Family

In our classes we are talking about families and learning the associated vocabulary. BBC has a great website for learning new languages; on the site you can see translations, listen to pronunciation, watch videos and listen to songs. Try and set aside a few minutes to explore the site with your children and expand their foreign language knowledge!

For French click here

For Spanish click here

Happy Valentines Day!

Valentines Day, or Saint Valentine's Day, is observed on February 14 honoring one or more early Christian martyrs named Valentinus. Valentines day is now celebrated world wide, spreading to all corners of the world. It has come to be represented through various symbols such as the heart, doves, and cupid. since the 19th century, handwritten valentines have given way to mass-produced greeting cards.

Courtesy of spanishplayground.net, try printing these fun Spanish valentines day cards for your kids to share! And know it's time to learn some French and Spanish

Spanish:

Te quiero mucho – I love you a lot
Me haces muy feliz – You make me happy
Me haces sonreir – You make me smile

French:

Je t'aime - I love you

(une carte de) la Saint-Valentin - St. Valentine's Day (card)

Je t'adore - I adore you

Sports around the world.

As i'm sure everyone is well aware, last Sunday was Superbowl

Sunday! Though football has engulfed our culture and has become a symbol of sports for America, it is by no means as important and other cultures.

Courtesy of discoverfrance.net, I would like to introduce you to Boules (Pétanque)! The game of boules, otherwise known as pétanque , is perhaps the sport that is closest to French hearts. Similar to British lawn bowling or Italian bocce , the French version is traditionally played with metallic balls on a dirt surface beneath plane trees, with a glass of pastis at hand. The object of the game is to throw your balls — usually with somewhat of an arched back-spin — so that they land closer to the small object ball (cochonnet ) than those of your opponent, or strike and drive the object ball toward your other balls and away from your opponent's.

As i'm sure many of you know, Soccer (or Football) is hugeeeeeeee in Spanish speaking countries. But what you may not know is, there are many forms for soccer in these countries. Futsal is a variant of soccer, in which two teams with six players (one of which is the goal keeper) have unlimited substitutions play for the most goals. Unlike some other forms of indoor football, the game is played on a hard court surface delimited by lines; walls or boards are not used. Futsal is also played with a smaller ball with less bounce than a regular football.The surface,ball & rules create an emphasis on improvisation, creativity and technique as well as ball control and passing in small spaces.

January News from WL4K

See what your kids are learning about in our fun language classes!

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Special-Deals-from-World-Languages-4-Kids.html?soid=1103767661217&aid=dkGXP0_JkR0

Greetings Videos

If you have been following the blog, you will remember the Bonjour song with lyrics that I posted a few months ago. I figured I would do a follow up with that in both French and Spanish with some fun videos! Try having your kids sing along with it, or play it a few times until it becomes so catchy that your children WANT to know it! Remember...LEARNING IS FUN!

Click below for the French Version

Click Below for the Spanish Version

Learning is Fun

Everyone remembers those days in elementary school when we got to play games. Whether it be Jeopardy studying for a test, or word searches to familiarize us with words that we were learning etc., we were always excited about it! Though we didn't know it at the time, teachers were using these games to make learning fun. I stumbled upon a great website that offers great games in both French and Spanish for your children to play. Feel free to play around with the website and search all of the fun games they have. Check out the various printable board games with pictures and flash cards for your children to expand their French and Spanish vocabulary! Courtesy of Hello-world.com, CLICK HERE for the French page of games, and CLICK HERE for the Spanish page of games! Enjoy!

Happy Crepe Day! February 2 is la Chandeleur in France.

This Wednesday (February 2nd) is Crepe Day! La Chandeleur is the Catholic holiday of Candlemas, a feast to commemorate the purification of the Virgin Mary and the presentation of the baby Jesus forty days after his birth. For those of you who don't know what a crepe is, it is a very thin `pancake` of French origin. Crepe batter is very thin and sauteed briefly in a very hot, lightly greased pan. There is a tradition on this day that as you're cooking your crepe; while holding the pan in one hand, and a coin in the other, you flip it in the air, and then catch it in the pan which will bring a prosperous year ahead! Courtesy of foreignlanguagefun.com, check out www.fete-enfants.com for some fun games for your kids. Also if you're interested in some recipes, click here for a children's recipe in french or click here for a few more recipes to try as well! Indulge and enjoy!

