If you decide that your child is learning a foreign language, then most likely it will be English, since this is the most popular foreign language for learning. But at what age can you teach a child English?
Some parents tend to think that starting to learn English is worth since childhood, since it is at this time that children easily grasp and perceive any information.
Other parents believe that their child himself will determine which language to learn and for what purpose - then it is worth starting training.
Still others generally believe that the main thing is to use a foreign language in the future of the child, and at what age to start is the last thing.
Where is the truth? We'll sort it out in order.
Yes, the child, like a sponge, easily absorbs all the new information - here we agree with the first statement. After all, it is so, children learn to pronounce the sounds of non-native speech more quickly and are often surprised by their abilities in memorizing words and expressions, which adults can only dream of. However, here all the advantages of starting the study of languages from an early age end.
It is easy to learn how to speak a foreign language, both at home and in the right language environment. But we should not forget that, like any knowledge, language skills are preserved as long as they are used, as long as they are needed. Therefore, if you started learning as a child, then it is necessary to actively use and support the knowledge you have acquired so that it does not turn out that to your graduation class your child will remember only the most primitive expressions.
There is also a strong belief that it is impossible to teach a child English in a short period, for example, a year or a year and a half, this has always been taught to us and schools. Hence the zeal of parents as early as possible to start learning languages. The fact that there are modern and more effective teaching methods that allow you to cope with the development of a foreign language in just ten to eleven months is difficult for parents to imagine.
However, such intensive methods are quite acceptable. And they are applicable when a person makes an informed choice in the need to learn the language, having determined for himself the most interesting language, and, perhaps, more promising or practical. Thus, while the child himself is not determined with his choice, do not rush to write it in a language school or English language courses.
But everyone knows that at school parents do not have to pay money for teaching their child, in contrast to paid language courses. The way it is. But do we always manage to get what we want, what we want to achieve, in a high-quality, timely and free way? Experience suggests - not always. Nevertheless, having a clear vision of the ultimate goal - to be able to communicate in a foreign language, both in your native language, and your desire to achieve this, you can speed up the learning process and make it more effective.
The same can be said about the last statement. If you think that learning English will take at least six years, and even better - ten, it becomes, in principle, it does not matter at what age to start learning the language. You can learn to speak English, write, read and understand speech in just one year, if you start studying in courses. Often, people learn more than ten years of studying English at school. At the same time, if it seemed impossible to learn a foreign language at school, it becomes clear from the first courses on language courses that it is necessary to attend courses and take responsible courses in order to complete homework. Nothing more complicated.
Now, before you ask yourself the question, at what age can you teach a child English, think about why he needs to learn the language and is it necessary? Think about when such a need might arise in a foreign language, at what age? Maybe, if it's not six or ten years old, is it worth giving your child their own way to start learning languages? Now there are sufficiently effective intensive methods, thanks to which the time for language learning is reduced to one year, and the lessons turn into a fascinating process, and not hard labor in the classroom. Such activities can change attitudes toward learning and allow a clearer vision of the future.
Beginning at the age of fourteen, you can begin to study English in the applied field as a second foreign language.
If the child understands that English is the language he wants to speak, then some courses give the opportunity to pass the introductory lesson for free, by appointment. This will show how much language learning is easy and fun, and your child will be able to speak in English from the first lesson.