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The Learnables
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I am leaning toward using the Learnables Program for foreign language. Have any of you used this? We only know a few words and phrases in Spanish (that we picked up from someone that worked for my husband), so we would all be learning together. If you have any other recommendations, I’d love to hear them. Thanks!
I haven’t heard of that program…
We aren’t to far on this program – it is free…. my kids love it – that said, I don’t know how much we are retaining it – but the kids all run when I turn it on, including the 2 year old. (We are doing German – but I looked at the first lesson of all of them, and it is very similar…) – It is video lessons – basically a group of a few kids that get the opportunity to go to a neighbour’s house to learn whichever language. The lessons are almost all in the language, including conversations etc…
http://www.knowitall.org/instantreplay/content/LanguageIndex.cfm?offset=0
Yes, I liked the FREE part too!
Note that there are teacher notes with suggestions (for a classoom…)
What I’m trying to do is watch the Video on Monday. Then there is an “Again” video that goes over a few thngs with more details…. so we watch that on Tuesday. In theory we do some sort of related activity on Wednesday (but not doing so well doing that…) – Watch the first video over on Thursday. Friday we listen to German songs etc that I have… again that one tends to be more in theory than actually happening….
We have done the Learnables with my three oldest kids (now 10, 15, 17) since the oldest was about 5. It works wonderfully – the best thing is they don’t need to be able to read so can start very young. I think it goes best if Mom sits and listens and points with the child. I’m thinking of getting it out to use with my 3 yo soon. That said, as they get older, they’ve all become less enthusiastic about it and all prefer Rosetta Stone – but that costs a small fortune. And the fact remains that they know a lot of Spanish from listening to Learnables. My oldest has done very well with it and completed all four levels.
Hope that helps a little if you end up wanting to revisit it down the road.
Thanks, anniepeter. I’ve decided to go ahead and purchase it. I would love to be able to use a free course, but because we don’t have an online connection on our home computer, we would only be able to access it once or twice a week from dh’s office… Your experience makes me feel better about my decision, so thanks!!! ;0)
Alana
HI! I’m considering The Learnables for German right now for my 2 girls (4 & 7), and am wondering did you ever purchase and use the Learnables as you planned, and how is it working for you??? We were originally going to purchase Rosetta Stone for this year but decided not to, due to the cost and ages of my girls….I thought it owuld be best to wait a couple of years before attempting that, but did not want to miss out on this prime age for learning a foreign language. I found the free online source and my girls love it and have been using it all school year so far. They absolutely love to learn German, so it’s been quite a fun term 🙂 My oldest is asking for “more German” and that is what led me to finding the Learnables, and of course I turned here to see what everyone else may have experienced with it. I am only finding the most positive of reviews online, which is quite encouraging, but would love to hear how your experiences have worked for you, as well. Thanks for your time!!
I have heard great things about The Learnables. I am needing to purchase a program too, but I can’t seem to fork out the money until I know it is right for us. Rosetta is so costly!
Maybe SCM team could come up with something for us! 🙂
I haven’t seen the Learnables so I can’t comment on that….but dh and I have been using Rosetta Stone French to give ourselves a head start in French before we attend language school in France next year (in preparation for a missionary assignment in Africa). While it is a good program (I had French in high school so it is more of a refresher for me, but dh has started from “scratch” and has actually been learning some French from it), I would not recommend it for a young child. There is no way my 6 year old could use it. It moves very quickly and requires that you sort of figure things out from the context as you go along. I think it requires quite a bit of intuition that would make it frustrating for a younger child. So, based on our experience with it, I would not recommend it to use with children under 10 or so. Just some thoughts to consider if you were thinking about Rosetta Stone for use with young children….I would recommend saving your money until your children are older.
FWIW.
Jen
Jen – do you have the most recent version of Rosetta Stone – according to rainbow resources very young children can use it if they can read, and children that can’t read well can use it with some help.
Also a while back someone mentioned Mango languages – it’s free through our library. http://www.mangolanguages.com/ scroll all the way down to the right and click on library locator to see if there’s a library near you that has it. We’re liking it so far… considering the price!
Yes, we only purchased it through Amazon a few months ago. My 6 year old likes to look over my shoulder when i do it, but I can’t imagine her using it without a lot of frustration.
Maybe others have had success using it with young children, but I just thought I’d throw our experience out there for those considering it and wondering if it was worth the money.
Jen
We’ve been using the Learnables this school year (for German) and so far we like it! We’ll be done soon with the first part, which is listening, primarily, and will start on the first book soon. I’m using it with a 7 yo and a 9 yo.
Jen – thanks for the review – I have just started really wanting Rosetta Stone, but my husband is leary because I always want the most expensive things and it doesn’t always yield the most fruitful results! So we’re going to plug ahead with Mango for now and then maybe try this… (email from our homeschool co-op) Seems like a GREAT price for private tutoring!
“Want your child to learn Spanish? More interested in conversational fluency? Try using the new Virtual Real Solution offered by Homeschool Spanish Academy. Students learn authentic Spanish from the comfort of their own home via webcam with their personal native Spanish-speaking instructor from Guatemala. The closest thing short of flying to a Spanish-speaking country, these certified professional instructors guide your student through every lesson and provide instant feedback, correct pronunciation, and proper grammar which leads to faster results all while saving gas and time. The global dialogue has begun: let your child’s voice be heard!
The Learning Center is pleased to partner with the Homeschool Spanish Academy to offer this amazing opportunity to our children. For more information, see their website or email them at info@homeschoolspanishacademy.com. You can sign up for a free trial session by using the promotional code OHLC. The Homeschool Spanish Academy has generously agreed to make a modest donation to the Omaha Homeschool Learning Center for services purchased through our website.”My son (11 yo) uses the BBC Languages program (http://bbc.co.uk/languages) for Spanish, called Mi Vida Loca. It’s based on a mystery and you have to figure out the language as you go along to solve it. He really enjoys it even though I thought it might be over his head, content wise.
I’d hope he had picked up more of the language but I think it’s because he’s not repeating the sentences out loud. I’ve used the Italian language lessons from BBC and really liked it. Not as immersive as the Spanish one, though.
I reviewed the Knowitall site and was impressed by the videos. I will be using that along with a Spanish app for my nook with my 5 yo and 7 yo once we are off Christmas break.
I am also blessed with friends who are from Spain who want to help teach Spanish to all of our kids (my three boys and their two girls). I’m looking forward to that because I get to learn more Spanish too!
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