It feels good to have your kid speak in a foreign language right from the time they are still babies. If you live in the US, you understand your next-door neighbor is most likely to speak Spanish, Portuguese, or French. If you want your kids to communicate with everyone in your community, you should teach them a second language.
Today, learning a second language is not that difficult with Online Language Tutors, just a phone call away. You can learn any language you want right in the comfort of your couch. Here are the reasons you should start teaching your kid a second language.
1. Grow your kid’s memory
Nothing makes your kid smarter, like learning a second language. Some studies have shown that bilingual people are better at multi-tasking and problem solving compared to monolinguals. The studies show that bilinguals have more grey matter in the brain region responsible for task execution.
The reason is that choosing the right language to communicate at the right time gives them extra practice in focusing attention and jogging the brain.
2. Improve academic performance
Teaching your kids a second language is one way of helping them to boost test scores in basic subjects. In a recent study, it is established that bilingual students perform better in American college Test (ACT) for Mathematics and English.
Also, students can improve on SAT verbal scores when they learn a foreign language for long. Therefore, you should encourage your kids to take a second language in school to boost their scores in most of the elementary subjects.
3. Boost ability in the native language
There is an old myth that when kids learn a second language, they tend to be more confused. However, new research now shows that bilingual kids perform better in their native language than monolingual kids.
Also, students learning a second language can start reading and writing faster than their peers, which increase when they are exposed to a second language early enough.
4. Kids are better at acquiring a foreign language
Kids are better at learning a foreign language than adults. Research shows a critical period when the human brain is often primed to learn something new. After puberty, the attitude to learning a second language reduces.
In research by the University of Washington, it has been established that by the age of 8-12 months, babies are more likely to start focusing on sounds occurring in their native language and may lose their ear for the other languages. However, if the baby is exposed to a foreign language, they can gain the ability to distinguish the sounds.
5. Trains your kids to appreciate other cultures
With over 7 billion people globally, your kid should learn how to get along with others. There is no better way to get along with others other than communication. You have to understand other people’s language if you want to communicate effectively.
When your kids learn a second language, they begin to understand the cultural diversity in a different country. They gain insights into how people live in different worlds.