Nuria:
Oopsy Daisy doesn't mean anything really. Oopsy comes from "Oops" which is the sound you make when something drops, some one falls, any minor accident happens. It doesn't mean anything. Daisy is a flower and sometimes its used as a name for a girl, but as far as I know, the "Daisy" referred to in the common phrase "oopsy daisy" doesn't mean anything. Just a sound/word in the phrase.

That is such a fun tradition you guys have. (I don't know if it counts as a tradition, but I think its pretty funny.)
For Japanese:
Expressing Want and it shouldn't be hard to find out the noun that means brother or sister. If you can find the word for 'sibling' that will be even better!!!

As for the periodic table, try YouTube and get a poster. Teach it the way you do geography. Sing songs of the different categories, leave out several charts and play with them. "I spy" and games like that.

thank you mum2be , can you please explain more how to choose a language ??
viv

Yes. Here is how to choose a language. After you have signed up and signed in to Discovery Streaming website you need to
1) Go to "My DE Services" Tab, hover over it and click on "Streaming Plus" when the tab drops down.
2) Select a Grade Range
3) Select a Subject
4) Select a Topic
5) Once you are on the results page, scroll down and look on the lower left hand side you will see Language (this is DIFFERENT from World Languages--a subject!!!)
6) Click on Language and select your preference. The most options exist for Spanish and French but they have stuff in a bunch of langugages.
7) Enjoy.

[educational media]

if you have it , how are you using it with our el , so it is not just tv watching ???
viv

There is media available in various languages. I don't mean Language Lessons (though they have plenty of those) but you can watch educational media in one of your other languages. There is Magic School Bus, Telling Tales, How its Made, Number Crew....stuff like that in English, Spanish, French, Arabic, Japanese and more

.Select the language you want on the bottom left hand side, then select the topic that you want. For example, Spanish: Mathematics or French Language Arts.

[All the links go directly to their product page/results so please feel free to click on any of them directly]

Congratulations on your little girls reading success! Good job parents! Great work little one .

Now that she's broken the reading barrier, I would say just keep reading. I would look into getting lots of simple readers and read them to her and with her. Continue to read every single day and talk about the story and the pictures and point to each word as you read. If you want to continue offering instruction and structured practice and guidance I would go with 1 or 2 basic programs. (using supplements as needed) but fight the urge to buy, buy, buy  or try, try, try several different things for the sake of trying them.

All the links go directly to their product page/results so please feel free to click on any of them directly

Sight Words:
There are several sight word readers, programs, and websites.
I would look up a few and see which ones seem the most pleasing. Both Amazon and Ebay have several kinds of sight words readers available commercially.

I also recommend looking into I See Sam readers which are online for free. Print them 5 at a time and work on them until your DD can read the words separate of the stories and continue to point out the words in other stories and such as you come to them.

Phonics:
There are a lot of great resources available for free, Progressive Phonics and Soft Schools are two, there are tons, just Google them!

Personally, I really, really like The Reading Lesson and highly recommend it. Check out the freebie section of the site. They have sight words, and samples of the first 2 chapters/lessons available.

I would get either Bob Books or Now I'm Reading books to supplement TRL, as I would say to expect to spend at least 7-15 days on each chapter of TRL , depending on how your girl picks up on phonics.

and of course, read, read, read! I would check out many books with CD's also, so that my little one could have access to a reader even when I wasn't available. Something like Frog and Toad, Little Bear, or whatever is available at the library.

(A simple solution might be to get a newer version of HOP, since I understand that they come with their own readers now.)

I would continue with ReadingBear whenever she is receptive to it. Also look in to Leap Frog Letter Factory, and Talking Words Factory. I dont know why, but they work like magic for sooo many kids to get through that initial barrier.


Sorry, I had written a better, longer reply with more links and suggestions but it got lost. So here is my "Where to Essentials" post. Good luck whatever you decide.

