Parents and educators would be wise to take advantage of the many available opportunities and resources for second language learning for children coming of age in the 21st century.
Biologically Ready
"The only language men ever speak perfectly is the one they learn in babyhood, when no one can teach them anything."
Maria Montessori
The brain is primed to acquire language by 4 years of age. If you live in certain areas of Switzerland, chances are good that your child speaks several languages; and, if you live in China, learning a tonal language comes naturally. The brain focuses on sounds, then syntax, then vocabulary in the language it is exposed to.
Cognitive Benefits
Learning a second language has shown to be good for the brain. Studies have found higher math, verbal, social studies, SAT scores for children who study an additional language.
Global Citizens
Infants are born "citizens of the world" with regard to language. They can distinguish sounds from languages around the world, even if they've never heard them before. By the end of the first year of life, however, they become "language-specialists," and the ability to attend to sounds from foreign languages greatly diminishes.
At around 10 years of age, children experience a developmental stage where they accept what is familiar and reject what is different. By making other languages and cultures a part of your child's life at a young age, you are more likely to encourage teenagers and adults to embrace it, too.
Bilingualism and multilingualism have many benefits to society. Americans who are fluent in more than one language can enhance America's economic competitiveness abroad and maintaining it's political and security interests, and work to promote and understanding its cultural diversity with the United States.
Language Barriers
Is it too late to try?
www.time.com/time/asia/covers/501060626/language.html
Foreign Language Power. Can babies and Toddlers Become Bilingual or even trilingual?
www.toddlerstoday.com/resources/articles/trilingual.htm
Something to Talk about Foreign Languages in American Schools
http://education.families.com/blog/something-to-talk-about-foreign-languages-in-american-schools
Learning a language boosts the brain
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3739690.stm
Linguist tunes in to pitch processing in brain
www.physorg.com/news122400499.htm
|
