Getting Started with Spanish
Learning & Teaching Spanish
I am not a native Spanish speaker. Spanish is my second language. I have written some resources for Spanish instruction because I saw a need in the homeschool community for resources, and they tend to coincide with our science and nature studies.
I also have chosen to write resources that make sense to me for my children, which are fun phonics based activities or high frequency vocabulary word studies that go with our other studies.
How I learned Spanish
My mom is Colombian, and Spanish is my second language. I remember how I learned, which is a classic (and let’s be honest, a very privileged) approach.
Immersion - my mom spoke Spanish at home sometimes, but she was also trying to better her English when I was really young. But we always had Spanish language music, conversation, and phone calls happening around us. We also traveled to Colombia every two years for nearly the whole summer to stay with family.
Teaching - I remember in early elementary my mom did teach us Spanish phonics with Nacho or Nico y Carolina readers, and we would listen to fairy tales in Spanish as well, plus records (I am that old.) She also taught us all the little songs. By high school, I took Spanish 1-3 and AP Spanish for easy credits. Spoiler: They were not easy because articles and verb conjugations are hard. Still got good grades though.
In college, my roommates were from Venezuela and Colombia and spoke Spanish in our apartment, which really locked in the language for me when it wasn’t just speaking to family.
How I’m choosing to teach Spanish
My children have had an entirely different experience than me when it comes to Spanish. For one, there hasn’t been international travel for my children. I feel like it’s important to say that this is largely due to budget and proximity to Colombia. We have proximity to Mexico. Sometimes we just can’t do the things we wish we could because other priorities take precedence. Compound that with me being afraid of speaking Spanish at home, and their experience is very different from mine when it comes to acquiring a second language.
Reading & Writing Practice
Phonics first, once my children know their English phonetics - I’m using THIS bilingual reading and writing binder, written by Dayana (Spanish at Cedar Hill), and split it into just abc’s for my youngest, and the phonics work which I’ll use for my older three children for now.
High frequency vocabulary studies
Some of the highest frequency vocabulary we encounter are the names of things and actions we do or use daily in our homes. Things like words for rooms in the house are a great way to practice vocabulary in a functional way - because you can then issue some household commands with basic verbs.
Academics - some of the highest frequency vocabulary we have!
The highest frequency vocabulary in our home is what we’re studying in school - so using vocabulary studies that correlate with something we use monthly, like Nature Study Club, are a great way to get that extra practice in.
Play activities
We use play activities, like menus for pan dulce, tacos, and other designed play mats and play activities to correlate to our nature study or foods we enjoy.
Next Steps
Household Labels & Activities that integrate more common vocabulary
Continued phonics instruction - I expect this to go fairly rapidly because my three oldest children know their English phonics, but we will see. I’m a huge fan of moving at the speed your children need, and not the speed you want to move at - it’s a large part of my electic homeschooling philosophy.
Homeschool Parents & second language instruction
The Benefits Homeschool parents have when teaching a second language if they’ve taught reading in their native language:
Understanding English Phonetics and being able to foster phonemic awareness in Spanish
Understanding English grammar - word endings, verb endings, etc. Understanding your own grammar will not be a direct translation to another language, but it will help you identify lingusitic structure with more ease.
Recommended Resources:
Phonics Reading & Writing Binder from Spanish at Cedar Hill
NOTE: I did not buy the printed phonics pack, I purchased digital so that I could print the alphabet pages for my youngest child, and my older three are doing the vowel work pages without tracing the alphabet as well.
