(The Agony of) Teaching Kids a Second Language
I used to be the world’s biggest cheerleader for teaching kids a second language. When my daughter wasn’t yet out of diapers, I dragged her to ¡Juguemos en Español! classes. Each week the comely Argentine teacher Susanna played her guitarra and led us all in canciones about frutas, and animales.
Avery thought it was just ok.
When Max was old enough to join in, I enrolled us all in Wild About Spanish where we spent a pleasant year singing together about whales, starfish, and crabs. The next year a friend and I pooled our resources and hired a teacher from Berlitz. The year after that it was a private tutor.
The kids barely tolerated it, but I was determined. For years I rearranged my schedule, spent hundreds of dollars, and drilled my kids on vocabulary at home.
“¿Quieres un plátano?” I might say, or “¿Donde está el gato?”
They just rolled their eyes.
*
When it came time to re-enroll last year, the kids pushed back—they were sick to death of Spanish. I was a little sick of it myself to be honest, but I wheedled them into taking one more year. We were traveling to Spain that summer you see, and I just knew the experience of speaking Spanish in Spain would change their minds.
What finally sold them, I think, was my promise that we would order weird food for their non-Spanish speaking father in restaurants. “El pulpo para mi papá por favor,” we practiced.
Ha ha ha.
Imagine my consternation when both kids were struck mute in Spanish the second we stepped onto actual Spanish soil. They wouldn’t utter so much as a single palabra, despite all those years of instruction—the brats.
Our congenial host in Granada was muy feliz to hear that Avery and Max had studied Español, and wanted to ask them a few questions in her native tongue, just for fun. I told her that sounded bueno as long as she stuck to the approved topics (numbers, colors, and animals).
She ambushed them at the pool later that day, and asked them what their favorite colors were. Max responded by submerging. Avery shot me a panicked look. After some coaching, she whispered “azul.” Then she went underwater too.
*
I don’t know whether or not there’s a language learning window in the brain that slams shut at the age of six, but I do know when I’m beaten. I’m no longer convinced that once-a-week foreign language lessons are worthwhile. Daily? Yes. Immersion? Absolutely. Weekly? Notsomuch.
And on that note, we’ve got a really cool giveaway. Want to inflict Spanish lessons on your own kids? Here’s your chance:
The nice people at RosettaStone have donated some Level 1 interactive Spanish language learning software. The set comes with a headset microphone for speech recognition, and retails for $220.
To win, please leave a comment here in a foreign language by midnight, November 11th. Special consideration will be given to comments that are grammatically disastrous or totally nonsensical. Also, please be willing to check back in with us to let us know how you and your kids like the software. U.S. only please. ¡Vaya con queso!
November 5th, 2008 | by Jamie Pearson 296 comments
si, si, si, no no no no! Que las tima!
Immersion is really the only way. Come to Spain for a winter and they will be speaking Spanish well!
Is féidir liom gloinne a ithe. Ní dhéanann sí dochar ar bith dom.
Translation provided on request :)
Gran sito! Ma non posso vincere. Grazie per la vostra condivisione e broccoli meatloaf con me.
In English, I’d like to say BRAVA to you for working so hard to teach your kids a foreign language. It will pay off for you in end, I’m sure. I teach ESL private lessons here in southern Italy and I see a great improvement in my students from when we started 1 1/2 years ago. They are still scared to speak English when they travel and rely on their mother whose English is less fluent than their own … but we are working on it.
Please keep it up. Your kids might not understand the importance of it now, but they will be grateful in the future.
In Italiano, perche voglio vincere il Rosetta Stone per il mio nipote, io voglio dire “BRAVA” a te and il figli. In bocca al lupo!
Ich möchte die Sprachelernung Software bitte! Ich habe keiner Kinder und ich wohne nicht auf Amerika aber ich würde gern Spanisch lernen. Rosetta Stone ist sehr gut aber es ist sehr teur für mich. Ich kann natürlich für die Briefmarken nach England bezahlen.
Pulpo = octopus. Yum! That’s not ‘weird food’ at all, that’s delicious food. I can understand your kids might be wary if they’ve never had it, but surely their dad would eat it and even order for himself?
i think without the emmersion or a parent that is fluent it is hard to really get young kids to see the value…
I have no kids of my own, so take this with a grain of salt…
My parents wanted me to play the trumpet. I hated it and never practiced. Had they left me alone, I probably would have picked up the piano or something by myself.
I think I just resented being forced to do it.
Maybe just have them watch Telemundo :)
Mi espanol es perdida. Neccesita una nueva vida. Por favor.
I had better start learning Spanish or my husbands family and my son will soon be having inside jokes that I could never be a part of LOL I can understand most of it, to a degree but, to speak it… hummm. I’d sound like a fool!
En boca cerrada no entran moscas.
Ich habla meno espanol, ma ich liebe kennen moi francais, italianisch, espanol, cesky, o tutto di biblioteca di Rosetta Stone. Eh… wo ist el bano, si vous plait?
Que padre = literally “how father,” but means “how cool.” I’d love to check out this software. Thanks for twitter tip.
Hola! Buenos dias! Necessito una cervasa!
This summer, hubby and I took the kids to Puerto Vallarta to study Spanish at the Spanish Experience Center for 5 mornings — daughter loved it (age 8), son not so much (age 6). Both are in bilingual class at their elementary school, learning Spanish. A necessity here, w/ 50 percent native Spanish speakers/50 percent English speakers in the school.
