Listado de la etiqueta: waldorf approach

Learning to Write Using the Waldorf Approach

Waldorf schools encompass the whole human experience in literacy when teaching reading and writing to students in Class One.  Social, emotional, and communication skills are developed in Waldorf Kindergartens, as well as healthy habits for a child’s physical well-being. Academics are left entirely for Class One.  It is in Class One that Rudolf Steiner, founder of Waldorf Education, indicates students are developmentally ready and able to turn their attention to academics and learning to read and write.

According to Rudolf Steiner, children’s eyes, before the age of 6 or 7, are not sufficiently developed to focus on printed text in a healthy way. Healthline.com confirms that our eyes are constantly growing and are not fully developed until age 19 or 20(1). First Grade therefore becomes the best time to start training our eyes in a healthy way to track text and assign meaning to that text.

In Waldorf schools, children in Class One are introduced to text in a pictorial way.  A story is told with strong imagery, from which a capital letter can be developed. Therefore, children have an emotional experience with an image from the story. Their emotional attachment is transferred to their recreating that picture with the guidance of a teacher.  These first pictures are akin to symbolic drawings from early human cultures which can now be found in caves or other rock surfaces of ancient places. The pictures are a symbol with special meaning.

Over a few days or a week, the teacher guides students to find the Roman capital letter contained in the image and the letter itself is practiced. Rather than doing this by having children make a large number of repetitions of the letter on lined paper, children are guided in the form of the letter and method of drawing.  A single letter takes up a whole page in children’s main lesson books, which is a sort of textbook students create themselves over the years and which documents their progress.

Through modeling, demonstration, practicing the letter in the air, on the floor, in small sandboxes, and then finally on a sheet of paper, children can move the letter from the image they held in their minds, to a whole-body, gross motor skills, motion, and then finally to a fine-motor skills activity putting it on paper.  Though it may seem slow to outsiders to take up to a week to introduce the first consonant to children in this way, it is building skills that will transfer and improve student handwriting and future literacy.

Having taught in both Waldorf schools and public schools in the United States I can affirm that students who have letters introduced slowly, artistically, and as a whole body experience, have greater mastery of spelling, reading, and penmanship than students who are not given guidance and time to build this strong foundation. Experiencing the history of imagery and symbolism in text and engendering meaning into these symbols at the appropriate time for children’s development is a crucial foundation presented in Waldorf schools worldwide.

(1) https://www.healthline.com/health/do-your-eyes-grow#change-in-eye-appearance

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Dyslexia can be overcome with nursery rhymes and music

In Trinus, our children learn the multiplication tables by moving and clapping, by stepping in a rhythmical way. We integrate music in all the subjects, it is not treated as a separate subject. This benefits all children but particularly children with dyslexia. In the following article written by Sarah Knapton, she mentions how rhymes and music can help overcome dyslexia.

Children can overcome dyslexia by learning nursery rhymes, dancing, and singing because the condition is caused by a lack of rhythm in the brain, a leading neuroscientist has suggested.

Usha Goswami, professor of Cognitive Developmental Neuroscience at Cambridge has spent the last 10 years testing the brains of youngsters to find out what was driving the learning problem.

She found that dyslexia is not caused by children reading words incorrectly, but instead by their inability to hear the rhythm of words when they are being spoken.

Brain scans showed that the meter of words was out of phase with internal rhythms in the brain, meaning that youngsters struggled to encode the patterns, and therefore memorize speech.

However, keeping up rhythmic practice will eventually allow children to read properly.

“Children who are dyslexic struggle with speech rhythm,” Prof Goswami told The Hay Festival.

“We realised that children are struggling in tasks which are not related to learning or reading but are related to rhythm. So we began to think that rhythm and these problems found in children with dyslexia might be related.”

Dyslexia is thought to be one of the most common learning difficulties. It’s estimated that up to 1 in every 10 people in the UK has a certain degree of dyslexia and Britain has one of the worst rates because the language is so difficult to learn.

Prof Goswami recommended clapping games, music, nursery rhymes, and marching to The Grand Old Duke of York. “All kinds of rhythmic experiences can be helpful, nursery rhymes, dancing, and music as long as the beat is matched to language,” she said. “Playground clapping and games may be very important to stopping dyslexia. You could start to remediate it before children even start school.

“If children keep it up they will learn to read. It will definitely happen. The brain just needs more training. These children need to know that their brain just works a bit differently and reading is going to be harder for them.”

