Family fun with Languages

The Chattanooga Chinese Association sponsors several cultural events each year.

Learning a new language can be rewarding for adults and for children but learning as a family can build memories and expand experiences, providing a unifying activity for everyone in the family.

Children are natural linguists and research indicates that learning languages at an early age boosts brain activity, stimulating neural connections and creating a more dense “grey matter” in their brains.   The College Bound Seniors Report, issued by the Board which administers the SAT tests, shows that students with 4 or more years of foreign language score an average of 140-150 points higher on the Critical Reading, Math and Writing sections of the standardized test.

The fun and family bonding of learning about a new culture together can present learning opportunities in all kinds of family interactions from cooking and grocery shopping to trips and ethnic adventures.  Exploring a new culture with your children can add sights, sounds, flavors and confidence that can help children bridge boundaries while creating a bigger view of the world and their place in it.

In the ever-changing global market East Tennessee businesses, schools and families are becoming more culturally diverse, increasing the number of languages spoken in our region and expanding the number of opportunities for students with languages on their educational resume.

Learning about a new culture with your children is a great way to build memories while improving their ability to compete in a new global market.

Whether your family learns online, with a computer program or at a bricks and mortar site with personal instruction the memories you create will build a base for your children and for shared experiences that cross the parent/child gap, forming stronger bonds through shared goals.  In the Southeast Tennessee region opportunities abound for language instruction and the following resources can direct your search for the perfect language for your family.

Chattanooga Chinese School

www.cca-ccs.org

423-855-8554

Chattanooga School of Language

Laurie Stevens

423-802-2040

www.chattanoogalanguage.com

A variety of programs are offered that can prepare you for travel, business or workplace training as well as kids culture camps and language learning.  The Chattanooga School of Language offers instruction during the Winter term in Spanish, German, Italian, Mandarin Chinese and French.  They also host monthly social meet-ups for those with enough base in a language who need more opportunities for practical speaking.

Foreign Language Academy

www.foreignlanguageacademy.org

865-694-8880

All instruction is provided by native speakers for children and adults.  Instruction and translations are available in French, Spanish, Italian, Portoguese, German, Arabic, Russian, Chinese and Japanese.

German Saturday School – Knoxville

www.germansaturdayschool.org

(Held at Sacred Heart Cathedral School – www.shcschool.org)