I’d love to go back to P.V. to study more Spanish — felt I learned a ton in one week, but need 2+ weeks of immersion, I think (or 6 months! would love to do a sabbatical in Mexico — husband needs to sell his biz). Was determined to keep up the learning, but life got in the way here at home. No excuse, my MIL speaks Spanish, we should use more at dinner table….
Anywho, would be happy to guest blog re: Rosetta Stone Spanish on TSM. :-)
Yala Habibi!
We are desperate to learn Arabic and considered getting the whole family a tutor, perhaps we’ll settle for RosettaStone Spanish!
Mire! Mire! El gato está en la biblioteca. And other than the proverbial greeting that’s about all I remember of my Spanish, which I find sad. I’d very much like to do as my In-laws did: both parents spoke Spanish fluently, speaking over the kids heads about presents and surprise parties. My husband said he learned more Spanish just trying to understand what his parents were talking about then he ever did in high school.
Vraiment, mes fils et moi besoin etudient l’espagnol, parce que nous ne parle espagnol jamais. Wow, that was harder than I thought! I have heard nothing but good things about Rosetta stone. As always, your posts make me snort out loud. Love, love, love.
Juh m’apple Louise ay juh voodray aytoodiyea fransay. Is that ungrammatical enough???
Ich mochte die Sprachelernung Software auch! Bitte!
Currently I am trying to learn Spanish on Live Mocha, it is fun and I am learning but I think this would be so much better.
Amaría enseñar mis niños a español. Os beneficiaría verdad a largo plazo.
Si supe realmente un lamido de Spansih además de holla entonces yo quizás pueda decir algo pero estafaron y fueron a un sitio de freetranslation porque ninguno de los niños está en casa y quiere entrar. Los niños son requeridos a tomar Spansih donde vivimos y esto los ayudaría y yo quizás recoja algunos términos que quizás ayuden mí comprenden cuando soy picado en, o sé las frases más importantes o los dichos tan yo no retrocedo los ojos como un becuase de idiota que yo no comprendo.
Ahora que admito que soy ignorante de español y teniendo este me ayudaría, y ayudaría mis niños.. liquido porque dudo que esto tenga sentido. Espero que usted me escoja. POR QUE porque aunque inglés sea el idioma que somos supuestos hablar, necesitamos para poder comprender ésos que entran, y su bueno saber para la emergencia y propósitos médicos saber lo que ellos dicen tan que ellos pueden ser ayudados.
Espero que gane, he visto la propaganda de phelps y he oído que esto es maravilloso aprender de y para ser para cualquiera jóvenes o viejo y soy bien, estoy en ese grupo de edad. la Sra. mommyyatgmail. com
Hola! yo estoy muy gupo
el caballo esta saltando
Je voudrais donnez mes petites poissons dejour un peu d’espaniol sur le chapeau. Peutetre les filets voudrais gagner un peu de la langue entendre. Ou esqon va trouver l’espagne?
I just wanted to also agree with those who salute you for working so hard to add a second language to your young children. It really is a lot harder to raise a bilingual child ( especially by monolingual parents) than most people realize.
Personally, I think all schools in the US should be bilingual Spanish immersion schools and all in Canada should be bilingual French. Those are all dominant languages and once you have 2 languages it is easier to add others.
Watching Spanish TV and listening to Spanish music, going to playgroups with all Spanish speakers ( easy to do in Ca) were all things that helped us, along with always hiring babysitters who are native speakers. They need to not only speak in Spanish always, but help the child answer back in Spanish.
Mono lingual parents CAN raise bilingual children ( even trilingual!) but it is a LOT of work that goes on for many years. Young children can learn languages quickly, but they can forget them just as quickly, so constant work maintaining.
I must keep up my child’s Spanish when we are away from Spain, her English when we are in Spain.Regular immersing and spending as much time as possible in places where the 2nd language is dominant is VERY important. My child never understood the value of her bilingualism until we started wintering in Spain where not even her teachers, speak English.
Adding bicultural and biliteracy to the second language makes it all come together, but it takes LOTS of time and effort.
None of your efforts are wasted. Keep doing it because it is so much easier to learn languages before 12, when the brain is more set to learn language.
BEST book for monolinguals wanting to raise bilingual children?
Australian linguist George Saunders’ book “Bilingual Children: Guidance for the Family.”
He did it with German, but the principals apply. Monolinguals can raise bilingual kids…I know, we did it from birth!
Hi there.
In Russian:
Здравствуйте. Было предложено что-то сказать на иностранном языке. Это русский язык.
In Japanese:
こんにちは。と言って依頼された外国語で何か。これは日本語です。
In Chinese:
餵。有人問我說一些外語。這是中國的語言。
In Tagalog (Filipino):
Hello. Ako ay nagtanong sa isang bagay na sinasabi sa mga banyagang wika. Ito ay Tagalog.
Ooops. Just reread what you’d like.
Yo no haplas Espanyol muchos bueno. Porkey no estudio muchos in za klase de Espanyol. Una prueba mui grande i los notas mui malo. Muchos gracius.
Also.. don’t ever go to Japan and order “Taco” salad… unless you want seafood and you want to have tentacles all over your veggies. “Tako” means “Octopus” in Japanese.