Countries

Whenever you learn something new, it's important to understand the context in which the subject matter is being taught. If individuals are learning a language and don't understand where the language is coming from, or what the purpose of the language is (especially in young children, where the rest of the world is just something they hear about, or may have visited). In our classrooms we try to teach the children about the culture and traditions that are native to the language. For example, we teach about Mardi Gras, and Three Kings Days etc. I have attached two maps (one of France and one of Mexico) for you to print out and for your kids to color. Be sure to take this time to expand your children's understanding of the use of language in these countries! Enjoy!

Courtesy of enchantedlearning.com,

click here for the French Map and click here for the Spanish Map

Song Time

I figured it would be a good idea to start this session with a fun sing along for you and your kids! Enjoy!

'FRÈRE JACQUES' . (FRENCH)

Frère Jacques,

Frère Jacques,

Dormez vous?

Dormez vous?

Sonnez les matines,

Sonnez les matines,

Din, din, don!

Din, din, don!

English Version:

Are you sleeping,

Are you sleeping?

Brother John?

Brother John?

Morning bells are ringing,

Morning bells are ringing,

Ding ding dong,

Ding ding dong.

Itzi, Bitzi Araña (SPANISH)

Itzi, bitzi araña,
tejió su telaraña.
Vino la lluvia,
y se la llevó.
Salió el sol,
se secó la lluvia.
Y Itzi, bitzi araña,
otra vez subió.

English Version:

The itsy bitsy spider
Climbed up the waterspout
Down came the rain
And washed the spider out

Out came the sun
And dried up all the rain
And the itsy bitsy spider
Climbed up the spout again.

Epiphany Day

Today, January 6th, is Epiphany day (or Three Kings Day in Spain)! Traditionally, Three Kings Day is celebrated 12 days after Christmas, and marks the end of the Christmas for many families. It is a christian feast day which celebrates the revelation God the Son as a human being in Jesus Christ. Click Here for an example of music that is commonly associated with the holiday! On the evening before Three Kings, traditionally there were prayers, blessed dried herbs would be burnt and their aromatic smell would fill the house. Doorways would be sprinkled with holy water and the master of the house would write with chalk C + M + B and the year above the house and barn door and say: "Caspar, Melchior, Balthasar, behütet uns auch für dieses Jahr, vor Feuer und vor Wassergefahr." ("CMB, protect us again this year from the dangers of fire and water.") C + M + B has traditionally been translated with Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar, however, according to the Church it stands for "Christus Mansionem Benedictat" (Christ bless this home). If you would like to learn more about the holiday check out 123holiday.net. Epiphany is celebrated in a variety of ways depending on its location, but in both Spain and France it is a widely celebrated holiday that everyone takes part in!

Happy New Year in French and Spanish

Bonne année et bonne santé

French expressions analyzed and explained

By Laura K. Lawless, About.com Guide

Expression: Bonne année et bonne santé !

Pronunciation: [buh na nay ay buhn sa(n) tay]

Meaning: Happy New Year!

Literal translation: Good year and good health!

Notes: The simplest way to wish someone a happy new year in French is with Bonne année !, but Bonne année et bonne santé is a classic expression. In English, we say "happy new year," but the "new" is unnecessary in French - bonne année does the whole job. The addition of bonne santé (good health) is not only a nice thought, but it also rhymes, making a little sing-songy sort of phrase.

More good wishes
Bonne et heureuse Année
Meilleurs vœux
Meilleurs vœux pour le Nouvel An

A Quick Lesson for Beginners: ¡Feliz Año Nuevo!

By Gerald Erichsen, About.com Guide January 1, 2012

Are you new to learning Spanish in 2012? If so, you can begin learning a few of the basics of Spanish with today's greeting: ¡Feliz año nuevo!

The phrase is the most common way of saying "Happy new year!" in Spanish. Here are four aspects of Spanish this simple phrase can help you learn or remember:

• Spanish begins exclamations with an upside-down exclamation point. This punctuation is unique to Spanish among the world's major languages.
• You might notice that both año (the word for "year") and nuevo ("new") end in the letter o. It is usually the case (and is here) that such words are masculine — Spanish words have a quality known as gender, and masculine nouns match up with masculine adjectives.
• The middle letter of año, written as Ñ or ñ (pronounced kind of like EHN-yeh), is the only letter of the Spanish alphabet that is not in the English alphabet.
• The phrase has adjectives both before the noun and afterward. Both locations are common, although there can be differences in meaning depending on where the adjective is located.

You're not a beginner at Spanish? Then see what lessons you can abstract from this sentence: ¡Que tengas un muy feliz año nuevo, lleno de paz, amor y salud para ti y para los tuyos!