Señora Gose's Homeschool Spanish Blog (aka "Seriously, Suzanne")

*Freedom*. That's all. Let's get in the wayback machine... before our babies... Before wrinkles, before much experience... but AFTER my passion for teaching was LIT and INFLAMED.....Back when I taught in the public school... with all those public school students, I KNEW I could do a better job in a better way, with more fun and efficiency. But I wasn't allowed. We didn't have the time, the resources, and the permission to do it the way I wanted to do it. My students weren't allowed to stay late or come early, and we were restricted from talking about anything that...

I have been living, teaching classes, and homeschooling in the same Texas community for 21 years. We've moved a couple of times, but I'm blessed to say that the ladies who had to clean up the leaky diaper from my middlest (she was the baby at the time) when she was walking through their homeschool store at 10 months old are still in my circle now - I asked them toddler and reading advice back then, and now I get to ask preparatory college questions and adult children expectations, while we finish up with our last two students in their...

Getting our homeschooled children to high school is such a HUGE feat! But then WE DO IT, and phew! It's like our brain thinks, "Hey. We have 9th graders and UP! We can now stop, sip a coffee, and take a five minute break!" - Nope, nope, - they need ..input? Nope. They're good... go away, don't tell them, no opinions needed; Oh hey, one sec... no I've got this. You know what - that hovering balancing act you've got going on is great. Yeah. Just stand there, sort of leaned in... and wait until I look at you again...

BRAIN HEALTH SHOCKERS! Every year I give this seminar, and every year there are mommas in the audience with their mouths literally gaping open. They had NO IDEA of the hidden perks of learning a second language! So! Read on! If you wonder what subjects are “worth it,” please know that learning a foreign language… even just STUDYING a foreign language has benefits far beyond vocabulary and grammar, and even culture! There are synapses in our brains that simply don’t get used until a foreign language is the focus of absorption. Check out these benefits at ANY AGE: (and check...

Don't get discouraged! When learning a second language, the authentic input you hear will sound like static for a while.... (about six weeks) But as you learn more vocabulary, and begin stringing together your OWN sentences and thoughts, you'll begin to "dial it in!" How? -Watching your favorite scene from a DVD you own (15 minutes) in Spanish... -Listening to the Bible App in Spanish (5-10 minutes) -Finding a talk radio station in Spanish (the Christian ones are the best - they speak more slowly and enunciate more than the political/celebrity/news stations.) -Type in your favorite children's book title in...