Mucho goosto
gratsias
por me vou, dmae un software-o for me-o little pequenos
In Spanish: Tengo un hombre pequeno que vive en mi bodega.
In German: Ich habe einen kleinen Mann, der in meine Speisekammer wohnt.
And in English: I have a small man that lives in my pantry.
Oy Gevalt!
No hablo espanol, por favor
MUY bien grouchyass.
Tres bien, gracias.
Necessito esto porque quiero que mi ninas pueden hablar con la abuela que vive en Chile, pero mi esposo no quiere habla espanol en la casa. Porque es muy dificil por mi esposo apprende ingles y el quiere estar seguro que la hijas sabe ingles perfectamente primero. Yo provar insegna mi ninas hablar espanol, pero mi espanol es muy muy mal. Gracias!
Hola senoir!
Que sera sera–and I hope it will be that I win a RosettaStone Spanish Level 1! My five-year-old is so ready for something like this.
Por favor
Hi,
Don’t really want to enter contest for Rosetta Stone.but just couldn’t resist all this language talk. As a Spanish Immersion teacher here in a public school in California, I say: SUPPORT IMMERSION PROGRAMS IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS!
O.K. I’m off my soapbox. And as far as the singing programs, some kids love, some kids hate them. My son went to a great Spanish Immersion preschool, and they had a singer come in once a week. My son sat in for a whole 10 minutes of a session and was all done with that! I can SOOO relate.
Buenas noches.
Oh just remembered one more thing….kids are most likely to use language with other kids their age in a play setting. They don’t like to be forced to talk to adults, so if they have no choice but to communicate, they will talk.
Me gustaria comer los calcetines rojos en la biblioteca, por favor.
I do my best to encourage the kids in my life to learn as much Spanish as possible. I took some in school and forgot so much of it. So I’m doing my best to relearn what I forgot.
elkaye[at]gmail[dot]com
I was surfeando and found your site! I laughed so hard because, like you Jeanne, I was talking and singing to mis hijos en utero in espanol. I’ve tried for 12 years to feed my kids spanglish. We are the only familia on the bloque that speaks one tongue. I make them watch spanish speaking soap operas. They only watch to see if every show has at least one lady crying and a couple kissing. I’ve read them bilingual books,drill them while we are driving, and make them listen to spanish speaking radio. For 12 years I have tried to share my love of this romance language. What is their response? How do they answer my simple preguntas? Que quieres? “Mom we dont speak spanish. We dont know what you are saying”. What a barbaridad! Those little squinkleyes! They just wont talk to their pobre madre. They torture me. Rosetta Stone would not let them escapar. Rosetta Stone salvanos! Mis hijos only speak one language!!!!!!!
Gracias for the contest. It is bien. Thats it all I know in 2 languages.
Yo quiero ganar! Buenos noches de Alaska.
Hago este por un sitio de traducción tan tómelo para lo que merece. Tomé el español en la escuela secundaria, pero no seguí además. Mi hija quiso seguir más allá de la escuela secundaria pero ella está en un programa de educación que no le permite las asignaturas optativas para seguir el español. Todavía recuerdo algunas palabras pero he olvidado como conjugar verbos además del presente. Tan no pregúnteme sobre el pasado o el futuro. Yo amaría tener este para aprender de nuevo el español. ¡Muchas gracias!
Tienes un queso en tus pantalones?
For some reason my daughter, who is learning Spanish, loves this phrase. Thanks for the contest!
Our school system offers a dual immersion program where half the day is in english and half the day is in spanish. Since my kids did not participate, I would like them to learn some spanish.
Selectez moi silver plate.
sI ME AMIGO MUCHO GRANDE GRACIAS
I would love to win this I have 5 grandkids in mendoza, Argentina and I would love the grand kids here in the states to learn Spanish to be able to talk to their cousins(also nana too-I don’t any spanish either
chow adios esta la visa
Bonnie in FL
blday50@yahoo.com
Hola Me llama Denyse
Oh please, we need this so bad!!!!
Nessecito mucha por mi nino Diego y mi familia!
Great Contest !! I have wanted to Rosetta Stone for some time now !!
ktgonyea at gmail.com
Que bueno. Gracias.
Ola! Como se llama a la persona a su direcha? Umm – Uno – dos – thres – quatro!
I work at a food shelf and would love to learn spanish so I can be meor effective in my job.
Haben sie ausfluB aus dem scheide?
¡Amaría aprender una nueva lengua!
Como te llama?
We’ve all been wanting to learn Spanish but can’t afford to. Why don’t they have FREE spoanish classes? They offer FREE English ones?
When we traveled to Spain my son said that the most important phrase to learn was, “I am innocent.” This might be how to say it: Soy inocente.
I guess the next thing to know is how to say “May I make a phone call?”
Please, si, merci, se blu plais (sp?). I would love to learn Spanish with my kids. Thank you.
J’ai etudie francais dans l’ecole. Mais, mon frere a etudie espanol. Il alleraint a Espagne dans le printemps pour un nouveau travail et je voulais aller voir son nouveau maison. J’ai besion d’etudier espagnol vitement! Je suis heureuse pour lui et mes enfants veulent voir leur oncle dans Espagne aussi! Ma fille pense qu’elle puet parler espagnol parce que de Dora! (Peut-etre…)
Quiero Rosetta Stone porque mis hijas necesitan aprender espanol. Hablo espanol un poquito pero olvide muchos palabras de vocabulario. Gracias por el sorteo!
