Children like to have fun, but they also like to learn. Most adults think that learning and having fun are opposites right? Wrong! Children know that learning and playing go hand in hand. Without fun a child shuts down, closes up like a clam shell. A good example of playing at learning is how a child learns how to speak. The symbiotic interaction between a parent and a baby is a constant back and forth of sounds, giggles, tickles and laughs. And all this playing results in the baby learning the sound system of its native language, then learning words and phrases, and soon the baby has grown into a toddler that speaks English (or French or Chinese). It has played at learning how to speak. Then why should learning a second language be any different? Why should children at a later age be expected to sit at their desk with pencil in hand, trying to memorize new words and be bored out of their minds? Children are born with a desire to play, pretend and experiment. All you need to do is pu...
A Teaching Tool