but those two songs for days on end (I lost track). Of course, those songs got stuck in an endless loop in my brain too. Yes, there can be too much of a good thing, especially when it won't leave your brain.

I tried replacing the songs by listing to other songs, singing other songs, etc. It would subside for a bit. Inevitably he would start singing it again or it would creep back into the forethought of my consciousness. There was a break between the summer and academic semesters and not hearing those songs in class for a bit, I think, gave our brains a little respite from the songs. He stopped singing them (thankfully!) for awhile (but I know they're lurking in there!)

My blog: Il Etait Une Fois... I'd love to read any comments you may have on this or previous posts!

-Kate

More of This Week's Parent Blogs

Renee Mora : En français, s'il vous plait!

Carelys Hepburn : Back to Language School: A new class level for my boy!

Language Stars Blog Archive

· Dancing with the (Language) Stars (September 26, 2011)
· Input Effects Output (September 22, 2011)
· Those..phenomenal..frustrating.. fantastic..phonemes (September 8, 2011)
· A Star Teacher (August 26, 2011)
· Call in the Language Education Experts (August 2, 2011)
· Grande Experience (July 28, 2011)
· In the beginning, I studied language . . . now I am in awe of it. (July 27, 2011)
· The First "Bonjour" Happens So Fast (July 20, 2011)
· Meet Our Parent Bloggers (July 18, 2011)
· Multilingual Celebrities Abound (June 20, 2011)
· A View of Foreign Language Immersion...from Inside & Out (June 6, 2011)
· Free Fun for Kids in Bethesda, Maryland (May 23, 2011)
· Behind the Language Stars Curtain: Mike Perrin (May 9, 2011)
· This Summer @ Language Stars: Dinosaurs, Rock Stars, and Slime! (April 25, 2011)
· Language Stars Reston Grand Opening (April 7, 2011)