Mi hija quiere aprender español en sus los propios así que ella puede probar hacia fuera el próximo año. Estudié el francés, tan I’ m ninguna ayuda en absoluto. Usted puede decir probablemente eso de la manera I’ m que mata esto. ¡Gracias por hacer este y buena suerte!
Ola de nuebo,
Soy la berdadera Denyse. La unica. La otra es falsa. Como saber si es cierto? Toma la prueba:
Denyse es mas mexicana que los frijoles? cierta o falsa?
Ella le gusta comer lengua de vaca? cierta o falsa?
Ella es novia de Brad Pitt? cierta o falsa?
Tiene un perro que ladra pero no muerde? cierta o falsa?
Ella es mas inteligente que un 4th grader?cierta o falsa?
Estoy tan Embarasada que las respuestas no sean ciertas!
Colorin, colorado este cuento se acabado
Que suenen con los angelitos mis chiquititos
y sobre todo Que vayan con BESOS;)
Hola Senorita. Okay so I’ve learned Spanish from watching Dora with my daughters lol I would love to win this to help my daughters learn Spanish as well as myself. Adios Amiga :)
nowadays we need this more and more
only wish my parents had me take a second language when
i was in school.
i think it benefits the child as well as everything and everyone else.
want to win this
This is a good program!
satisfaga por favor por favor bastante con el azúcar en él me escogen. Mi preschooler está aprendiendo que los españoles y yo sonamos como un idiota que intenta ayudarle a aprender.
I used babel fish to translate this for me, have no idea if it is correct LOL. Thanks for the chance, I desperately need help to be able to assist my son with his studies.
Learning a language especially Spanish is so important. Bilingual makes a person much more apt to get a job. Looks great on a resume and lets people communicate better.
i dont know any other language but please enter me anyway
Je suis horrible à apprendre des langues. Aidez si vous plet!
(“I am horrible at learning languages. Please help!”)
Voglio vincere questo così tanto. Ho provato ad imparare una volta lo Spagnolo e potrei non ottenerlo mai. I’ la VE ha sentito che Rosetta è il migliore software nel mondo. Selezionilo prego!
Por favor?
YA YA ICH BIEN EINE KLINIE DUMPKOPH.. NICHT FERSTAIN BITTE EIN ROSETTA STONE
Yo no tengo tiempo para tu.
Kay Pasa? Muy Mal cafe dientes!
Concours très gentil ! A dû l’inlist l’aide de mes enfants écrire ceci ! J’avais l’habitude la pierre de Rosetta pour apprendre l’espagnol par l’Internet, mais, suis devenu défectuosité et l’abonnement s’est épuisé. Maintenant j’essaye toujours d’apprendre, mais, mon Français appris par enfants !
Not fair my kids can speak another language and I can’t!
I spoke Spanish as a small child and I would sure love to re-learn it..also, my young 4 year old grandson is in a Spanish immersion classroom and I would really love to be able to practise with him.
Shalom! and thanks for offering this contest!
elegir por favor me
låter som ett bra verktyg
Doy fidelidad, a la bandero, de los Estados Unidos de America. Y a la reuplica que representa, una nacion, baja dios, indvidicble, con libertad y justicia, para todos.
Um, yeah, it has been some years since I learned to say the pledge en Espanol.
I can also say some random phrases from rote memorization.
Maria lleva la bolsa a la playa.
Alquilamos un barquito.
You quiero y necessito ganar esta. I think.
And on a final note, I will share a total funny from highschool spanish. One charming fellow forgot his tilde. He asked the class “quantos anos tiene” to which I blurted “solomente uno”, my teacher was rolling on the floor and most of the class was bewildered. Funniest slip up ever.
Que pasa?
Please send this too me, I need all the free help available.
Thank you?
John
Hi, my son is trilingual. he has had this amazing benefit since birth. he fully understands english, spanish and russian. because of all these languages he didn’t actaully speak until he was three.
the funny thing was, he invented his own language from 2-3 years old, with over 50 words.
however, now that he’s 4. he speaks english and spanish great, russian is a battle, even though he understands it. but i have to pick my battles, and focus on the more important ones for now.
MuchaCostaRica
I took Spanish throughout High School and I have travelled to Mexico several times. I think that the best way to learn it is to simply watch and listen to the way words are used in context. From what I have heard, the Rosetta Stone system uses words in context, so I would love to try the system as well as share it with my family.
Forget the kids I would love to learn this myself!!!
Gracias por el concurso! Espero ganar!
Great contest!!
Por favor?
I would like to learn Spanish.
Amo agricula…the only thing I remember from my High School Latin class!
(I love a farmer!)
No hay mal que por bien no venga
Por Favor, chose me!!
My 7th grade daughter’s school has a very interesting way setup to help students decide which language they would like to learn. During the first semester she took French (loved it) and now has Spanish. Amazingly enough, she really enjoys both. It may end up being a difficult decision for her to make later this year.
Aqui esta su dientes
Here are your teeth :)
My Ex’s grandfather told me to say it whenever he got out of line.
Thank you!
I don’t know any spanish, but we’d really love to learn it!
I know a little french: S’il vous plait!!!
Mi espanol es perdida. Neccesita una nueva vida. Por favor.
me llamo hefey, yo entro?
