Students with Learning Disabilities Can Learn New Languages Too
Laura Grey is proficient in five languages: English, French, Spanish, Italian and German. She is also learning Russian, Mandarin Chinese and Dutch. She is doing this although she has a learning disability. A learning disability is a condition that makes learning difficult. Grey has dyslexia, a learning disability that makes reading, writing and spelling difficult. […]
How to Create Culturally Responsive Classrooms
Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT) is a current buzzword in education. And you know what? As an ambassador for English Language Learners, I’m going to capitalize on this momentum. First, let’s make sure we have a common understanding of the term. There’s nothing more frustrating than someone saying, “let’s be more culturally responsive” or “teach with […]
Early Bilingualism Helps With Learning Languages Later in Life
Bilingual people may be better equipped to learn new languages than those who only speak one language, according to a study published in the academic journal Bilingualism: Language and Cognition. The research points to a distinct language-learning benefit for people who grow up bilingual or learn another language at an early age. A team of researchers […]
Tips for Implementing the Little Sponges Program in Your Classroom
Congratulations! Your class is now a part of the Little Sponges family! We want everyone learning with Little Sponges to receive the full educational experience as they move and advance throughout our program. We know that implementing a new program into your daily curriculum can be challenging, so with the help of Alayna (preschool teacher […]
Bilingual Babies: Teach Your Child a Second Language
When Louise Sanders adopted her daughter, Camille, from Panama, she thought it was important to teach her about her heritage. So just before Camille turned 3, Louise enrolled her in a Spanish-language school in their Tucson, Arizona, community. Now, at 3 1/2, Camille loves to sing Spanish songs, and sometimes she even answers questions more […]
Does Bilingual Education Really Work?
We here at Little Sponges wholeheartedly believe in bilingual education. Literally hundreds of scientific studies over the past half century have shown that bilingual education – when well designed and well implemented – is an effective approach for teaching second language learners. These findings have been consistent across numerous national borders and languages of instruction, […]