Talk to Me – Please?

For the most part, my Spanish is a one sided conversation – my 18 month old twins don’t say much back. They can say “uh-oh”, “bye-bye”, “good girl”, “thank you” and make a “ho-ho-ho” noise that is supposed to be what a doggy says.

My 7-year-old’s response to me is a beautific eye roll that will reach its ultimate effectiveness when she becomes a teen (or maybe sooner if I am so lucky).

So, how can I get my kiddos to speak to me in Spanish when I don’t know how to do it myself?

Books? Sure. Cartoons? Possibly. Music? Of course! The most effective way though?

Everyday conversations.

Once again, I have come 360° to my original problem – how to respond. I don’t know how to respond so how can I teach my children? What resources do I have at my disposal to help me with this problem?

I needed to find something (or someone) that I could insert into my everyday life that would be beneficial to our daily conversations. I scrounged through Amazon music and found some nursery rhyme songs in Spanish (score!). Check out my music page to see what we’ve been listening to.

I also reached out to a friend that I went to college with – he is a Spanish teacher. I am now meeting with him every other week to confirm my translations and ask questions. (Note: Google translate is NOT always accurate – can you believe that?😒)

I found a really great set of videos on You Tube from the channel AIB Network. Here is the first Spanish lesson – it explained SO much about how the language works.

I also love to learn through books – I am a big reader and my twins (especially mi chanchita) love to read. Surely there are some children’s books that had simple Spanish conversations with a translation we could learn from?

Oooof course not (insert my own mature eye roll here).

Hence, the teacher inside me rises to yet another challenge. I will MAKE what I need. How hard can it be?

I’ve collected a “compilation” of conversations I frequently have with my children. Most of our topics include things like what they want to eat, what they want to do, learning shapes and colors, where their body parts are, and how to have a conversation when greeting someone.

These things I’ve put in a digital format so you can simply print them off, fold together and Voilà! (ahem, I mean ¡Hay!) you have a way to learn how to ask a question and an answer for it!

These free printables are great to read with the kiddos – you can even take turns reading with older children, one asking questions and the other answering. This page is a continuous work in progress, so bear with me!

I hope this gives you a starting place for speaking everyday Spanish with your children. And perhaps, you can have some meaningful conversations together that will be more than just Hola.

Happy Learning! Feliz Apreniendo!

~Bronwen