My husband and I adopted a beautiful Hispanic baby 8 years ago. He speaks Spanish; I do not! We want her to be able to speak Spanish. My husband keeps saying he will teach her and me, but 8 years have passed and all we know is what we have learned from “Dora, the Explorer”…(LOL), flash cards, and from Muzzy Spanish. Wow, I have heard excellent reviews on Rosetta Stone. It would be awesome to win, learn, and surprise hubby…….Gracias
Je veux gagner.
Mis pantalones huelen a lechuga!
Donde esta la discoteca ?
This is the only spanish my son wanted to learn. Please help me !! LOL
Noche de paz, noche de amor
(Silent Night in Spanish!) I can actually sing the whole song, but I can’t write it.
Que Pasa
Hola mi amiguito
Lo duele mi vesicla biliar.
I need to learn spanish
I spoke some Spanish when i lived in Miami,but now I have lost it
je parle francais mais je voudrais bien apprendre l’espanol…le francais est absolutement inutile ici a new york!
with both kids learning this language right now, i need all the help i can get
jak spory czas… I live in a place loaded with people who only speak Spanish and “should” learn English. BUT what can I do?
My son has alot of relatives who speak Spanish and it would make the Aunt’s and Uncle’s very proud to be able to speak with him. Gracious
Senor Gregory Neumann
hola, mi llama donna. lo siento mi espanol es no perfecto. Pero yo piense este conteste es muy bien. yo soy una gringa, y mi esposo es cubano. con este programa, yo cree es possible para mi hablando mas mejor y cuando yo hablo espanol, mi esposo es muy feliz. gracias por la opportunidad.
I speak practically no Spanish but almost everyone in San Diego does, so it sure would be beneficial to learn
I’ve taught adults how to learn a foreign language, but I’m anxious to get started teaching my niece Spanish, and this will be a first to teach a small child…wish me luck! I am so glad that you are teaching your child Spanish. Please keep up the great work. Just back from volunteering in Chile, I’m excited to get back into Spanish and maybe even be a Spanish high school teacher in the near future. Yippee…interview’s in a month!
no hablo espanol
Questo sarebbe fantastico per i miei nipoti. Si prega di firmare per me il vostro concorso.
muey ben .
grasses.
I took three years of Spanish in high school, barely retained a phrase, but one thing I remember. As a class, we learned this as a joke for our Spanish teacher, who just roared when we chanted it in unison.
Pruebas, pruebas, pruebas. ¿Por qué tenemos tantes pruebas?
Que belle
No hablo espanol,gracias!
¿Puede usted me directa para el planeta que los aztecas construían sus pirámides?
muy bueno!
Yo quiero el prizo, por favor!!!
Necessito, as you can tell-o…
ich verstehen sie nicht.
I work in a dental office and have an influx of patients who speak spanish. I have been think of getting
Rosetta stone but can not afford it. I want to beable to take care of my patients even though i cant speak thier language. Everyone deserves treatment for thier pain without having to play charrades.
Bonjour! C’est magnifique!
El burrito de Taco Bell de la heartburno!
I would love to learn to speak Spanish.
The only other language I have learned is German and I remember very little.
Melden Sie mich bitte in Ihren Wettbewerb an.
What a wonderful and valuable prize, my spanish is limited to a few verbal phrases and I would not dare to try the spelling.
buenos dias.
no habla espanol bien.
yo quiero rosetta stone mucho.
novio es dominican.
I would like to try to learn a new language
Uxolo (Zulu)
Bite (Yiddish)
Xin (Vietnamese)
Tsweetswee (Setswana)
Translation-please,please,please, please!
I need to learn Spanish to graduate, this would be so helpful!
smchester at gmail dot com
que pasa
if i could speak a foreign language, why would i need to enter the contest :)
I clearly remember trying to find the train station in Paris. My question to the bus driver:
Quiero ir a la guerra. ¿Dónde es la guerra?
No wonder everyone on the bus was laughing at me…
Donde esta el bano? (it’s the only thing I remember from spanish class) Gracias!
Me gusta comer plátanos!
Me gusta leche!
Please enter me!!
Entre moi silvu plaise.
Murky Buckets!
B.
Que Lastima! Lo siento Ojala que te me horace pronto.
this will help me converse with my neighbors
Rosetta serait un cadeau boomerang parce que…
Je regarde des nouvelles que je ne comprends pas ET joue des CDs de Marc Anthony que je ne comprends pas.
J’ai besoin de Rosetta pour briller une lumière sur les mots.
I’m in to win. I’ll cross my fingers and toes and even braid my hair.
chow bella
Dzien Dobry,
Dobrze bylo by to wygrac bo Hishpanski jezyk jest bardzo uzyteczny w tym kraju. Nie tylko dla mojej corki ale nawet dla mnie zeby sie nauczyc. Slyszalam duzo dobrych zeczy o Rosetta Stone i bardzo bym sie cieszyla jezeli by to wygrala…
Dziekuje.
Mi sono laureato appena dall’istituto universitario e sto lavorando per un anno.
I’d like an entry!
Hola, profundo
I took 1 semester of spanish in college. Vaguely remember the phrase “I am hungry”, but it’s translated as I have hunger. Think it was yo tango hambre?? Oh well, I passed the class with an ‘A’.
amore e formaggio = love and cheese
Ich sprechen keine Deutsch
Mi espanol es terrible. Neccesita Rosetta Stone, Por favor!