Usha Goswami is a researcher and professor of Cognitive Developmental Neuroscience at the University of Cambridge and the director of the Centre for Neuroscience in Education at St. John’s College, Cambridge. She obtained her Ph.D. in developmental psychology from the University of Oxford before becoming a professor of cognitive developmental psychology at the University College London. Goswami’s work is primarily in educational neuroscience with major focuses on reading development and developmental dyslexia. Some of her current research projects include the neural basis of developmental dyslexia, the neural basis of speech and language impairments, and the neural basis of rhythmic motor behavior.

Dr. Goswami’s research is concerned with focusing on dyslexia as a language disorder rather than a visual disorder as she has found that the way that children with dyslexia hear language is slightly different than others. When sound waves approach the brain, they vary in pressure depending on the syllables within the words being spoken creating a rhythm. When these signals reach the brain they are lined up with speech rhythms and this process doesn’t work properly in those with dyslexia. 

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How To Teach to Add Fractions?

If you teach your child the math concepts with things they are familiar with it will be easier for them to understand it. We want to provide you with a story to tell your child and to make it live together. All you will need is two empty jars, a Sharpe, and beans. Ready?

Martin and Carolina went to the store and they both took an empty jar.

(Measure the jar, divide it into three, and place two marks with a Sharpe in the jar to make the three parts visual for your child) 

Adding fractions with stories

They each filled one-third of their jar with beans.

(Fill the jars up to the first mark)

fractions

Martin had a great idea to put his beans in Carolina´s jar so they could share what they had.

How many thirds do they have together?

fractions with beans

Be creative! And find moments in your child´s day-to-day activities where he/she makes use of fractions. The more children live what they are learning, the easier it becomes for them to learn it.

Let´s make their learning meaningful! 

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Reading Recommendations

This is a great list of stories to tell your children! 

You may think that some stories in this list can be scary for your children, but remember, as Miss Marcie says in her article about the importance of storytelling, «What is important to know is that a child will only imagine a picture in his mind that’s as scary as he can handle. For example: if we tell the story of The Three Billy Goats Gruff a three-year-old might imagine a troll that’s not much more than a blob, whereas a six-year-old might imagine a hairy, ugly troll with big teeth and ears. A Waldorf teacher will tell a fairy tale to young children with a gentle, pleasant voice, without over-dramatization. Again this leaves the child’s imagination free to picture the story to be as scary or as benign as he can handle.»

The following list has been compiled by Megan Young from Carnegie Rudolf Steiner Pre-School Centre Inc. and they appear in You Are Your Child`s First Teacher by Rahima Baldwin. Her section on Fairy tales and the Young Child is well worth reading (pp. 172-181) Most of the stories are from the Grimm Brothers.

Fairy Tales 

Key to age suitability

  • Kinder (4 to 7 years old)
  • Class (7-8 years old)

Simple or sequential stories

Kinder

  • Sweet Porridge  (Grimm)
  • Goldilocks and the Three Bears
  • Little Tuppen.
  • Little Louse and Little Flee
  • The Turnip 
  • The Mitten
  • Little Madam
  • Gingerbread Man
  • The Jonny Cake
  • The Hungry Cat

Slightly more complex stories

Kinder

  • Billy Goats Gruff
  • Three Little Pigs
  • The Wolf and the Seven Little Kids (Grimm)
  • Masenka and the Bear
  • The Shoemaker and the Elves (Grimm)

More Challenge and More Detail

Kinder

  • Star Money (Grimm)
  • The Frog Prince (Grimm)
  • Mother Holle (Grimm)
  • Little Red Cap (Grimm)
  • The Bremen Town Musicians (Grimm)
  • Little- Briar Rose (Sleeping Beauty) (Grimm)
  • The Donkey (Grimm)
  • The Queen Bee (Grimm)
  • The Snow Maiden 
  • The Seven Ravens (Grimm)
  • Rumpelstiltskin (Grimm)
  • Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (Grimm)

Class 1

  • The Golden Goose (Grimm)
  • Spindle, Shuttle, and Needle (Grimm)
  • The Hut in the Forest (Grimm)
  • Snow White and Rose Red (Grimm)

Classes 1 and 2 

  • Hansel and Gretel (Grimm)

Tales that have a personal experience of suffering or sorrow

Six years old in Kindergarten or Class 1- to match their sense of departure from the heart of early childhood

