Parents are now putting pressure on pre-school programs to offer their young children instruction in a foreign language, and that's not necessarily a sign of over-achieving parents. The best time for humans to learn a language is when they're very young, plus kids pick up a nearly perfect native pronunciation when they learn young. In our increasingly diverse country, early learning in foreign language makes a whole lot of sense. Spanish is often the language requested by parents, but pre-school providers report there's also a demand for French and Mandarin Chinese.
One language teacher says studies have shown that bilingual children have better problem-solving skills and are more creative. Teachers recommend a child continue to learn until nearly fluent, or that early benefit will wear off.
And, there seems to be another trend in early learning--infant reading. The days of waiting for school to start before a child learns to read are long over. Some parents are undertaking the fundamentals of reading when their child is still mostly sleeping and drooling. But, just like learning languages--the earlier the better. If a parent introduces books, explains the words even when a child can't talk, and incorporates a reading routine into the infant's young life, chances are reading and interest in books will be improved later on, and there will be the added benefits of parent-child bonding and a better attention span. Nothing to sneeze at there! Look for a infant book program in your neck of the woods. Many service clubs are now offering books to new mothers and their babies.
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