ROSETTA STONE IS THE BEST WAY i’VE FOUND TO TEACH AND LEARN
Me enamorado con Ricky Martin
Sono Tabitha. Bevo molto vino!
I don’t want to look too fat in HDTV
grazie per la vostra bontà
que bueno
My boyfriend of almost 8 years speaks Spanish. He’s dying for me to learn Spanish so that I can understand Spanish music. He says that it’s so much more romantic.
Please enter me in as my b-day is this month and I would LOVE this.
I only know two basic things in another language, except I do know some swear words in italian, which I learned from hearing my grandparents argue as a child. I won’t include the swear words with my comments.
The two words I do know is Shalom (think I spelled it right) and Hola.
That is it and that sums it up, see how desperatly I need this program ?
Thanks !
Je veux gagner!
Bitte waehle mich! Mein Sohn braucht jede Hilfe die er kriegen kann. Danke.
Tack så mycket Swedish thanks very much
I would LOVE to win this! Rosetta Stone is amazing, you can literally learn so much just in your first “lesson”! It’s incredible, celebrities even use this program for preparing for film roles. I do know some Spanish, but I would love to utilize this program. Thanks!
Ich möchte noch einmal Bier und die Sprachelernung Software, bitte.
Danke.
Boy do I need to learn Spanish quickly
Muchas personas dicen: Mi’ espanol es egual a un bebe. Vocabulario es my malo. Todo el tiempo digo practico y escucha. Ayudeme con el Rosetta Stone por mi y mi hijo. Dos idiomas o mas es my importante.
Excuse tenses and grammer, but as you can see my Spanish language skills leave alot to be desired. Como se dice en ingles y despacio just don’t cut it.
Would love to attempt this with my husband and son.
Gracias por la competencia. ¡Buena suerte a mí!
entrez-moi s’il vous plaît grâce
Danka!
i si sabía hablar español, yo no tendría Rosetta Stone!
Courtesy of http://translation.langenberg.com/
Thank you free online translation software!
(I sure hope it says what I meant it to say)
Hay un pingüino en mi armario.
Ich liebe dich ? lol I think that is I love you in german! Thank you for the chance to win such a great prize!
Lekker! – danku wel,
Great! – thank you.
Me encantaría enseñar a mis niños pequeños 3 en español. Para mí, es tan importante en el mundo de hoy una persona que habla Inglés y español. Se puede abrir tantas puertas para que más tarde en la vida lo que me gustaría empezar el aprendizaje temprano en la vida de modo que quizás, ya que seguir creciendo y desarrollar tendrá en cuenta que el aprendizaje de otras lenguas también! Mi hijo mayor es de 9, entonces tengo una de 6 años y mi joven está a sólo 5 meses de edad! Esto sería perfecto para mi hijo mayor y tal vez su hermana se quiere aprender como resultado de ver a su hermano. Muchas gracias por la oportunidad de entrar hoy!
Uno, dos, tres, catorce!
Yo qiero Taco Bell.
Las tortitas me hacen feliz.
Mi espanol terrible me averguneza.
La espalda picante hace mi dia arriba la escalara.
Ayudame!!
Gracias amigo, mucho gracias! Mucho Fantastico!
would love to win this…droped out of spanish…long ago, now can’t remember squat!!..lol
C’est magnifique. Merci beaucoup.
Por favor picotéenos para el software de Rosetta Stone. Si usted dont nosotros seremos rodeados por monos y enseñados decir Chimpeze. Es muy difícil pedir enchiritos y tamales con gritos de mono inclinados altos. Estaríamos en el peligro grave visitando México cuando no entenderíamos la BEBIDA de DONT las órdenes de ECHAR AGUA dadas por los oficinistas de hotel. En Chimpeze que traduciría como por favor deje bananos en la cafetera. Por favor sálvenos de la humillación que está segura para ser inflcted en nosotros si somos obligado a hablar en gruñidos y bichos de elección de nuestro pelo de familias.
Guten Tag
Rien ne sert de courir, il faut partir à point. (Slow and steady wins the race.)
this will help on my job
por favor, selecto mi e mi bambino e mi husbando. :)
s stirling
5518 34th ave se
Lacey WA 98503-3610
Mi casa es su casa
(That’s the extent of what I recall from Spanish classes.)
viva il winner
The only spanish my daughter knows is “Leche de chocolate, poor favor” Someone taught her that about a year ago when she wanted some chocolate milk. She is 7 & my son is 8 and I would love for them to learn spanish, but all I know is “Adios amigos” & “Gracious”. Thanks for the contest.
Quiero ganar
My wife and I may retire to the state of TX ,and some Spanish might help.
Vacielos todas las noches. I doubt I got that right. it’s supposed to say “Empty every night”. See, I really need this!
Buenas frijoles azules!
Donde esta el bano. Dos cervesas por favor. No se.
That’s the extent of my Spanish. Planning a trip to Mexico next summer and could really use some help. :)
Hier Philippe a marché a la gare et mettez votre chewing-gum dans la corbeille à papiers.
me gusta a escuchar la musica!
Ich möchte dies gewinnen.
i would like to win this.
Necesito esto para mi hija que está en segundo grado en el programa doble del idioma.