Hola nuria! Como estas? No dije gracias por esto pagina de los forums, pero "gracias!". Esta pagina va a ser utilizmo a todos que quieren hablar mejor espano!

I hope that I got that (mostly) right.. I'm trying to say:
Hi Nuria! How are you? I didn't say thanks for this thread (pagina de los forums) but "THANKS" This page is going to be very useful to everyone that wants to speak better Spanish.

I am still trying to read and understand that Spanish sentences that you gave, I almost have them all. (I think.) I will PM you with my understanding of them when I am done.

I wanted to ask you: Que es la diferencia entre 'gemelos' y 'mellizos'?

Also, I'm going to figure out how to type Spanish characters before my next post....

Sadly, this is a problem that a lot of parents run into. Not many books are published in this format. Many families wind up making their own books for this very reason. Check the downloads/library section, you may find material that meets your needs.

Hopefully someone else can chime in with more (and better) advice.

Thanks mom2bee for your mail...For the moment I'm going to continue with Little Reader, I think that they can learn a lot with this software...but you are right that the slide's speed is a little slow for them and sometimes they said that it's a little boring...but they continue playing and learning with it.
Also I'll try to know another programmes like you said, I think it's not a problem to use two or three programmes...if they are compatible because the intention is to improve the English level of our kids.

Thats great! I didn't realize that you were already using LR, when I suggested ReadingBear, but I'm glad that you are having success with LR for your boys! Learning at every age should be fun and rewarding . Let the BK community know if you'd like any other recommendations for either implementation or programs. There are so many great programs out there and the boards can be very, very helpful!!!

@A_BC, thanks for the recommendations! I recently began looking at NoorArts website and am wonderfully pleased with all the resources that they have . I'm going to keep my on the website for news of Sales and Discounts. I have counted up the numerous programs and materials that they have and I have to say that it will quickly get expensive to obtain all the materials that I have my eye on if I'm not super savvy.

Now that my Classes are over until Fall semester, I'm spending this time vamping up my Spanish abilities. I hope that by this time next year, I can begin studying Arabic in earnest. English my native language, but I have studied Arabic (unsuccessfully as a child off and on) and I have studied Spanish off and on for the last 3 years. I would like to reach an intermediate--advanced level in both Arabic and Spanish.

Its my goal to raise my children in Spanish, even though it isn't my native language and to teach them Arabic from infancy.

@mom2bee, what would you change about Little Reader to make it into something you see as useful?

To clarify, I don't view LR as "not useful" I just prefer to create my own materials! I have tried the sample/trial of LR a couple of times and it just isn't "the thing" for me.
I have read the Doman books on Reading, Math and Encyclopedic Knowledge.

I have actually roughed out a design for my own program a few times, and have even began to consider starting to make it. I adore the possibilities for Little Musician though. I don't have any confidence in my ability to teach Music in a respectable manner, but I have utter faith in my ability to teach a neurotypical toddler to read, do math, and expose them to scientific facts and knowledge, so it is more appealing to me personally to make my own program. Plus, there are so many great resources out there! I have already began collecting books for my future kids that I'd like to share with them.

[Thanks, I hadn't heard of The Bilingual Family. I will put both on my wishlist. Actually you brought up a great point, I should buy or borrow more books to boost my understanding of how many people successfully raise multilingual children. I have had my eye on the book Growing Up With Three Languages for some time now! But I hadn't known there were so many. Thank you for reminding me to look at more options in this vein. So, I will definitely remember to read such books over time as I develop my own Spanish speaking abilities.]

Good Morning,

These two books are very insightful on how to raise bi/multi-lingual children:

http://www.harpercollins.com/browseinside/index.aspx?isbn13=9780061246562

http://www.cambridge.org/us/esl/catalog/subject/project/pricing/isbn/item1113942/?site_locale=en_US

and more are listed here:  http://www.multilingualchildren.org/shop.html#refbooks

Thanks, I hadn't heard of The Bilingual Family. I will put both on my wishlist. Actually you brought up a great point, I should buy or borrow more books to boost my understanding of how many people successfully raise multilingual children. I have had my eye on the book Growing Up With Three Languages for some time now! But I hadn't known there were so many. Thank you for reminding me to look at more options in this vein. So, I will definitely remember to read such books over time as I develop my own Spanish speaking abilities.