Kinder and Class 1

Rapunzel

Class 1

  • Jordina and Joringa (Grimm)    
  • Brother and Sister (Grimm)   

Class 1 and 2

  • Cinderella

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Preparing for Life

The New York Times sparked national media coverage with its front page story on why Silicon Valley parents are turning to Waldorf education. This film, created by the Waldorf School of the Peninsula, picks up where that story left off. «Preparing for Life» takes viewers inside the School where the focus is on developing the capacities for creativity, resilience, innovative thinking, and social and emotional intelligence over rote learning. Entrepreneurs, Stanford researchers, investment bankers, and parents who run some of the largest hi-tech companies in the world, weigh-in on what children need to navigate the challenges of the 21st Century in order to find success, purpose, and joy in their lives.

This film provides an overview of the focus of Waldorf education in the different stages from preschool to high school and the abilities the children develop in each stage.

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A Unique Approach in Teaching Social Studies

Interview made to Miss Petersen, Main Grades Educator in Trinus.

How do you engage your students in social studies lessons?

It depends on the age of the students. Currently, I am teaching grade 6 and a big way of engaging them is through discussions- By asking and listening to their opinions of the content that was brought.

We do debates where children have to back up their opinions with reasons e.g. I divided the class into 2 teams: Spartans and Athenians; then each had to argue why their way of life was the best.

Encouraging them to ask questions

Helping them see how EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED

In geography I always try to connect it to the children’s country e.g. “The population is 4 times bigger than that of Guatemala” This is a great way to help them connect and engage with content

Lots of artistic work: drawings, Maps, acting out the Greek myths, songs, poems, even making forms out of clay, etc

Lots of humor and jokes

Stories that stir emotional reactions AS MANY EMOTIONS as possible

acting

How do you apply real-world relevancy to the lessons?

Connecting content to the children’s own country; making comparisons with things the children know and see in their environment

Connecting to  BIG WORLD news stories e.g. while learning Greece we could link that to the Olympics being canceled because of the pandemic

By making a BIG deal of how something that happened long ago still affects us today e.g. “the Olympic event Marathon is called this because it’s the distance ran….. “ I get very excited when I point things like this out to the children, I act like it’s so cool as if I’m hearing this for the first time like them. This makes history alive and current for children, to hear and learn things like this

By letting them ASK QUESTIONS

Having experts come in where possible to discuss this in greater detail, share more knowledge, and answer questions

What examples do you have of incorporating the arts into social studies lessons?

Map drawing as an art- where possible we draw maps freehand

Paintings- painting a desert landscape or a Greek fleet sailing for Persia

Clay modeling: we made monsters from Greek myths

Drama-acting out stories

Recitation- learning poems

Singing- learning songs from a culture

Writing- even if this can be artistic work that we create together, the Athenians valued the power of speech

Poetry- writing poetry e.g. an ode to the river, learning poetry from that era

Waldorf book

What strategies do you use to create learning experiences that activate students’ prior knowledge?

Before I start a social studies block I always ask children to tell me something they already know about the topic, or I give them a blank map to fill places in. Then at the end, we review this and there is that cool moment when they see how much MORE they know now

I ask specific guiding questions to relate it to something they have already seen

Ask “Can anyone think what this is connected to?”

Encourage them to make predictions of what COULD happen so they can open to thinking in this cause-and-effect way which is ESSENTIAL IN SOCIAL STUDIES

Fun pop Class quiz to see who remembers

Generate excitement

Giving students time to think

Encourage them to ask questions!

Regards,

Miss Petersen

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Transitioning to the Waldorf System

Written by Miss Petersen

A question we get asked a lot at Trinus is: “How will my child cope with the move from a traditional system to Trinus?”

