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Learning a second language at a young age is natural and effortless. Leave it just a few years and it soon starts to become harder. The earlier your child starts learning the better...
It's so easy for young children to pick languages up – their minds are intuitive little sponges that just absorb and mimic back what they hear and see. Unlike older children and adults - who tend to learn a foreign language by studying its grammar rules, thinking and practicing carefully – babies and tots simply develop an instinct for a language, just like they do for their native English.
Small brains compartmentalise languages so that learning a foreign tongue doesn't inhibit their developing English skills. In most cases, learning another language enhances a child's English ability. Children can learn much about English by learning the structure of other languages. Common vocabulary also helps children learn the meaning of new words in English.
Introducing children to alternative ways of expressing themselves and to different cultures generally boosts their self-confidence and broadens their outlook...
In addition to developing a lifelong ability to communicate with more people, children may derive other benefits from early language instruction, including improved overall school performance and superior problem-solving skills.
A second language is said to stimulate a child’s imagination, their creativity and their ability for abstract thought.
When children learn a foreign language at a younger age, they have a huge edge when they get to school. They also have less difficulty with pronouncing some of the sounds from the other language - babies who grow up around another language will say the sounds easily.
Needless to say that in a society that is becoming increasingly small, being able to speak another language will really help open up the word to your child.
As parents and care-givers you get to add a new string to your bow too...
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