Using children’s materials for language learning

kids-learning1I went to a toy market this weekend and came home with a couple of boxes of Chinese character flashcards.  They’re great for helping me with character recognition and writing.  I am considering putting a few up on my bedroom wall to look at every day.

I also have a couple of children’s books and CDs, as well as some exercise books to practice my writing.  Some people might be a bit ashamed to be using such elementary materials, but I will happily admit that a five-year-old native speaker speaks better Chinese than I do.

If you are a beginner or elementary language learner and can manage to find some kids’ language learning resources (or just general learning material in your target language), I recommend at least having a look at them.  They can be very helpful for learning, as well as testing yourself.  Audio resources are often slow and easy to understand, and while songs and chants may be a little high pitched and childish, they will definitely help you to remember the lyrics.  Bright coloured pictures and association of pictures with words will also help visual learners a lot (more on that later).

Even if you are progressing well in your language learning, check out some materials meant for younger learners to revise, learn a couple of new words, or just make yourself feel good about how much of the content you already know!

What other resources can you recommend?