Teaching a foreign language is not only a requirement, it's become a necessity. We are frequently introduced to people that speak English as a second language or speak severely broken English. In the United States, Spanish is the #2 spoken language (census.gov) after English. And though the percentages are significantly different (80:12), the ratio has changed substantially in recent years.
Because of this, I believe learning Spanish is important for our children. As they become adults, they will meet more and more people, and having the ability to speak and understand Spanish will be beneficial: in the work place, in the grocery store, and even at theme parks.
This year, we have been learning Latin, which is the foundation for many languages. It is really interesting to learn this "ancient" language and it's ties to modern spoken words. Spanish is one of those languages that connects very easily to our Latin study.
We have studied Spanish previously in our home, but have recently been introduced to a wonderful new company, Homeschool Spanish Academy (HSA), through the Schoolhouse Review Crew. HSA has brought together the study of Spanish with the world of Skype. Students are actually taught, one-on-one, with a native speaking Spanish instructor from Central America, via Skype! One of the pitfalls to studying a foreign language at home, or even in a traditional school setting, is that you are learning the pronunciations and conversations yourself or by someone who was taught that language as a second language. Much like learning a trade from a textbook and expecting to find on-the-job work to be anything like the book, learning a foreign language cannot be adequately learned without full immersion
Homeschool Spanish Academy does this and does it well. Watch the following video for a bit more info.
Because of this, I believe learning Spanish is important for our children. As they become adults, they will meet more and more people, and having the ability to speak and understand Spanish will be beneficial: in the work place, in the grocery store, and even at theme parks.
This year, we have been learning Latin, which is the foundation for many languages. It is really interesting to learn this "ancient" language and it's ties to modern spoken words. Spanish is one of those languages that connects very easily to our Latin study.
We have studied Spanish previously in our home, but have recently been introduced to a wonderful new company, Homeschool Spanish Academy (HSA), through the Schoolhouse Review Crew. HSA has brought together the study of Spanish with the world of Skype. Students are actually taught, one-on-one, with a native speaking Spanish instructor from Central America, via Skype! One of the pitfalls to studying a foreign language at home, or even in a traditional school setting, is that you are learning the pronunciations and conversations yourself or by someone who was taught that language as a second language. Much like learning a trade from a textbook and expecting to find on-the-job work to be anything like the book, learning a foreign language cannot be adequately learned without full immersion
Homeschool Spanish Academy does this and does it well. Watch the following video for a bit more info.
It's easy to get started, with HSA's technical support literally walking you the set up. You can watch a quick video of the process. Once you are all set up, you're ready to go. You schedule your first lesson and you, or your child, are on your way to learn Spanish. The lessons are timed and are 25min for early learners or 50min for students middle school-adult. The lessons & homework assignments are sent via email for your student to review, as well as being visualized through the lesson on Skype. The homework can be completed and sent to the instructor for grading via email, too. It's that simple. Here's a video of a sample lesson:
The courses can be half a semester (7 lessons) or a full semester (14) and can be scheduled at your convenience. That's really nice. We are so busy all the time, yet we have been able to fit them in. The price ranges from $59.99 to $314.99. You can view single pricing below, and there is also the option to have two-on-one for 2 students. You can view that on HSA's website.
What we thought? As I wrote above, this concept is wonderful. It's "why didn't I think of that", lol. You can actually read the history of the company here, it's interesting. I like that it was super easy to set up and HSA is customer friendly, too. That's a really nice touch. As for the lessons? We set this up with my daughter. She has taken some Spanish before, but not extensively. At music camp last year, her roommate was from Guatemala, and as it turns out, her instructor is, too : ^ ) She was excited to be learning from a native Spanish instructor. Her first lesson went great. She interacted well with the instructor and was smiling when she was done. Everything went smooth with no glitches in Skype or technology. Her instructor was pleasant and personable. This was great for my daughter!
We scheduled the second lesson with, who I thought was her instructor, but when the day came, it wasn't. I had originally scheduled the first lesson with her, but somewhere it was changed to the instructor we had. The second lesson didn't go as smoothly. There were major issues with Skype, though I am not certain if it was us or the instructor, but I thought the instructor. We tried for several minutes to correct it, but nothing was working on our end. My daughter couldn't hear the lesson well, it was very broken up. And the instructor - was not the right one for my daughter. She did not end smiling and was actually upset. But we pressed forward and for the third and fourth lesson I ensured it was with her first instructor. Both of those lessons went well with no technology issues and smiles and laughter throughout. My daughter really likes it and we are considering purchasing lessons on top of those given free for this review.
I think this is a wonderful program and think you will, too. You can actually try it out for free. It's a great way to see if it'll work for you and your family.
We scheduled the second lesson with, who I thought was her instructor, but when the day came, it wasn't. I had originally scheduled the first lesson with her, but somewhere it was changed to the instructor we had. The second lesson didn't go as smoothly. There were major issues with Skype, though I am not certain if it was us or the instructor, but I thought the instructor. We tried for several minutes to correct it, but nothing was working on our end. My daughter couldn't hear the lesson well, it was very broken up. And the instructor - was not the right one for my daughter. She did not end smiling and was actually upset. But we pressed forward and for the third and fourth lesson I ensured it was with her first instructor. Both of those lessons went well with no technology issues and smiles and laughter throughout. My daughter really likes it and we are considering purchasing lessons on top of those given free for this review.
I think this is a wonderful program and think you will, too. You can actually try it out for free. It's a great way to see if it'll work for you and your family.
Disclaimer: I received these lessons free as a member of the Schoolhouse Review Crew with the sole purpose of providing an honest review after . For more information on this, please see my disclaimer.
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