Children’s Spanish Programs
ISLS has developed three different and very comprehensive children's programs. These programs are available to parents who are looking to give their children either an introduction to Spanish or improve on existing ability. Because children of different ages learn differently, we have designed our programs specifically with these developmental stages in mind. All of our instructors in the children’s Spanish programs are specially trained to teach children.
If you then put this together with our specially developed curriculum, course material, program structures and teacher training you will find that no other children’s programs compare. Don’t go to a school that tells you that they can work something out for your kids. Come to a first class Spanish institute that has taken the time to create the types of children’s programs that are actually designed for children.
When most schools tell you they have a "Children's Program" what they usually mean is a dumbed-down adult class or private lessons using adult materials. Neither of these are appropriate for most children and they rarely work. Children need to be constantly engaged by well trained teachers that understand the best ways to teach them. All of our programs are fun, age appropriate, developmentally appropriate and level appropriate. We don't just put a bunch of kids of different ages and levels together and call that a program.
Our first program, the Kindergarten Spanish program is only offered at our Turrialba, Costa Rica, campus. It is for kids 7 years old or younger. We can actually take children as young as 1½. Any younger than this and we can supply the family with a child care provider. This is a very special opportunity for young children to interact with Costa Rican children of their own age in a fun and interactive way. The program takes place at a private nursery school/kindergarten that is within walking distance from the center of town. Parents who are uncomfortable with the idea of leaving their children alone at this age can volunteer at the school. This is not a structured Spanish program, but an immersive environment were young children can soak up the language like the sponges that they are. It is far easier for a young child to learn another language than an adult.
The second program, the Children’s Spanish Immersion Program is offered at two of our locations in Costa Rica: Playa Tamarindo and Turrialba. This program is for older children from 8 to 13 years of age. It is more structured than the kindergarten program, but less so than the adult program. By combining in class activities with games and field trips outside of school, students have a fun mix of lessons and hands on interaction to keep them happy and learning. In this program children are given oral and written evaluations like the adults and are split up into different class levels by ability.
Our third program, the Children’s Spanish and Adventure Camp, is only available at certain times during the year and is done at our campus in Playa Tamarindo, Costa Rica. We have two sessions, Winter and Summer. The Winter Camp is available the last week of December and the first week of January. It is 2 weeks only and is designed for families traveling over the holidays. During the Summer, we do the camp for a total of 9 weeks, from mid June through mid August. This camp has very limited availability, so early sign up is a must.
This is a unique day camp that combines fun, interactive and age appropriate Spanish lessons with adventure tours, cultural activities, exchanges with local children, crafts, sports and lunch. It is meant for families who plan to take a vacation to Costa Rica, but want their children to get more out of the experience than sitting by the hotel pool. Each day, Monday through Friday, parents drop their children off at the camp's beachfront headquarters at 8am and then pick them up again at 2pm. Parents can take Spanish classes themselves, work remotely or just hang out and do adult stuff. During the time that the children are in our camp they will have at least 2 hours of structured Spanish lessons (dependent upon age), mid morning snack, lunch and at least one other focus activity for the day. These activities range from adventure tours to soccer matches, surf lessons, field trips, beach time or visits with local school children. It is a fun and educational way to spend a vacation. |
