Homeschool World Forum

[MannM]

I didn't see a foreign language category and so I thought it would best fit in Reading, Writing, Language Arts.

Here's my question:

My son and I are beginning to learn the Russian language. I'm using Rosetta Stone and a few self-study books and CDs. They aren't really appropriate for him. I've taught him some words and phrases, but I'm wondering if anyone can recommend materials that would be suited for a third-grader.

[Lily]

The Rosetta Stone is appropriate for a 3rd grader. It really is. It's also the slowest paced 'kids' program I have found that effectively teaches the language.

Other suggestions -

- start with the alphabet, and write secret notes back and forth in transliteration. Once he gets the hang of reading cyrillic, then move on to simple Russian words - stol, styl, dver, televisor, okno, kravat,....things you would find around the house. Once these are established move on to under, next to, on, above, in, out..
www.hello-world.com has lots of Russian games that reinforce the above. You can also find posters and worksheets at www.activityvillage.co.uk/learn_russian.htm to help him get used to the new language (they have transliteration under the words on the posters).

Good luck to you!
_________________
"The greatest sign of success for a teacher... is to be able to say, "The children are now working as if I did not exist."
- M. Montessori
Proud non-member of the HSLDA

[MannM]

Lily: Thank-you for the wonderful links. We've already tried a few of the games and the posters are great!

[janaleigh]

You might also want to check out.... http://www.livemocha.com
It's a free online program.
_________________
Jana marriend to Mike 20 Years
2 Sons, ages 15 and 17
Homeschooling 7+ years
http://www.homeschooljungle.com
http://www.summerhouseliving.com

[macro_grp02]

I would also want to share some resources. I'm trying to learn Spanish myself. See the link below. I'm not so sure if they have Russian. But you could always ask I guess.

http://www.homeschoolingcatalog.com/Coupons/Visual%20Link%20Spanish.html

[ShelleyVernon]

Hi there,

I have a resource I wrote for parents and teachers around the world to teach English as a foreign language to children between the ages of 4 and 12.

100% of the games and activities there may be used to teach any foreign language, including Russian - the only requirement is that the parent or teacher can speak the language.

There is a video demo on the site and you can see how much Anna the younger one LOVES the attention and finds the whole experience of having an English lesson totally fun.

The older girl in the demo is a quick learner and is motivated to learn English as her mum is bilingual, but she never taught her kids English because she did not know how to.

So that's where this resource comes in - to show parents how to go about it, hence providing over two hours of video demonstration with commentary in the actual resource.

http://www.homeenglishteacher.com

The resource itself is inexpensive, and for those looking for free stuff only do watch the free video and sign up for the free games that you can receive by email (no spam).

I hope this helps some of you out there wanting to teach your children foreign language.

All the best
Shelley
_________________
Fun games to teach your child any foreign language.
http://www.homeenglishteacher.com

[SquidForBrains]

We have a basic Russian game now, and will have additional ones in the future.
_________________
Terry Waltz, Ph.D.
SquidForBrains Educational games
Foreign Language Education specialist
Check out my educational card games: real games, real learning, real fun!