|
|
 |
 |
Date: September 1, 2006
Section: Business
Edition: F1,F2,McHenry,F3
Page: 1 |
|
Language Leaders
helps kids say it all
Alicia Fabbre
Foster Jackey's morning in preschool is like any other.
His teacher played games that taught him about counting and
colors. At snack time, he munched on goldfish crackers and
cupcakes. And, of course he enjoyed playtime.
The main difference between his preschool class and any other is
that 5-year-old Foster and his classmates speak a foreign
language while in class.
"Jugo por favor," he says in Spanish as he asks his teacher for
a glass of juice.
Foster is one of four students in class that day speaking in
Spanish to their teacher - Vicky Gomez. He first started taking
Spanish classes at Language Leaders in Geneva three years ago.
The school specializes in teaching young children a foreign
language.
In addition to his numbers, Foster knows enough to understand
when his teacher and in many cases, respond. He can even roll
his r's with the best of them.
"When they're so young, they're like sponges; they absorb
everything," Foster's mother, Linda said. "It's so hard for an
adult to learn (another language). It's easier for him."
In addition to Spanish, the school, which opened three years
ago, also teaches French, German, Italian, Mandarin and Russian.
The school also will find teachers for other requested languages
if needed.
"With our society becoming more and more global, the need to
speak more than one language is becoming a necessity," said
Language Leaders owner and founder Melissa Beitz.
And, she said, research shows that learning a second language is
easier for people before a child is 10 years old. She explained
that the information needed to speak a foreign language is
stored in the same part of the brain as the information needed
for the primary language until the age of 10. Afterwards, that
information is stored in a different part of the brain and more
difficult to recall.
Thus, she takes children as young as one-year old as students.
As those students are learning how to speak English at home,
they can learn another language at Beitz' school.
"It's really amazing, whatever language you're speaking to them,
they'll speak back," she said.
She noted one student started just after her first birthday, and
Beitz and the parents were concerned that she didn't seem to be
picking up on anything. Then one day, as she was leaving she
turned to say "adios" to Beitz.
"The first stage to them learning another language is for them
to understand, and then they'll start speaking," said Beitz, who
learned Spanish at the age of four.
Though young children learn easier, the school offers classes
for students ages 12 months to adult. Tutoring also is available
for high school foreign language classes.
Beitz recently opened her second Language Leaders location at
401 Country Club Road in Crystal Lake. She also is offering
franchise opportunities for those wishing to open a Language
Leaders near them.
The Geneva Language Leaders is located at 416 W. State Street.
Fall classes begin Sept. 11. For information on classes call
(630) 377-8794 or visit the school's website at
www.language-leaders.com.
Vicky Gomez, a Spanish teacher at Language Leaders, works with a
group of children on learning their numbers in Spanish in
Geneva.
JEFF KNOX/
jknox@dailyherald.com
|
|
|
