Foreign Language Programs for Children

Many of us have heard of Rosetta Stone and how it's extremely expensive. We've also heard about how great it is and that the military even uses it. But do we really hear that much about programs that teach children a foreign language? No, not really. The only program I have seen advertised to teach a child a foreign language is Muzzy. 

Muzzy is a program, in which was created by BBC in 1982, that claims to be "The World's #1 Language Course For Children". Muzzy is available in eight languages: Spanish, French, German, Italian, English, Mandarin, Russian, and Portuguese (Brazil). The two newest programs are Russian and Portuguese (Brazil). Muzzy is a total immersion program that utilizes cartoons, a colorful scriptbook, audio CDs, and a vocabulary builder DVD.
Little Pim is a program that utilizes animations and actual children to immerse a child in the foreign language. “Little Pim is an affordable, fun and convenient way to introduce a child to a foreign language at the age it matters most.” Little Pim currently has programs for Spanish, French, Chinese, Italian, Japanese, Hebrew, English (ESL), German, Arabic, and Russian.
Baby Einstein™ Language Nursery introduces the sounds of foreign language to a baby. “The audio includes nursery rhymes sung by mothers in their native languages of English, French, German, Hebrew, Japanese, Russian and Spanish.”
Professor Toto is a program that utilizes English along with the foreign language to introduce the language to the child. The program uses animations song-filled CDs, and colorful workbooks to teach these languages: French, Spanish, Italian, Chinese or German. “Professor Toto is a series of multi-award winning language education tools for ages 2 to 8.”
Other programs include: Berlitz Kids Language Packs,  Teach Me, and  Usborne First Thousand Words Books

Whether you like it or not your child is already being exposed to a foreign language

Today, TV introduces us to different languages whether we like it or not. Not only do we have shows such as Dora the Explorer and Go, Diego, Go!, but commercials also throw in different languages as well. The most familiar commercial with a foreign language phrase is Taco Bell's Chihuaha saying: "Yo quiero Taco Bell!" meaning "I want Taco Bell!" Another example of a commercial with a different language is for Old El Paso Taco. In this commercial you see a father nailing into a table so that he can make a taco stand up straight, so it won't fall over and lose all of its contents. The son then asks in Spanish "What if it had a flat bottom?"
TV shows that actually teach your child various phrases from a foreign language include: Dora the Explorer; Go, Diego, Go!; Ni Hao, Kai-lan; and Sesame Street. Back in 1989, Sesame Street had a special (Big Bird in Japan) where Big Bird goes to Japan and teaches children phrases such as "Good Morning" - "Ohayoo"; "one" - "ichi"; "two" - "ni"; "three" - "san"; "Thank You" - "Arigato"; "Please" - "Douzo"; etc. In 1983, Sesame Street did a special (Big Bird in China: Learning Mandarin for the Olympics) where Big Bird went to China. Big Bird learns phrases like: "Hello" - "Ni hao"; "Goodbye" - "Zai jian"; and "I love you" - "Wo ai ni." Shows like Dora the Explorer and Go, Diego, Go! allow kids to learn Spanish. Ni Hao, Kai-lan is a show that teaches children Mandarin. These shows give children a fun way to learn a foreign language. They'll have the child shout out stuff like "Rapido!" to have the dolphin swim faster. The characters of the show will also greet the audience in their spoken language. For instance, Kai-lan will say Ni hao to the children whereas, Diego and Dora will say Hola.

Mandarin as a second language?

China has become more influential in business and economics within the United States. 87% of the 346 American businesses in China have had an increase in revenue, whereas, in 2009 there was a 47% rise in revenue. With more of our companies establishing themselves in China, we are in more need of bilingual speakers who speak English and Mandarin. If we learn Mandarin, then we will be better able to communicate with company officials and other Chinese officials. We would also have a better chance of being able to do business with other Chinese companies.
With this rise in U.S.-Chinese related businesses it's only natural that the number one spoken language has become more in demand in schools. Many schools have been adopting Mandarin courses into their school's education.The learning of Mandarin specifically could help with furthering the globalization of our country. It has been found that thousands of public schools have stopped teaching foreign languages in the last decade. Yet now, a lot of schools are picking up Mandarin courses. The Chinese government has even sent teachers from China to teach Mandarin at US schools. The Chinese government pays for part of their salary while the school district where they are hired pays the rest. "The number of Chinese programs in prekindergarten through 12th grade in the United States has grown by almost 200 percent since 2004, according to the Asia Society, a nonprofit group that promotes education about the continent" (Citation).
Little Lingoes and Bilingual Buds, preschools, both have Mandarin classes available to their students. The classes taught at Bilingual Buds are total immersion courses. The teacher, Jing Zhou, read the students Goldilocks and the Three Bears in Mandarin (Jin Fa Nu Hai Er He San Zhi Xiong). The teachings, such as Goldilocks and the Three Bears, are familiar so that it's easier for the students to understand the context. In 2008, Grimes Elementary School, received a grant for a three year Mandarin program.