Last year, (363 days ago to be exact) I wrote about my 2013 New Year resolutions. I conquered every resolution on the list (like a boss)… except the last one… SPEAK MORE SPANISH. Holy crap, I failed that one. I mean, unless you count this one hour conversation I had with this (amazing) man named Baltazar that Alex and I had met on our honey moon…. I failed. Okay, well, I mean, I guess I can speak spanish… when I really want to, but the whole point of the resolution was for Marlowe to not be trapped in the “I understand, but wont speak” spanish bubble that I’ve put myself in. Especially… when we live in South Florida, at a time where being bilingual (especially with spanish– here anyway) is key. 
So here we are… with two days left in the New Year, opening up a spanish language program for M. Better late than never, right? I always have my apprehensions with these sorts of things— video programs— of any sort. Video time is rare for M…. I enjoy the moments where I realize it’s been a few days or a week since she’s watched a video. But like any kid, she likes her videos. And sometimes, I like (or need) a moment where she can just take a minute to sit quietly (especially now that naps don’t exist). We don’t have a tv (that’s not to say we don’t watch it– cause we do), so when we put anything on, it’s a very intentional process— not just an on/off switch. There’s a lot of obnoxious crap out there for kids (and adults) to watch and I’m happy to be able to pick and choose what Marlowe will absorb in her growing brain. I made a statement a few weeks ago that I would only be letting Marlowe watch show that were in spanish… and a few days later, when it was time to watch tv again, I completely forgot. But now? She’s begging for her “panda show”. She loves it, and so do I. Not only is it not obnoxious, but it’s almost calming, beautifully simple, and absolutely educational. It feels like those moments that she and I both need to just tune out are actually doing some (extra) good now. To be completely honest, I really, really love Little Pim and plan on getting a whole set of different languages for M now. Qui!, french will be next for this half french Canadian mama. Also, it’s always been a (completely random) dream of mine to learn Portuguese. And how awesome would it be if she could learn Chinese?!

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23 Comments

  1. I am so horrible at learning languages. I took Spanish for three years in high school and I can't speak a word. I do remember a few of the basics and can pick up a few things that other people say here and there. But I should know more. That program looks awesome for kids!

    • In your defense, they say that the part of your brain that best develops language structure and learns other languages starts closing off/getting smaller at age six—- some people can still continue learning a language with ease after 6 years old, but for most its really, really hard. I'm fantastic at vocab, but sentence structure? I struggle in every language!

  2. I am absolutely bookmarking to buy this program! My boyfriend and I have been talking about getting married and when we think about kids, we both feel like we want our kids to be bilingual. My family is from Puerto Rico and while I grew up understanding Spanish, I barely spoke it. I need to be a lot better about speaking Spanish more consistently and I would love to take classes or use a program to help. Something like this would be amazing for any future kids! I love it.

    The Rambling Fangirl

  3. I just downloaded their app for… myself. Ha! I need to prep a bit before we move to Costa Rica. Being married to a Guatemalan for 7 years has sadly done nothing for me considering we default to english. boo!

  4. So cool. We were gifted the first three discs for Little Pim French. I've learned Fourchette (fork) and Pomme (apple) myself. I'm sure my little girl is gaining much more than I am. I'm loving Little Pim so far.

    • le petite fromage—- it what I know in french. I need to work on some language building as well 😉

  5. This is so cute! I'm learning French via the Duolingo app on the iPhone, but this would be awesome for Ricky to learn Spanish (since he's part Ecuadoriano). Do you have the digital or actual DVDs? I am debating whether or not to get the DVDs…

    It's so cute for our kids to learn a language especially during this time, their voices are so cute at this age!

    • We have the actual dvds. But I figured it would be good because she can take them to my moms house and do it with her as a fun sleepover activity 🙂 But I feel like the digital would be just as great!

  6. Can't agree with more about TV and videos. I grew up with TV always on, must of the time as background noise. Choosing to do different with my kids. However, our homeschool program does have a few minutes of educational instruction online.

    I'll be curious to see how the program works out for you!

  7. I took a look around the site and what is included with each package. It says that there are only 3 videos (playtime/eating and drinking/wake up) from owning the videos do you feel like that is enough to get a good foundation in which ever language chosen? Its obviously better than having nothing, and the sample video did keep my 1 and 2 year olds interested (miracle!) But I feel like for the price you shiuld get a little more unless the video are extrmely packed full of knowledge 🙂

    • There's a bunch of different sets. I believe we have called the discovery package… the one you're talking about. I don't think she or anyone can learn a whole language through the three set, but it's def. a good set and a good start– especially since we most of her family speaks spanish anyway. It goes through not only the words (basic vocal) but also through the sentences and how to use the words for he/she/whatever. If we wanted to do another language, we'd probably end up going with a larger program—- since there's no way I can enforce or help out with something like Chinese at home 🙂

  8. Awesome post! I will love to get this for my son when he is M's age. I think seeing children who are bilingual is just pretty darn amazing and rare, especially in Texas. I didn't know they had anything like this for children. Great find!

    • Where in Texas are you? I feel like the south has a pretty big hispanic ratio. Here in Florida it's like walking into another country in some sections of town. Even my supermarket is mostly spanish speakers…. and in Miami? A lot of people didn't even know english!

  9. I don't have a particular interest in learning a new language, but I'm looking forward to following along on your progress 🙂

  10. Thank you for this post! We just moved to Germany in August and I really want my littles to start learning, this will be such a great tool!

  11. It sounds lovely. My children watch very little television, and it's hard to find anything worth watching – we tend to stick to nature programmes. But the idea of learning a language is a really good one. I shall have a look around for something similar over here. Spanish and French would be my first choices too, but I would really like to visit Italy with them one day (a bit of a dream, but you never know), so Italian would be a nice one to learn as well.

    • Yes, nature shows are great! Do you have more kid based recommendations? I always get squeamish for M when they start attacking each other— I mean, I know its a part of life, but I figure she could wait a few years on that. I'll meet you in Italy one day!

    • <3<3<3 Barcelona. I'll say it again and again, but one of my top travel wishes 🙂

      Happy New year!