The industry based around teaching kids English is huge. Millions of dollars a year are made by schools and publishing companies. There are so many reasons why it’s important for kids to learn English and if you have learnt English as your second language already, you will probably know all of them.
While it’s great fun for kids to go to an English school and meet lots of new friends, it can be expensive. If you can’t afford to send your kid to an English language school or can’t find an English class that fits in with your child’s schedule, why not practise with him or her yourself?
There are lots of ways in which learning and practising English together will benefit you and your child:
1. A comfortable environment in which to learn – Many kids find it difficult to speak English in real life because they associate it too much with being at school. Learning at home using objects and examples from around your house is a great way to help your child remember what he learns and put English into a real-life context.
2. Parent-child bonding – If you have a busy lifestyle, it can be hard to find time to spend with your kids. Sometimes, after a hard day at work, it can be tempting just to sit down and watch TV together. Kids don’t need you there to help them watch TV, though. Making the effort to do something of value with your child in your free time is a great way to make sure the time you spend with them is something you both find rewarding. Learning a new skill, be it a language, musical instrument or sport with your child is an experience you will both remember for ever.
3. It will improve your English, too – Teaching or explaining something is a great way to make sure you actually know it in detail. Even teaching your child a few simple phrases in English will help you remember them and enable you to discover more about the learning process.
4. Motivation and encouragement – Kids hate it when parents tell them to do their homework. However, if you take an active interest in what your child is learning and try to help, it shows that you really care. When kids can see that learning is fun and not a chore, they’ll start doing their homework without you needing to ask.
5. It’s fun – One of the best things about teaching kids is that there are so many interesting things you can do with them to make learning fun. Kids are naturally curious and if you can capture their imagination, they really enjoy learning languages. That fun is contagious. Even if you are in a terrible mood, spending 10 minutes with some kids having fun will cheer you up again.
NOTE: There are so many great activities you can do to practise English with your kids that I have decided to make a separate site entirely dedicated to it. It will take me a couple of months to get it all set up but I’ll let you know when it’s ready.
Today’s image is by Aline Dassel.