I Love This Idea!

I shared this video on Facebook 4 years ago. Thanks to Facebook memories, I was reminded again this morning. I loved it 4 years ago, and I love it just as much today! This is such an awesome idea. I really, really hope that this program is still going on and perhaps it has grown a bit.


What do you think? Great idea, isn't it?

Learn English at Summer Camp

Research indicates that children often learn a second language easier than adults. Children raised in bilingual households will often learn two languages concurrently and without conscious effort.  International students enrolling in school here in the United States can learn English at school, but that can be a very difficult and frustrating endeavor. Enrolling in an esl summer camp for international students is a better way to begin learning English and be ready for the school year. Read on to discover the advantages in doing so.

Learning English can be Difficult

This is, of course, relative. If your first language is a Germanic or a Romance language, learning English may pose a challenge to your child, but it may not be an insurmountable one. Yet, nearly four times as many people in the world speak Chinese—primarily Mandarin—than they do English. It would be far more difficult for a Chinese adult to learn English than a child as Chinese and English are very different languages. The less-related linguistically and culturally the mother language is to English, the better it is to learn it at the source.

Language Immersion

One of the surest ways to learn a new language at any age is to spend an extended period of time in a place in which it is the primary language spoken. Travelers realize quickly that in order to be able to get around, they need to acquire a few stock phrases and have to be able to pronounce them clearly. An ESL summer camp provides a great way to experience this language immersion in a structured way.

Use Summer Free Time

How do your children spend their summer? Do they complain about being bored? Instead of learning a second language in a classroom, let them learn it in a country in which it is spoken. This working vacation also provides an opportunity to learn local history and geography at the same time.

Bilingual citizens often enjoy a distinct advantage socially and financially over monolingual ones. Giving your child fluency in a second language can be one of the most precious gifts they will ever receive. Consider how an esl summer camp for international students can help your child meet their life goals.

(Now I'm wondering if there are camps like this for American students. Perhaps in Mexico? Maybe France, or even Canada? We tend to believe that everyone else should learn our language...  And, honestly, there are plenty of children and adults in this country who could benefit from an English summer camp.)

Flats in Manchester

I'm from the US, so when I read about flats in Manchester, I think about shoes. I'm thinking probably there's a lot of walking in Manchester, and it's best to wear flats instead of heels. Of course, that's not what they mean at all. In Manchester, a flat is a place to live, what we would call an apartment here. Sometimes I wonder why we even claim to speak English when we have such different words for the same things. Sure, we can understand one another, mostly, butsometimes it's like we're speaking a completely different language.

Of course, now that I bring it up, I can't actually think of any. So I'll leave that up to you - how many things can you think of that we use different words for here in the US than they use in the UK?

Oh, and if you want to see a really cool website (or you're looking to rent a flat in Leeds), click the link. I had a lot of fun playing with the spinning cube. Some of those flats look really nice, too - and this time I'm not talking about shoes.

To Learn German

Cory was trying to figure out which language to take in school next year. Our school only offers two, which is one more than my school offered. The kids can take French or Spanish. If he was able to take German, I think signing up for the German Word Daily would be a fun way to learn some extra words or to reinforce the ones he learns in school. He could learn a new word every day with a fun video slideshow with pictures and pronunciation. Even if he can't use it for school, it could still be fun. Living this close to Milwaukee, it certainly couldn't hurt any of us to learn some words in German.