TEFL Harris Wisconsin

The optimal period to learn a second language is between the ages of 0-3. Some brain imaging studies show that languages in bilingual infants are stored closer together in the brain than in later bilinguals. So learning another language after the age of 3 both takes greater effort and is treated differently by the brain. Processing more languages simultaneously takes three to six months longer and this potential delay disappears at around four years. Bear in mind that it is a highly individual process and this article takes it for granted. The first year of life is about sounds and imitation, music. It is important for them to hear many sounds of the language (phonemes, intonations and melody) as they begin to babble, their vowel production is gibberish. Babies are exceptional at recognizing speech sounds: japanese babies up to six months can clearly recognize the difference between /l/ and /r/. This acquisition works through repetitions, it is important to focus upon the most useful sounds and repeat these over and over. By now the boundary between native and second language is clear, babies are able to recognize instantly each sound and what it belongs to and it seems they prefer the first. To make effective the acquisition of a second language is a matter of clear and slow repetitions, varying the same sentence slightly: "Look at the bunny! Can you see the bunny? Look how fast the bunny is running!" and call them by their names! This slow and dramatized language suitable for babies is known to be equivalent of comfort food for them. The second year is about words and linking words to objects. They begin to understand word boundaries or individual words within phrases and can say long strings of vowels and consonants. Mixing syllables and maybe adding some first words, although they're usually incomplete like "cu" for cup. Babies by the age of two can understand some 100-200 words in context. Learns new words by associating them to here and now references (objects, people, etc.). They begin to grasp the idea of sentences and it is suggested to take care their language learning. A baby applies just the right level of 'generalization' to cope with the situation. They start with learning whole objects and create large groups and only one name per group. Generalization helps them to understand that the photo, the soft toy are all still cats. It's very common for a baby to initially call all four-legged animals "cat". Soon after, babies begin to subdivide the large groups into smaller and smaller units and this is time to start discussing tails. By now babies start creating their database of sounds, intonations and rules to combine words. children between 2 and 4 years could average an astonishing 8 new words a day. At 6 years, they can understand some 13,000 words.. Researchers have found that common first words in all languages include names of familiars, words about eating and drinking, clothes and household objects, animals and their sounds, as well as social expressions like "hello" and "good-bye", "No." The age of three is the best for grammar and pronunciation as these remain the dead giveaways of a non-native speaker, as both are next to impossible to perfect as an adult. children sort out the grammar and increase the vocabulary by leaps and bounds. They could understand some 500 words and distinguish categories of words. They go from two words directly into simple sentences. These develop as combinations of an ever-increasing number of words together, their “telegraphic speech”. english-speaking children typically begin with present tenses, present participle verb endings (-ing form) in particular: "Where Daddy driving?" Next come the prepositions (in, on, at, out), adjectives (small, yellow, hot), followed by plural endings (-s) like in horses; possessive endings (-s) like in his; articles (a, the), adverbs (fast, slowly, carefully), regular past tense endings (ed) as in jumped; pronouns (me, you, us, them); and third person present tense endings (-s) as in "the bear sleeps." Babies know the rules and seem to understand their logic by means of their mistakes: “We swimmed" is an example of baby applying a logical rule to a language that has a number of irregularities and exceptions. This 'over-generalization' persists until the child has more knowledge to make self-corrections. Correcting them doesn't help at all. Before the age of three, children don't understand language corrections and could instead become self-conscious, ashamed, and quiet. It's better to respond to "We swimmed," with "Yes, you swam in the pool today! I swam too. You swam really well!" We will achieve much better results by offering modeling and repetition, instead of correcting. By the age of three, he'll be able to carry on a sustained conversation adjusting his tone, speech patterns, and vocabulary to his conversation partner. For instance, he'll use simpler words with a peer, but be more verbal with you. By now, he may be almost completely intelligible in both languages.