When You Read You Begin With ABC

I started a series recently of blog posts for parents who do not speak Spanish, but want their children to learn it.  I am pretty excited about it really.  That is one of the big goals/reasons/motivations for this blog actually.  My first post addressed the “How To” of helping your kids learn Spanish–like where to start with your mindset and goals and expectations.  You will definitely want to go read it here if you have not already.  Here is a summary of our plan of attack for those of you who have read it:

1.  Do it everyday.
2.  Have one “lesson” a week.
3.  Don’t give up.
4.  Make it fun.
5.  Set goals.
6.  Think like a baby.

Today I want to address number one.  Before you even start worrying about “lesson plans” (review here what I mean by “lesson”), you will want to make Spanish a part of your daily routine.  “How can I make Spanish a part of my day without having a lesson?” you ask?  With music!  Of course there are other things like games, activities, finger plays, but in my humble opinion music is the easiest, most fun way to begin learning a foreign language.

You and your children can benefit from listening to music without having to “learn” anything.  Do not worry about understanding all the words you hear.  Just have fun and let your ears and brain do the work.  You will begin to pick up on things like pronunciation, rhythm of the language, and even a few words–especially if you watch a music video with visual cues.  Here is a playlist of fun songs I put together covering the Spanish alphabet.**  We all have different music tastes so I tried to find a wide variety.  You will not hurt my feelings if you choose to skip over a few.  Some kid songs can grate on my nerves a little, you know what I mean?

Now jump right in!  Find a time each day and try to listen to at least two or three of these songs.  It might even be best, once you find a few “faves,” to listen to those same ones each day until you have them memorized.  Enjoy!

**Note to Parents:  The Spanish alphabet has changed over the years and varies by region.  Some of the songs actually include letters that are no longer in the Spanish alphabet, and you will notice some of the songs have different names for a certain letter than other songs.  The Royal Spanish Academy has published an “official” list of names for each letter.  I would say, don’t fret too much about that right now and just learn the variations.  You can refer to the chart below for how to pronounce each letter, or check out this video on YouTube.

FYI I tested this song list out on my kiddos and they liked it.  It kept the attention of my 5-year-old for about twenty minutes.  He replayed the song with the puppets about five times (which was probably one of my least favorites haha!)  Let me know how it goes for you and your family and if you have any questions that come up!  I may not have the answer but I would love to help you find it.  Feliz alphabeting!