How to Teach Your Child Spanish at Home Free: The 6 Best Apps to Learn Spanish for Free
In this digital age, educational apps have become valuable resources for children to explore new languages while having fun. So, let’s take a look at five free apps designed for kids and which one is the best app to learn Spanish.
How to Teach Your Child Spanish at Home Free
Are you ready to begin homeschooling Spanish? Learning a new language can be an exciting adventure, especially when starting young. Spanish, with its rich culture and widespread usage, is an excellent choice for kids to begin their language learning journey.
There are many factors to consider when teaching Spanish to your children. Some approaches are better than others at really acquiring language skills.
From my own experience, I know that just reading and repeating things isn’t the most efficient language study. I took three years of Spanish in high school, yet I’m far from a fluent speaker. I don’t think it’s just because I don’t use it on a regular basis, but because the traditional way I learned the language was not natural or immersive.
Because of that, it’s important to consider these elements:
- Comprehensible input — This means it should be active, not passive, learning. Reading children’s books in Spanish and acting out the stories so that children really understand what is happening on each page will help them absorb the language in a natural, comprehensible way.
- The silent period — This is the natural first stage of language when children are absorbing the language without “output,” meaning they aren’t speaking it themselves, but they are silently learning.
- The power of storytelling — I’m a huge believer in the power of storytelling for all kinds of learning. This goes for language, too. Familiar fairy tales and other stories can be a good place to begin with learning a new language.
Yes, you can start with free resources like library books and even some YouTube videos, but if you want to go deeper and really help your children to become fluently bilingual in Spanish, you’ll need to incorporate other resources like the apps listed below.
FabuLingua:
FabuLingua is the best app to learn Spanish, in my opinion. It is designed specifically for children (though adults can also learn from it!) to be engaging and active learning. It offers a free story, which can provide about 6-8 hours of learning and teaches about family members, along with some opposites and some verbs.
The problem with YouTube and podcasts is that they can be pretty passive and therefore not engaging enough. With the FabuLingua app, however, you get high quality comprehensible input that is interactive and highly compelling.
It has all of the elements I listed above that are so essential for acquiring language, which is what makes it the best app to learn Spanish for kids. It is a platform of comprehensible input through stories, designed to be compelling to kids. It is based on the science of second language acquisition (it has a patent); it is based on stories and the power of reading to children; and it is wrapped up in a fun mobile game! We all know that gamified learning can be especially effective for our children.
In the mobile game, kids unlock new locations as they make progress, earn keys to open treasure chests as they read stories, and earn playing cards for a card battler and stickers for a magic sticker book as they open more treasure chests. I love that the more stories they read, the more they are rewarded, the more locations they unlock on the island.
Kids can record their voices as they imitate the narrator, giving them a chance to practice in a fun way. There are learning games centered around each story they’ve read. With the “Learning Path”, kids don’t just read a story, they are working towards mastery of each story.
FabuLingua is so comprehensive. I was really surprised at the depth of learning layered into it. It works on all the linguistic skills, from comprehension to pronunciation, reading and writing. As a parent, you don’t need to speak a word of Spanish for them to use it, either.
One of the things my daughters commented on was the artwork. It really is beautiful, like a picture book. All of the stories are culturally authentic, written and illustrated by Spanish and Latin American artists.
When you first download the FabuLingua app and get to their subscription page, you can choose “not ready yet” to access the free version with the first free story. If you decided to subscribe, it’s a great value at $69.99 for an annual subscription that gives you 6 profiles, so all of your children can learn at their own pace with their own Learning Path.
As a special discount for my readers, you can use code HEART1MONTHFREE to get your first month of FabuLingua for free!
Duolingo:
Duolingo is a popular language-learning app for all ages, and its kid-friendly version is no exception. With its gamified approach, colorful graphics, and interactive exercises, Duolingo makes learning Spanish an enjoyable experience for children. The app covers various language skills, including vocabulary, pronunciation, listening comprehension, and basic grammar. As kids progress through levels, they earn rewards and unlock new challenges, keeping them engaged and motivated.
Gus on the Go:
Gus on the Go is an immersive language-learning app tailored specifically for children. With an adorable owl named Gus as their guide, kids embark on a language-learning adventure through exciting interactive lessons. The app incorporates vocabulary, phrases, and mini-games that encourage children to listen, speak, and understand Spanish naturally. The visual and auditory elements help improve language retention and make the learning process more enjoyable.
Fun Spanish by Studycat:
Fun Spanish is an app that combines playful games and lessons to teach kids Spanish effectively. The app offers a wide range of topics, such as numbers, colors, animals, and everyday phrases, through entertaining activities like matching games, puzzles, and quizzes. As children advance, they can access more challenging lessons, ensuring a gradual learning progression. Fun Spanish also features a reward system to celebrate their achievements and motivate further learning.
Spanish School Bus for Kids:
Hop on the Spanish School Bus and embark on a learning journey with catchy songs and interactive games. This app captivates kids with its delightful animations and catchy tunes, which help them memorize new words and phrases effortlessly. Whether it’s learning greetings, weather expressions, or common objects, Spanish School Bus offers a dynamic and engaging learning experience for young language enthusiasts.
Mindsnacks Spanish:
Mindsnacks Spanish is an immersive app that turns language learning into an exciting adventure. The app offers nine interactive games to teach vocabulary, sentence structure, and conversational skills. Each game focuses on different aspects of the language, such as word recognition, spelling, and listening comprehension. Kids can track their progress, and parents can monitor their performance through the app’s comprehensive reporting feature. It is only available for Apple products, so I was not able to test this one myself. As with anything, parents should use their own discretion on suitability for their children.
Learning Spanish can be an enjoyable and rewarding experience for kids, especially with the help of educational apps. These six free apps – FabuLingua, Duolingo, Gus on the Go, Fun Spanish by Studycat, Spanish School Bus for Kids, and Mindsnacks Spanish – offer engaging and interactive ways to learn the language effectively.
By making language learning fun and accessible, these apps empower young learners to develop a strong foundation in Spanish, fostering cultural awareness and communication skills that will serve them well throughout their lives. So, why wait?
Get started with FabuLingua, the best app to learn Spanish, today. Use code HEART1MONTHFREE to get your first month free!
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