However, I would begin with reading the first book listed, to understand the best way to achieve your goals in the most efficient and effective methods possible.Will do!

~ Ayesha

Just to set the record straight, I've built many courses in Little Reader for my little boy with full sentences that we read through slowly and sit and discuss the images that follow at a slow pace.  Both fast and slow are possible in LR, full sentences or short words.  In fact, we could probably do a close replica of reading bear using LR, but reading bear (as fantastic as it is) can not do what LR can do.
Well, I am not too familar with LR--its been a while since I've used it and explored the options and thank you for sharing that info so that Arnau i Pai will be aware of that when she makes her choice .
Not all Spanish speakers live in Spain.
I know that now all Spanish speakers live in Spain.    I just assumed (perhaps incorrectly) that since Arnau speaks Catalan and Spanish, she was from Spain. I know for a fact that nuria2012 is from Spain because she said so....

My ReadingBear suggestion wasn't meant as a snub or attack on LR, but she mentioned wanting her boys to learn to write and pattern Phonics so I thought of Reading Bear as a recommendation. Plus, I haven't seriously considered the idea of using LR with a child older than 5 to be a success simply because it was a flop with various toddlers I've tried it on. Thats not to say that it would not or could not work, but I haven't been able to get LR to 'click' with any of the 2-7yos that I've tried it on.

Of course,  mine is only one opinion and as a single individual I have a very limited view and my experience with young children is mostly ages 2-14, I don't know infants nearly as well.

Everyone, please be sure and consider all your options and be aware of multiple resources so that you make the most informed decision. .

LOL mom2bee!

Reading Bear is fantastic, if you don't worry about the amount of internet it takes (internet is not cheap everywhere in the world.)  If I were to use Reading Bear for two months the way I used Little Reader, it would cost the price of Little Reader in internet expenses.

If ReadingBear isn't a viable option for the poster, then I suggest she not use it. I recommended reading-bear because of the ages of her sons and because of their abilities (able to write, and read--presumably in Spanish) phonetically. She mentioned that she wanted to improve their vocabulary and that pattern phonics would probably benefit them with reading and spelling. I feel that Reading Bear might be better-suited option for older children and it would be more direct. It also has pictures, videos and sentences to help with meaning and comprehension, but it doesn't flash across the screen at a high speed.

I didn't think about the implications of internet usage because I assumed that Spain had enough infrastructure to  have decent internet access. But I live in the USA where internet is plentiful and cheap, if Reading-Bear and other online options aren't viable, then don't use them just because they are recommended.

Hi!!

It's my first e-mail here...and in this moment is very difficult for me to read all the information online. There are a lot of users connected here!!
I like languages, for that reason I speak Spanish, Catalan, French, a little English and also a little German.

I have 2 little boys: 10 and 9 years old. They have studied English at the School...but with songs, playing or making cookies, going to the theatre.... It's a funny system but they don't have any idea of verbs...and they have a short vocabulary. I knew that at the beginning of this course because they don't have English books...when one day I asked them the meaning of "to be" :-(
Then, I tried to do a dictation...and my surprise was that my little boy wrote water like this "guater" :-(  and mother "moder", and one "uan"... :-( He can translate colors, numbers...and he knows the sound of the word, but he don't know writing...

For that reason, I'm going to learn them more vocabulary with Little Reader and also it's good for them the Pattern Phonics.
I hope improve their levels soon and practise them minimum 3 days every week.

If someone need help about Spanish Words, let me know by private mail or here in the post.

I would reccomend that you also checkout www.readingbear.com it will teach reading and vocabulary in a very straight forward and systematic way and one that is a lot more aligned to how most older children learn.