In answer to this question, I would like to share:

  1. A picture of what your child will be transitioning to
  2. Some of my experiences with my class who all came to Trinus from other traditional systems
  3. Some thoughts around ‘transition’

1. A picture of what your child will be transitioning to

The Waldorf environment is a warm, welcoming, and safe space where children are taught using a responsive curriculum that is based on child development. This means that children are taught content that is age-appropriate and brought forth in a way that is healthy and stimulating for the child. We believe that children must be taught in a way that touches the head, heart, and hand. In this way we help children unfold more than only academically; we educate them to help them reveal and unfold their potential and be healthy human beings. Our kindergarten classes are bursting with children busy at play whilst being guided by someone who knows that play is where they learn and grow! Without the confines of desks, chairs, and formal learning children are free to also strengthen and develop their physical bodies. A strong body is needed when they move on to the grades to be able to sit up straight and listen to the educator and work for a full day without getting tired as well as for writing. Language is acquired through songs, stories, puppet shows, and rhymes which stimulate rather than tire children. Our Grades classrooms are full of smiling, happy children who love being at Trinus! Children who are curious to learn and feel free to ask questions. Where children are taught math through movement and learn history through stories, making paintings, acting out a story, and even reading fiction! It is a space where each child is accepted for who they are and respected at whichever level they are. We also understand that overloading a child with homework is unhealthy and places extra stress not only on the child but on the family too. Formal homework is only introduced in the upper grades once children are ready for greater responsibility. It is also a space where educators, administrators, and parents seek to grow healthy relationships through open communication, respect, trust, and professionalism. 

Math Waldorf

2. Experiences with my class

My class and I started together when Trinus opened its doors in August 2017. They were aged between 7-8 years old and had all come from other traditional systems around Guatemala. In the beginning, they found it strange that their day now included singing sitting, and listening to stories. I asked them questions and wanted to hear their opinions. That all of a sudden games and drama classes became part of the day. And once they started to relax into our rhythms magic happened in the classroom. They began to smile more and grow more confident. They began to ask questions and feel less embarrassed when they made a mistake. They started singing louder and begging to be given parts in whatever drama we did. I think they started to see that class can be fun and that learning is a joy. Of course, I have very different children so some took longer than others, some needed time to adapt but each definitely started claiming their space! Academically there were children at various levels with multiple learning styles and the Waldorf curriculum finds ways to reach and appeal to all of them. From week 2 I had parents sharing changes they had already seen in their children. And some were big changes. And they all told me they were so relieved to have found Trinus. I would like to share some testimonials: 

«We have seen a radical change in our daughters. Not just emotionally, but also academically. In addition, they now handle English perfectly, which was previously an obstacle. It is impressive how they have grown in their security. They have managed to face their obstacles, and they achieve their goals. We are happy because Trinus really feels like family. We are confident that we have made the best decision in the education of our daughters.»

– Familia Sagastume Morataya

«I am happy that we had the courage to be part of this new family. 😉 Many believe that, in non-traditional methods, such as Waldorf, children do not learn as much or are not well prepared for University, life, etc. but the more I learn about this method, the more I understand its structure and its solid foundations. Trinus educators are the most passionate and connected I have ever met. They really believe in what they do and they do it with passion, with love, and with a lot of preparation.»

– Carla Egurrola

3. Some thoughts around ‘transition’

Transition means change. And for us humans change is always scary- especially as we get older. We must remember that children are way more resilient than us adults. They are more flexible, they adapt quicker, and they accept things without question. So instead of asking the question: “How will my child cope?” rather ask: “How will I cope?” Trinus classrooms look totally different from the traditional structures we know and were educated in. And it can be difficult to let go of those rigid structures in our minds. At Trinus we welcome the child in reverence, get to know that child, and then work to help the child grow and unfold in a healthy, safe, and loving space. With transition, there is always an adjustment phase and that’s when we hold the child most to help and guide them through.

Come and experience for yourself what could be possible for your child. We can share more of our stories with you.

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Our Children Learning About Business

Written by Cassandra Escobar, Trinus co-founder

In Class 6 our students learn business economics and then put these skills into practice by starting and running their own business!  It is an amazing way to teach our students about how our society functions.  It is also an opportunity for them to learn that when we work we create something of value for others and that people will pay for the goods or services. 

Christian Erichsen, Trinus’s father and business manager shared some of his BUSINESS knowledge WITH OUR STUDENTS. You can view part of his talk with them in the video below. 

I  would like to share what Cristina Castillo wrote after the talk. 

Cristina Asensio

“Everything Mr. Erichsen said was very interesting and true. I think every business in the whole wide world makes the best effort for people to come back. I think it may be very, very stressful to pay at least 2,600 people. It is a huge responsibility to manage a big business. When Mr. Erichsen said that a lot of pharmacies together are called a ¨CHAIN¨ of pharmacies I just thought of collective nouns. I think running a business means you have to find people you can trust that you know are not going to take advantage of you. I think it will really help us to make a good business of our own now that we know all of that to make our business better. I now really realize how much pressure adults have now that I really understand all the adults I know, I could try to not be such a headache. I did not know that when you start a business you have to think of so many details. When you start a business you need to have a very big vision. I think we are going to make a great business thanks to Mr. Erichsen. We are going to do great. I think it is totally amazing to have your own business. I learned a lot from Mr. Erichsen.”

