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What You Can Do at Home

By: Colorín Colorado (2007)

Sing, talk, read, and encourage your child every day!

When children are young, they learn by listening and talking with their parents, relatives, babysitters, and others.

If you and your child are more comfortable with Spanish, then sing, talk, and read with your child in Spanish. This will build your child's speaking, listening, and understanding skills. These skills will later help him or her speak and read English.

The gift of two languages

Knowing two languages is a gift you can give your child. Many children lose the ability to speak and read in Spanish when growing up in the United States. With encouragement from you, though, your child can become fluent in not just one language, but two!

First steps

Becoming Bilingual

Acclaimed actress Rita Moreno hosts Becoming Bilingual, a 30-minute PBS program that examines the challenges of teaching children to read in a new language. The show visits six cities across the country to learn about the different ways schools are working to create bilingual readers.

As your child gets older…

Once your child goes to school, you still have a great influence on how well he or she will do. For example, you can:

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