If you’re helping your kids become bilingual in Spanish, we salute you! Spanish fluency has immediate rewards for children — it can help them make Hispanic friends, become closer to Spanish-speaking family members, and increase their appreciation of other cultures.
Even better? Being fluent in Spanish is a skill that will serve them well the rest of their lives. Their Spanish knowledge can open up career opportunities, as well as make it easier to travel to — or even live in — Spanish-speaking areas.
These are great benefits, so it only makes sense that you want to help your kids learn Spanish as rapidly as they can. However, we have some bad news and some good news for you about this goal.
Let’s get the bad news out of the way: No one becomes fluent in Spanish, or any other language, overnight. Let’s say your child gets 100 hours of direct conversation practice with a real person over a year’s time, which comes out to about two hours per week. That will get them only about one-third of the way to basic fluency.
But now the good news: Since your kids are studying Spanish early in their lives, they’ll have a far easier time mastering the language than an adult beginner would. AND there are some easy ways you can accelerate their learning even more. Curious? We thought you would be. So let’s dive in!
Have Lots of Conversations in Spanish
At TruFluency Kids, we believe that learning Spanish comes down to one magic word: conversation. A lot of things are helpful when you’re learning a new second language (and we’ll talk more about them later in this article), but conversation is essential.
As far as we’re concerned, there’s no such thing as too much Spanish conversation practice. So even if your kids are studying Spanish at school and taking private Spanish classes (like the ones we offer at TruFluency Kids), it’s still helpful for them to have conversations in Spanish with you at home.
Don’t speak Spanish perfectly yourself? Don’t worry. You can still speak it with your kids. Remember, very few of us speak even our first language perfectly, and we can still communicate with each other. It’s totally fine to learn or improve Spanish alongside your kids. In fact, it sets a great example.
Need ideas on what to talk about in Spanish? You’re in the right place. Explore our blog to discover Spanish words and phrases you can use in conversation.
Add Visuals to Spanish Lessons
The perfect complement to conversational Spanish practice is visual learning. Kids are more likely to remember the Spanish vocabulary you want them to learn if they can associate it with a visual memory.
- There are so many ways you can do this!
- Read an illustrated book together in Spanish.
- Watch a show or YouTube video in which the action on screen is narrated in Spanish.
- When you’re enjoying activities like cooking or crafts with your kid, talk in Spanish about the ingredients or materials you’re using.
Give Your Child the Gift of Spanish!
Immerse Them in Spanish
This idea actually encompasses the first two ideas we shared in this article — plus a whole lot more. Remember how we said earlier that a lot of things are helpful when you’re teaching your kids Spanish?
Once you’ve made a habit of Spanish conversation practice, look for additional ways you can surround your kids with Spanish:
- Enjoy Spanish-language shows, YouTube videos, books and music together.
- Look for festivals or other events in your area where Spanish will be spoken.
- Spend time with Spanish-speaking family or friends.
- Explore language-learning apps like Duolingo.
When your kids are constantly speaking, hearing and reading Spanish, they’ll be able to achieve fluency much faster.
Another Way to Help Kids Learn Spanish Faster
Ensuring your kids are surrounded by Spanish is a lot easier when you have some support. And that’s where we come in. Our Spanish classes are a super-fun way to squeeze some more Spanish practice into your kids’ day — without adding work to yours!
All our lessons are based on the Bellieu Method, which centers on that all-important conversational Spanish practice. Our instructors are native speakers of Spanish, who also have a knack for engaging kids in singing, reading, doing crafts, playing and even cooking in Spanish.
We also care about our parents. So we have flexible schedules that make it easy to fit Spanish classes into your family’s busy life. Just choose the times that work best for you: Our classes take place from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. CST daily.
Intrigued? Sign your kids up for a 30-minute trial class now! After the trial, join a Q & A for parents, so we can answer all your questions. Spanish fluency is a big goal. But we can help you move your kids closer to it every week!