I only speak Medical Spanish. If someone answers more than “ci” or “no”, I’m out of luck.
Tienes dolor? Tienes problemo respirando? Quanto dolor?
Domo arigato gozimasu!
Min mor er danske men aldrig lært mig ordet. Jeg tror ikke, at misstep bør fortsat endnu en generation. Vi kunne lære sammen!
Si, gracious
(that is almost all I remember from my spanish lessons, see why my kids ((and i)) need to win.)
turpakini – this is one of the very few words/phrases I remember from visiting a friend in Finland. She used to yell it at her brother. It basically means shut your horse trap of a mouth.
Kiitos (thank you) for the contest!
por favor nessecita ir al bano.
Yo quiero winnar eso porque yo soy estupido con espanol! Pooooorrrrr Favorrrrrrrrr!
I have tried everything to teach myself Spanish…except Rosetta Stone…I would love to win this!
안녕하세요? 자는 크리스토퍼 이서 미국에 왔어요. 나는 TESOL를 공부하요. 나의 조카딸 나이는 3세 이상이요. 나는 여자를 스페인어 배우하고 싶어요. 그래서, Rosetta Stone을 싶어요.
English translation (of my horrible Korean):
Hello! I am Christopher, and I am from America. I am studying TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages). My niece is 3 years old. I want her to learn Spanish, so I want Rosetta Stone.
Solo conozco unas pocas palabras en espanol, para me quiero estudio mas! lol
Hola! Mi llamo es Suzanne. Gracias por tu contesta!
txhottie_86 at yahoo dot com
Me gustaria ganar Rosetta Stone para ensenarme espanol. Gracias!
Un mien gott!
Mi espanol no es bueno.
yo quiero ganar esto :)
The following statement in English should be considered a foreign language since you are offering a translator:
What, what was that, what was that I heard you say? How can that be when just the opposite should have been clear to all?
As translated with an online service:
Queest-ce que, que c’était, qu’était que je vous ai entendu dire ? Comment est-ce que ce peut être quand juste l’opposé devrait avoir été clair à tous ?
With your product it would read a lot better.
Shalom. L’hitraot.
Quiero esta program por mis nietos! Hablo espanol y querisima mucha que ellos aprenderan tambien !
Gracias
Tres bien! Merci beaucoup!
Years ago I was visiting my pen pal in Mexico City for the very first time. Our first day was busy meeting her friends and family. We did not stop to eat until we came to dine with her large extended family that evening.
Florentina asked me, as we joined the others at the table, was I very hungry.
Attempting to reply for the family to hear I could speak a little of their language, I said. “Tengo mucho hombre.”
There was stunned silence for a moment, and then great waves of laughter.
I thought I had said, “I have much hunger.” What I said was, “I have much men.” Hambre = hunger; hombre = men.
Oh, well, they loved me none the less, and made me feel very welcome.
Es ist sehr schon. Ich mochte die Sprachelernung Software auch!
Please enter me!
Mi perro es el en carro. Yo tengo ir al bano. Mi casa es su casa. That’s all I got!!!!!!
Me and mas bambina mucho appreciatiato Spanish lessons
Nicht alle Esel haben vier Beine.
It is one silly phrase someone taught me once. I had an opportunity to use it on a man insulting his wife.
Quiero esto!
muy poquito Espanol!
Mi erizo no es estúpido.
i like to try this
Wo ai ni–Chinese (not the most useful conversational phrase)
Beijing Huanying Ni–Chinese–the Beijing Olympics’ mascot phrase
no hablo espanol?
我想要赢取此和学会西班牙语
(I hope those chinese characters appear correctly!)
Merci Beaucoup! J’adore Rosetta Stone!
Me gusta!!
私は実際に勝ちたいと思う! 私は小学校のそして再度大学のスペイン人を取った従って私はconjegate動詞にそれを越えて多くの単語をそしていかにI’知っている; mは実際に失った!
J’aimerais gagner ce! Merci pour la chance!
Me encantaría una oportunidad de ganar este software. Gracias por la oportunidad.
Ich würde lieben, um zu gewinnen das!
Thanks for offering this contest. Hope we win.
Quiero que mis hijos apredan otro idioma.
De regen in Spanje verblijven vooral in de vlakte.
GRACIAS
Je voudrais parlez en espanol. :)
Rosetta Stone e molto bene. La bambina mia brauchen espanol lernen.
Is it okay if we mixed up our languages un po?
Gib mir das!! {bitte?}
重大的奖有偶然的一天
Cat, Hat, In French Something else…In Spanish… Errr… Espanol El Gato In A Sombrero
La Plume
Zut
Dumkupf
I… how do you say I ayIay? EallyRay Antway ootay inway.
And that is the sume total of any bits of my French, German Spanish and Pig Latin after 46 years. HAHAHAHAHAHA
There are few opportunities we get in this life to educate our children before they graduate from high school. After that, it is really their own choices they pursue. Thank you for the opportunity to impact my grandchildren’s lives.
Il tempo che un bambino spende imparando una lingua diversa non è mai sprecata perché apre non solo delle porte in una cultura interamente diversa, ma crea una sete per anche più conoscenza.
i teach high school in an urban area that is culturally diverse. we have many students who are brought to school without knowing rudimentary English. I wish I understood more Spanish so that I can help them. The fact is that the younger a child learns a second language the easier it is to learn. It’s also easier to learn subsequent languages. the bonus is that your English skills improve from this.
