For years, I have recommended Concordia Language Villages to my students. These summer immersion camps are absolutely amazing. A number of years ago, I had the good fortune of participating in Concordia’s Teacher Seminars and earning graduate credit. I spent three weeks in Minnesota learning about immersion techniques and visiting the Villages. I came home with a treasure trove of games, songs, and hands-on activities that I observed at the French Village, Lac du Bois. I also spent a day in the Norwegian Village, experiencing the life of a camper who does not know a word of the language. (THE most fun! When I wanted to eat, I learned fast.)  In all, there are villages offering instruction in 15 different languages.  While in a village, campers are completely immersed in the target culture.  Villagers go through customs, exchange their money, and are surrounded by language.  Don’t even get me started on the authentic cuisine . . . soooo delicious!

My students who have spent a few weeks at Concordia Language Villages return to school in the fall with improved language skills and enthusiastic stories to tell.

Scholarships are available to send some lucky campers to Concordia Language Villages this summer.  The photo and essay contests are open to students ages 7-18, but the deadlines are quickly approaching.  (Most end on May 15.)  Visit this link to find out how to apply for  scholarships worth $500-$1300 to the French, German, Italian, Korean, Portuguese, or Danish Villages.

Good luck!

Photo Credit: clarita at http://morguefile.com/archive/display/231612

Do you know the classic preschool elephant song?  It goes like this:

One elephant went out to play,

Upon a spider’s web one day,

He had such enormous fun,

That he called for another elephant to come. 

The second verse has two elephants, the third verse has three elephants, and so on.  You can find foreign language versions of this fun song on the Teach Me CD’s, as well as other sources.  I love the Teach Me CD’s, but for this particular song I just use it as a teacher resource for learning the words.  The verses go back and forth between English and the target language, which throws me just a bit.  

So, here’s how you can turn a cute, catchy elephant song into a fun and effective game.  Gather the children into a close circle and have them hold on to the edges of a small parachute.  (I find a vinyl tablecloth to be a dandy, frugal parachute substitute.)  Ta-da . . . it’s a spider’s web!

Prepare small, laminated paper elephants and number them from 1-10.  Toss Elephant #1 onto the spider’s web and sing the song as the children gently move the parachute up and down.  Kids love to see the elephant jumping up and down and having such enormous fun!  When the verse is done, everyone shouts, “Come!” in the target language.  Add in Elephant #2 and count the elephants.  Sing again.  Call over another elephant.  Count.  Sing.  Get the drill?  Continue the routine until all ten elephants have a turn.  This game is so hands on and repetitive, staying immersed in the target language is a breeze.

I just played this game a few weeks ago with kids ages 2-7.  Then we played it again later in the week.  The kids keep asking me to bring the elephants back to play.  I’m telling you, this game’s a hit with the little ones!

The Teach Me CD’s are available in ten languages:  English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Hebrew, and Russian.

For more counting ideas, check out my article on Foreign Language Number Games.

If you’re looking for a fun way to introduce your child to a foreign language, start with a little music.  There’s a great little product called Teach Me Tapes.  Well, they were tapes back in the ’80′s when they were first produced. My tapes have been replaced with CD’s for quite some time, of course, but I’m still using these gems years and years later.  

The Teach Me CD’s have cute bilingual songs performed by professional musicians.  Most tracks are introduced with a short narration by a native-speaking child.  The songs are classic, traditional songs from both English and the target culture.  My Teach Me French CD is invaluable as I teach French to 3-6 year olds this summer.  The kids really like bilingual versions of The More We Get Together, Mary Had a Little Lamb, and Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes.

Kids learn basic vocabulary and phrases with the Teach Me music.  Things like greetings, family, weather, alphabet, etc.  It’s not a language program in itself, but it’s perfect for introducing kids to language for the first time and for enriching a language program.  It’s such a staple of my teaching, it’s hard to imagine life without it.

The original Teach Me CD’s are available in ten languages:  English (ESL), French, Spanish, German, Chinese, Hebrew, Korean, Japanese, Italian, and Russian.

For additional reading, check out these articles:

How Music Helps Language Learning

Foreign Language Learning Materials for Kids

Want to order Teach Me CDs?  Visit the . . .

Foreign Language Fun Store