That is so powerful! By learning more about everything that running a business entails, Cristina is more appreciative and mindful of those adults who surround her and have all these responsibilities. She is more aware of all the pressure they could be going through some days and she can understand more and be more mindful of her interaction with them. It also inspired her to think about their class business. 

We also had a few other students who  took good notes of what they learned: 

Maria Sandoval Cáceres: 

Maria

  • We need to do everything with excellence.
  • When people buy from your business with the money you get you can sell more.
  • For your business, you need a personal purpose.
  • Sell your products for a higher price than you bought them so you can earn more, and that is called THE GROSS PROFIT.
  • You need a bank account so you can pay your security, and your employees, pay the government, pay the taxes, and what is left is yours.

Luca Gonzalez:

Luca Gonzalez

  • To start a business you need suppliers.
  • You need customers.
  • You need salespeople.
  • You need to put your business in a commercial area.
  • You need people to sell the products.
  • You need a manager to run a business.
  • Business is interesting.

Juan Pablo Charchalac:

Juan Pablo Charchalac

  • The more commercial an area is, the more they charge you for being there.
  • There are companies that make their own products.
  • You can invest in another pharmacy or in better pharmacies that already exist.
  • I believe that I will work in human resources.
  • I think the most important department is marketing.

Our children are currently working as a team to start creating a business of their own with the support of Miss Petersen. Throughout the year they will put these concepts into practice, and learn through trial and error. They will also experience the challenges of learning to work together- which is crucial in business.  We look forward to finding out more about their business and to supporting them once they start selling or providing their service. Good luck Class 6!!

Sincerely,

Cassandra Escobar

Cassandra Escobar

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Inclusion in Education in Guatemala, is it Lacking?

Written by Rocío Colina, President of 502 Down Syndrome

In Guatemala, we lack of options for schools with inclusive education. There are only a few schools that are open to inclusion, even though education is a human right of every child, regardless of his or her capacities.

In some cases, schools are willing to open to inappropriate inclusion, such as “accepting” children but in a “special needs class”. A true inclusive learning environment is not a place where students with a disability learn in isolation from their peers. In other cases, they accept children and have them form part of the same class as other students, but only with a shadow teacher or by attending the class simply as listeners, only occupying a space, but without learning or without a code from the Ministry of Education, which means that the institution does not have an educational commitment towards the student. In other words, it doesn’t matter to the institution if the student with a disability learns or not, because there isn’t a commitment.

Real inclusion means regular schools welcome the child, permitting him or her to form part of the same class as regular children, with pairs of the same age, learning the same contents with pedagogical adjustments, based on an educational commitment. Inclusive education is about how we develop and design our schools, classrooms, programs, and activities so that all students learn and participate together, in which the student has an educational curriculum that is adapted based on his or her needs.

For children with Down syndrome, it is especially important for them not to have a shadow teacher because the purpose is to make them independent for adequate development. In some extremely rare cases, they might need a shadow teacher only if a multidisciplinary team determines it would be better for the student.

In Guatemala, the Ministry of Education has already a special education department, enabling all students to attend regular schools with pedagogical adjustments. The majority of educational institutions in Guatemala ignore the fact that they can count on this department.

A lot of times, because of the lack of information, they perceive it as something complicated to implement, or they might think that it can get difficult to deal with the Ministry of Education, which might lead to cause fear to be opening up for inclusion. Other times this openness is denied due to the absence of attitude, information, or will.

It is significant for schools to inform themselves and prepare their teachers to initiate a real inclusion in order to have a successful inclusion. An excellent teacher who is skilled in inclusion becomes an extraordinary teacher.

Parents need to also be informed, learn, and empower themselves to help their children on this path, inclusion requires teamwork, and the most valuable members are the parents. Parents need to focus on learning to help their children, and that means also recognizing things that need to be worked on and being persistent on these things without guilt.