If I knew another language to post in, I wouldn’t need to win this contest. I’d like to win, por favor.
It looks and sounds good and easy.
¿Cómo está usted? About the only thing I remember from school spanish. Thanks
Hola! Gracias para este contesto.
I would love to learn Spanish, finally!!
Thanks for the oppertunity to see so many who would love to communicate with another language and custom, Gracias.
gracias
This is about all the spanish I know. I actually have to look up answers for my son’s 3rd grade spanish homework. I so need this. gracias
i hope i win
OUI!! J’adore!!
Thank you.
Twich wray po Who Cheese Man Bity (Which way to Ho Chin Minh City)
Bonjour! Je ne parle pas l’espanol, alors, je besoin de Rosetta Stone!!! S’il vous plait!
Gracias!
oK, now my Italian is very rusty. So here goes.
Amerei fare l’amore vittoria questo concorso grande. Così premio fabulous. Ciò beneficio poco il miei niece e nipote.
Hei, og takk for konkurransen!
I need to learn.
si, si, si, no no no no! Que las tima!
Hola! Comma esta? (sp)
I nedd to learn further than that so please chose me.
My teenage daughter is in Spanish in highschool. Her little siblings are always asking her how to say things in Spanish. This would be a wonderful blessing to add to our homeschooling this year!
My comment in a foreign language:
ankthay ouyah orfay isthay ancechay otay inway! (I am fluent in pig latin as you can tell)
We have many employees that speak Spanish and I have been trying for years to learn the language and I just can’t seem to master it. Maybe this program will do the trick.
Moo-ey bee en!
olah amigo. k pasa
thats all i know, sorry…
Hola! Gracias por de contest. Mi “like” Rosetta Stone. Ich in Germany. Mein man is US Army “so” yo learned German with Rosetta stone y es muy bueno. Yo sabe piqueto espanol…no mucho. :( Okay that is about as good as I can get. I speak German and Spanish and love combining them to really confuse people but can not spell the words right that I need to say….lol.
Rosetta Stone is approved by the military as well so I know it is wonderful and have used it for other languages as well. I would love this for my daughters. Hope I win. Thanks for the contest!
mi no habla espanol!
My three Grandsons were born and still live in Madrid,Spain.
They are ages 5,3 and 1 year. They are fluent in Spanish..I’m the one who needs help as they laugh at me for not understanding them.
Tres bien!
Merci beacoup!
rlgrady[at]yahoo[dot]com
I’m really curious about how well this really works.
Gung Hay! Good luck!
Iway ouldway ovelay otay inway isthay. Ankthay ouyay!
Pig Latin for I would love to win this. Thank you!
Manana sera otro dia…to learn to speak Spanish!
asi asi
azul
anaranjado
blanco
diablo
negro
(this is all my son knows so far!)
Satisfaga por favor me escogen. Para mi nieto. Él lo necesita por favor.
Per i bambini è molto importante diventare bilingue in questi giorno ed età. Grazie affinchè l’occasione partecipino a questo omaggio!
Zählen Sie mich zu bitte mit! Wir sind eine Hausunterrichtfamilie und dies wäre groß! Ich habe davon gehört, hat nur nie es versucht. Dankt tammy ohagan tammyohagan AN westco PUNKT Netz
Quiero a aprender Español
Grazie :)
I’ll do it in two languages I know:
Ich moechte mitmachen! Es ist ein tolles Preis.
Voljela bih jos spanjolski nauciti. Rosetta Stone bi bilo idealno za to.
Danke! Hvala! Thanks!
Моя потребность семьи это реально реально
плохое для для того чтобы сделать более лучше в
обучать.
Mis cabritos necesitan esto. Los únicos españoles que conocen son de Dora y de Diego.
Beso mi queso! (I believe that means: kiss my cheese!)
Well, Merci, mad’mozelle. Je tame la ‘giveaway.’ Bo-coop. We, we.
Bitte bitte bitte meine Kinder benötigen dieses.
Danke
Yo lo quiero para mi familia.
Veuillez me compter po. Mes enfants pourraient obtenir beaucoup d’utilisation hors de ceci.
Hola! Bonjour! Guten tag!
The key to language was the Rosetta Stone from heiroglyphics to verbal productions; A wonderful teaching/educational strategy.
Sé solamente el gonzalez rápido del ratón en el sombrero funcione de perseguido por el gato.
spaceba
Tengo muchacho en pre-entrenamiento y la muchacha en jardín de la infancia y ellos necesitan aprender hablan español.
Gracias
Oh, la preghiamo di comunicarcelo vincere questo premio audace. Renderebbe felice al di là di convinzioni.
Vi ringrazio molto
Si, si miha no habla espanol
Quiero ganar esto mucho. Para él satisfará para ayudar a mis niños a conseguir bien junto con otros.
Oh, por favor déjame ganar este premio audaz. Se me hacen feliz más allá de las creencias.
Gracias por lo mucho que podría morir
buenos dias…please enter my family
[...] favourite Parisian attraction – the pigeons. Jamie writes about the agony of trying to teach her kids Spanish – and you can win a cool prize of Rosetta Stone language learning software up for grabs. And Kayt [...]
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296 Responses to “(The Agony of) Teaching Kids a Second Language”