Bonjour!
I'm a mom of two who just moved to Montreal. I've taught myself enough French to get by pretty well! Right now foreign language education is a huge topic amongst my mom friends here and back in California. To operate in global business a person must know at least two languages. Some of my preschooler's classmates know 3 and more. Incredible!
To help my older daughter learn French this is what I have done:
1. She can only watch tv en francais. I love that Little Pim is on here- I just wrote about them in my blog:
http://movingtomontreal.wordpress.com/2009/12/08/bilingual-families-holiday-gift-guide-little-pim/ 2. Computer games are also en francais. The TV 5 website (french station) even has Sesame Street games in French.
3. We play silly French word games. "Whats that? A cochon! C-C-Cochon!" Crazy, ridiculous games. They don't care
4. When I speak to her I'll say the phrase in French first (if I know it), then in English.
5. We get used to calling certain things in French always. She never asks for hot chocolate. She learned it as chocolat chaud.
6. She has mostly French books. I'll admit that sometimes I mispronounce words. Don't be afraid, just jump in. You can learn together. Look for kid's audio books and music CDs.
You don't have to be fluent to instill a curiosity of a foreign language in your child's heart. Just give them a few tools consistently and they will eventually take over. My preschooler now asks "What is that in French?" She's fascinated.
Bonne chance!
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