[For those of us who do, will or aspire to teach a 2nd (or 3rd) language to our children, what are some things you wish you'd have done beforehand?]

Okay, BK members and EL parents, I need your advice and guidance.

For those of us who do, will or aspire to teach a 2nd (or 3rd) language to our children, what are some things you wish you'd have done beforehand?

It is my goal to raise my children speaking Spanish and to teach them Arabic as a 2nd language from infancy. I have several textbooks and resources for an adult learner that I use and reference. I have recently began building a personal library in Spanish and I'm going to be doing a lot of Spanish self-study until New Years, its my goal to switch to watching the majority of my TV in Spanish by next February.

It has been my dream since I was a little girl to teach my children Spanish and I decided a few years ago that I'd like to raise my children in Spanish. I don't have a heritage connection to the language, but I was about 4 or 5 when I found out that my mom could speak Spanish (she studied in College) and I begged her to teach me but she never could. I often wished and still do that I could speak Spanish (and other languages) with more fluency so I have decided to do my best to raise my kids to speak Spanish from birth. (My moms Spanish really isn't that good, but I was adamant that I wanted to learn and when I realized that she couldn't teach me, I promised that I'd learn Spanish myself and teach my children). It occurred to me that I should begin acquiring some things now.

Here is what I am doing now:
--Building a Spanish Library (right now I have about 12 books that span the 2nd-6th grade level, but I'd like to get baby books and adult books too. I want to get Spanish Literature too, not just translations) and I need early readers
--Buying a Region-Free DVD player (I would like to start a collection of foreign DVDs
--Spanish Scriptures I got a Spanish version of the Quran and I am trying to read it (I can't understand most of it, in Spanish, but I'd like to read it a few times to get used to the vocabulary
--Trying to Speak moreI was in South FL. recently and had the chance to speak (unexpectedly) to some people in Spanish
-- Spanish speaking toys
--????

I know that I can and should do more. Both for my own Spanish abilities and to prepare myself to truly raise a Multilingual child.
Its my goal to buy a minimum of 30 Spanish books a year of various genres and get more media (songs, movies, books, posters, etc) in Spanish. But I still can't figure out a coherent way to do it. I want to get my Spanish to the level where I could do a full EL routine for 4 years, with each child that I may have, completely in Spanish.

I know that Little Reader isn't available in Spanish just yet, though I don't foresee myself using it even if it were. I think that I prefer to make my own lessons and stuff, I could make a Spanish reading program using the Doman method.**

I would greatly appreciate any and all feedback and help hammering out the details of the plan. Some advice and guidance from those who have been there, done that already would be invaluable to me.

--Thanks, mom2bee.
**There was a '?' there, but it was a typo, should've been a '.'

[read]

Do you want to teach to read Vietnamese or Speak Vietnamese?

If you want to teach her Vietnamese as a spoken language, I highly suggest speaking to her in Vietnamese, everyday.
Where do you currently live and where do you anticipate being for the next 4 or 5 years?

If Vietnamese is the minority language, then I would focus my time and attention on getting her fluent in Vietnamese first, so look through the member created files and download anything that helps, stock up on Vietnamese books, videos and buy some simple games for her that she can play as a 1-4 year old. Begin translating a week of curriculum (math and reading) into Vietnamese and teach her to read and speak Vietnamese only for the next 6 months.  Then introduce English. (If it is the community language, I wouldn't worry that she won't speak English well. She will, so long as she gets out into the community and is exposed to other people.)

I would get a bunch of simple reading books (I know that they are widely available in English) and use sticky notes to translate them into Vietnamese.

Seems like you need to check out Giggle Math, a review was recently published in the forums by Kerilanne99 and the website is here.

There is also a book called 2 + 2 is not 5 that covers addition facts.

I don't have hands on experience with either product, but I learned about Giggle Math from the review and I have heard a lot of good things about the book 2 + 2 is not 5.