BOCA BETH: One Song at a Time

Puerto Rico last week - Jacksonville, Florida this week.  I am so blessed to be able to travel - to share times with my family and now my sister as we prepare to present our Boca Beth bilingual fun for children to our second homeschool convention.

Our first in Ohio was amazing this past March, and we pray that this one starting in the morning will be just as excellent for us in terms of sales as well as the warm reception from the homeschooling families in attendance.  Below is the abstract I wrote about bilingual education in our country - I simply aim to demonstrate how fun and easy it can be to bring second language fun into homes with little children using our Boca Beth Program!

Abstract for Beth Butler/BOCA BETHSing, Dance and Play Teaching Spanish and English Today!!! 

          Raising bilingual children has become a topical issue for educators, care  

givers, parents and administrators around our country.  Continued research proves  

that introducing second, third, even fourth languages to young children improves  

their mental development.  Bilingual children read sooner, score higher on  

standardized tests’ math and verbal sections, experience greater problem solving  

abilities and become better communicators than monolingual children.   

            There is a reason experts agree: the earlier, the better when it comes to  

teaching a second language to children.  Young children will learn the language  

faster, retain it better and most often speak the new language like a native when  

compared to an adult beginning second language learning.   

            There has always existed a gap between the language learning taking place in 

other countries and that of the

United States.  We have done a great disservice to our  

youth by not providing them the tools to get a head start on becoming bilingual  

adults.  Our nation needs to face the challenge to prepare our youth for the global  

society in which we live.  Elementary school programs have had to 

analyze the bilingual vs. immersion methods of bringing a second language to  

children ages five - ten.  Lack of bilingual staff, a true lack of creative and  

comprehensive bilingual programs combined with the ever-increasing ethnic 

diversity within each community has made it seem almost impossible to bridge the 

language barriers. 

            Awareness is the key.  Parents, administrators and staff realize the great benefits of 

being bilingual (if not trilingual!).  Now the responsibility rests on the shoulders of 

bilingual program creators, researchers and educators to share their knowledge and  

motivation to begin the second language journey with our youth.

Happy Educating! 

Boca Beth