It is also important to recognize that inclusion is a human right, not charity. A lot of associations are working towards inclusion, respect, and equal opportunities. There are a lot of myths, preconceptions, or lack of information that make this task harder. These associations work to create awareness and educate about equality, including avoiding name-calling and labeling people with Down Syndrome or disabilities. When we use names to describe a person with Down syndrome or a disability, we are making them different and not part of it, which makes inclusion more difficult.

Inclusion has to be a commitment between the parents, the teacher, and the educational institution, that needs to put in the same effort to every student that becomes part of their school. In spite of that, the Ministry of Education of Guatemala already has a department that can help schools with inclusion.

Another problem in Guatemala is that there isn´t any educational degree for special education, or some other therapeutic degree, leading to the lack of professionals that may manage or follow up on the work of inclusion. We need to have these university degrees and start to, not only have inclusion, but a social culture of inclusion.

Inclusion does not only benefit students with disabilities but also regular students, because they develop into more humane individuals, with a higher degree of tolerance, solidarity, and respect for others.  With the rejection of children with disabilities in regular schools we are teaching our future generations to refuse to include people who make an effort to succeed and who want to learn to form part of a society and be productive; we teach them instead to be competitive rather than humanistic.

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Benefits For Kids Learning A Second Language

Author Bio: Cristin Howard runs Smart Parent Advice, a site that provides parenting advice for moms and dads. Cristin writes about all of the different ups and downs of parenting, provides solutions to common challenges, and reviews products that parents need to purchase.

It can be challenging to help your child learn a second language. So here’s a list of great reasons why it’s worthwhile. If you find your enthusiasm for language learning flagging, you can review this list to recover your motivation. We’ve identified the benefits your child will experience, right now, as well as in the future.

Immediate Benefits

Improved Ability to Focus

A study done at the Cornell Language Acquisition Lab showed that children who learn a second language are better able to focus. Even in the face of distractions, children who have a second language can block them out and keep their attention on a single thing. 

This ability to focus is believed to be because learning a second language exercises the part of the brain responsible for selective cognitive processes. In other words, because they have learned to choose a language selectively, then can apply this selectivity to other aspects of their lives.

Faster Learning With More Fluency

While children are young, their brains are hardwired for language learning. The older they get, the harder it is to pick up new languages. So the earlier you start them learning a second language, the more quickly they will pick it up. This is in part because they have less to learn while they’re young. They can focus on the vocabulary that they need. The older they get, the more they have to learn to get started.

Ultimately they are likely to reach a higher level of fluency than if they started to learn that language later. Starting with a small vocabulary makes it easier to get comfortable with the building blocks of a language.

Better Problem-Solving Skills

Children who hear and speak two languages are getting much more cognitive exercise. There is much more processing going on inside their head. This extra work has benefits beyond the ability to speak a second language.

A study looking at preschoolers showed that even at that young age, they were experiencing benefits. The bilingual children were able to sort objects into groups based on shape more accurately. They could do this even when it meant matching against color: Eg, a round green shape into a blue bin. 

Future Benefits

Wider Vocabulary

Kids who speak a second language end up having a broader vocabulary in their first language. They discover that there are lots more words to know, and some begin to ‘collect’ them. Having a wide vocabulary in any language is an early indicator of academic success.

Higher Academic Performance

As we’ve noted, children who speak two or more languages have advantages in processing information. This is what lets them focus on one thing while ignoring distractions. Studies have shown that this applies to spoken language as well. So bilingual children can focus on verbal information, even when there is background noise.

It’s thought that this is responsible for an improvement in their academic performance. After all, it’s a lot easier to learn in class if you can tune out other kids chatting so you can listen to the teacher.

Encourages Creativity

The language that we speak can shape the way that we think about the world. Language is a tool that we use to describe everything around us. Each language does this in a slightly different way. So the more languages your child speaks, the more views they have on the world.

When a child is used to looking at the same things from slightly different viewpoints in their day-to-day life, it fosters creativity. They automatically look for more than one solution, more than one answer. This creativity can have all sorts of benefits as they grow older, especially when it comes time to find a job and perform in the world of work.

Can Protect Against Dementia

This one is a benefit that you’re probably not going to be around to witness. But, bilingual people have significantly lower rates of dementia and Alzheimer’s. The act of speaking more than one language is a great mental exercise. So you’re giving your child tools for success and health at all stages of their life by helping them to learn a second language while they’re still young.

There are plenty of reasons to persist and help your child pick up a second language while their brain is programmed to do so.

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