November 17th, 2007 by bocabethb
Believe it or not amigas/friends…they are here! It’s official when you start shopping at the ‘DoorBuster Specials’ and are greeted by Christmas music in JC Penney Stores! I felt so very American, so very ahead-of-the-game and so weird to be out shopping early this morning (I have never given myself this much of a jump start on the Holidays since I was single)!!!
Nonetheless, here we are, with Thanksgiving only 6, six, seis days away. Hold onto your many hats that you wear or they will blow away at lightning speed based on how quickly the Holidays came upon us and now 2007 will whisk itself out of sight before we know it.
So…………..instead of groaning about cooking and lamenting about cleaning up…………..let’s make it a time to bring in some second language fun with your little children. You are saying, “Beth, how? I don’t even speak but a few words of high school Spanish?” It can be painless, easy and you might even find yourself saying the “F_ _” word (FUN!!!) after is all said and done!
Below are some creative ways to weave Spanish and English together in the kitchen as well as at the table - assisting young ones with the acquisition of a second language:
- Using an inexpensive bilingual children’s dictionary (Usborne) or free language cards off our own Boca Beth web site’s resource area, begin to introduce some fruits or vegetables names in both Spanish and English. Not sure of your pronunciation? Both resources provide excellent pronunciation guides!
- As mealtime begins encourage the children to use por favor (please) and gracias (thank you) and de nada (you’re welcome) at every opportune time for those three manner words. Today’s society needs to go back to the basics with manner words, and experts agree it’s just as easy for a young child to learn two words for the same concept as it is to learn only one. The younger the better it has been proven!
- Go around the table during mealtime asking the common ¿Cómo estás? question, encouraging each family member to reply with an appropriate response based on their feelings at the moment. (Bien/fine, fabuloso/fabulous, magnífico/magnificent, or simply no bien/not fine) . . . most of these responses are heard often throughout our communities, schools, workplace or tv so that previous language lessons are not needed.
- Have each family member addressed by their title within the family (mamá or madre if formal, papá or padre if formal, hermana/sister, hermano/brother, bebé/baby, abuela/grandma, abuelo/grandpa, tia/aunt, tio/uncle and so on). Again, with more than 45 million people in our country alone having Spanish as their native language, it’s easy to come across these family member terms and their correct pronunciation. If not, we have many of these words, their meanings and their pronunciation guides on our web site at all times in our free resource area.
As that old saying goes, “Try it, you’ll like it!!!” And Happy Thanksgiving to You and Yours!
Happy Educating! ¡Sea feliz educando!
Boca Beth
Posted in Teacher Mom | No Comments »
|
Patricia Cobe and Ellen H. Parlapiano are authors of the books Mompreneurs® Online: Using the Internet to Build Work@Home Success (Perigee, 2001), Mompreneurs®: A Mother's Practical Step-by-Step Guide to Work-at-Home Success (Perigee, 1996), and founders of MompreneursOnline.com.
They are recognized as leading authorities on women-owned businesses, and have offered entrepreneurial advice on Oprah, the CBS Early Show, NBC Nightly News, Good Morning America, and numerous other TV and radio shows nationwide.
In the ten years since they coined and trademarked the catchy word “mompreneurs,” they have watched the entrepreneurial mom movement explode.
Meet Our Blogging Team:
- Baby Product Mom / Phylana Stowers: Phylana is the Founder and CEO of Stowers Swaddlers & Stationery, a business which includes infant swaddling blankets, burp cloths and note cards. The mother of 5 resides in a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
View Blog
View Marketplace Listing
- Blogging Mom / Amber Miner: Amber is the Founder and President of Baby Fabulous and also co-owns BizyBlogs, a blog setup and content services company, with her husband, Jason. The mom of two resides in San Diego, CA.
View Blog
View Marketplace Listing
- Inventor Mom/Leslie Haywood: Leslie is Founder and President of Charmed Life Products and inventor of a grilling accessory called Grill Charms ®. The mother of 2 resides in Charleston, South Carolina.
View Blog
View Marketplace Listing
- Designer Mom/Melissa Yamello: Melissa is the owner and designer behind Storybook Studio, a company that manufactures art and craft products for children.She also provides graphic illustration/design services. The mom of 2 resides in New Jersey.
View Blog
- Teacher Mom/Beth Butler: Beth is the creator of the Boca Beth bilingual program for young children. The mom of three resides in Tampa, Florida.
View Blog
View Marketplace Listing
- Organizer Mom / Cindy Chrysler:Cindy is a Founding Organization Consultant for The Clever Container Co. and assists her husband, John, with his newest venture - Streamside Farm. They make toy barns using 100% reclaimed barn wood. The home schooling mother of four resides in Millington, MI.
View Blog
- Photo Mom/Jill Caren: Jill is a photographer/artist who began Expressions Photo Design, where art and gifts are made from your personal photographs. The mom of one resides in Morganville, NJ. View Blog
View Marketplace Listing
- Programming Mom/ Susan Scheid: Susan is a web application programmer who developed the e-commerce catalog system OptionCart. The mom of one resides in the Delaware, Ohio area.
View Blog
View Marketplace Listing
- Virtual Assistant Mom/Diana Ennen: Diana is the author of numerous books on starting a virtual assistant business, and the President of Virtual Word Publishing . The mom of 3 resides in Margate, FL.
View Blog
View Marketplace Listing
- Customer Service Mom/Janene Jaroscak: Janene is Founder and President of Trending Solutions, a customer service and order fulfillment company that supports small businesses. The mother of 1 resides in New Albany, OH.
View Blog
- Music Mom/Cher Klosner Lane: Cher is a singer/songwriter, from the sibling duo, "Cher & Gene Klosner", Co-Founder of Audible Chocolate Productions, Co-creator and Co-producer of the award winning "Stardust" lullaby CD. The mom of one and her husband, Emmy Award winning "The Simpson's" Assistant Director and animator, Ben Lane, reside in Omaha, NE with their son.
View Blog
- On-the-Move Mom/Stacy Dallman: Stacy is the founder of Nookums, LLC and inventor of a baby product called Paci-Plushies™. She recently relocated her family from California to Russia , as her husband plays hockey professionally there. The mother of two shares her amazing journey as a mom and inventor overseas.
View Blog
- Website Mom/Holly Klassen: Holly runs Fussy Baby, a website that helps parents of fussy, colicky or 'high-needs' infants. Holly currently resides in Vancouver, Canada with her husband and two kids.
View Blog
Mompreneurs® Online home page
Mompreneurs® Online Message Boards
Mompreneurs® Marketplace
|
