Summer. Time seems to slow down when the children are bored and you’re searching for ways to keep them occupied. During the summer vacation, there’s lots of time to fill. Time to relax and have fun. Time to stimulate their minds and build on the knowledge accumulated during the school year ― or introduce a new challenge that combines enjoyment with educational benefit.
Whether you’re in the car, in a waiting room, or simply looking for ways to keep your child entertained, help is at hand. Here are five great ways for your child to learn English this summer, specially designed by pedagogic experts and linguistic scientists ― and enjoy it!
Sing a song. If you haven’t yet discovered the Helen Doron Song Club, try it now. Younger children love singing along with the songs in Song Club. The tunes are catchy, the words are simple, and the videos are great fun. Singing is a great way for children to experience language naturally. They are not focusing on grammar or sentence structure, but they are learning English. With every new song they learn, they are expanding their vocabulary. They learn the meaning of the song by watching the story being told onscreen.
There’s more to nursery rhymes than meets the eye (or ear!) Rhymes teach the intonation (the way the language is spoken) and the phonological structure (the way words sound). While some three year olds are aware that words are composed of separate sounds, others lack this awareness. The more the children are exposed to nursery rhymes, the more they become aware of the way sounds are made up. The greater the child’s awareness of syllables and rhyming sounds, the easier it is for them to learn to read in later life.
Play a game. Remember spelling bees, where words were learned by rote, repeating them parrot fashion until it was burned on your memory? No fun at all. That’s why Kangi Club helps children master English through playing a variety of enjoyable games with Joey, Didi the Dragon, Flupe and friends. Each game helps children practise English vocabulary through a different challenge. The child hears the word spoken correctly and associates it with an appropriate image. Matching games, memory games and more build their vocabulary through structured play. It doesn’t feel like homework. It’s fun!
Have Fun with Flupe. As with any language, learning the correct pronunciation is key to effective communication. Since English is not a phonetic language (there is no direct relationship between the spelling and the sound), many words are not pronounced as they are written. Fun with Flupe is an easy to use app and a fun way to introduce English to young children, who hear the word being correctly pronounced, see how the word is spelled and see a relevant image, which helps them memorize it. Even children from ages two to five can easily learn their first words in English with Fun with Flupe. Simply touch and learn. Start having Fun with Flupe on Google Play or iTunes.
If you enjoyed the app, you can learn more about Flupe and his friends and follow their adventures here.
Learn to read. Imagine children learning to read one step at a time, in their own time and at their own pace. It’s possible with Helen Doron Read, designed for children ages five to nine. The interactive characters keep the children involved in the action and enjoying the stories. With Helen Doron Read, children hear the word spoken correctly, see the correct spelling, and can repeat the word or sentence again and again. It couldn’t be easier to learn new vocabulary, which builds self-confidence and motivation.
Helen Doron Read is carefully structured into eight levels, with four storybooks on each level. The first three books on every shelf are read-to-me stories. The stories are read aloud while the reader follows along. The fourth book allows children to practise reading, using the vocabulary from the stories just read. The record feature allows children to record themselves reading the story and play it back. Helen Doron Read allows children to practise reading anytime, anywhere. Download Read from Google Play or iTunes and start learning to read today.
Round the clock radio. Tune into seriously fun listening with Helen Doron’s radio station for teens. Ever since the Beatles broke the sound barrier, music has been the great unifier all around the world. It doesn’t matter whether you live in Budapest, Berlin, or Bangkok, today’s super groups play music that transcends cultural barriers. Helen Doron Teen Radio plays clean popular music that teens love. Music is combined with chat shows and entertaining segments such as Weird News, Celebrity Gossip and Sports ― simple enough for teens learning English, while challenging them to expand their horizons. The more they listen, the more their listening comprehension improves. Download the app from Google Play or iTunes and listen now.
For more ways to keep your children busy and improving their English skills during the summer vacation as well as during the school year, visit a Helen Doron Learning Centre near you. Have a great summer!
