Tips

For

Helping

Language Learners

• To master spelling of difficult words:  If you do not know how to read Spanish, you can still help.  Have your son or daughter give you a list of words written in English and Spanish. Dictate the words in English. Your child writes it in Spanish. You spell the Spanish word aloud while the student makes corrections. Repeat until s/he gets all the words right.

• To improve confidence in pronunciation: Make a game out of it.  Use the same list as mentioned above.  You can try and say the Spanish word and see if your child can figure out which vocabulary word you are saying. Let them give you the correct pronunciation. It's possible they may like that.

• To improve confidence in reading: Ask your child to read aloud to you from the textbook. You can enjoy the different sounds without understanding the meaning and your child gains confidence because you're sure to be impressed.

• To encourage a positive attitude: Check homework.  Even if you can't determine if the answers are correct, you convey the message that you think studying Spanish is important.