Spanish for the Real World/ French for the Real World

Although not available in a wide range of languages, these two programs from Knowledge Adventure are fantastic. If you have kids who are trying to learn French or Spanish, you will want to pick up a copy of one of these programs. These are especially good for a child who has tried one of the more 'serious' language programs, and been turned off. There is a lot of fun, excitement, action and involvement here. This would be particularly good for a child who is studying a language at home or school along

with the program. After one year of Spanish in a homeschool co-op, I found this program was very valuable.

Like the older program (which has since disappeared) Who Is Oscar Lake?, this program involves your child in a story line. This is a complete immersion program, more so than many others. It will take a lot of exposure to the program for your kids to learn phrases and sentences. They will, however, begin understanding the language rather quickly. You won't find as much speaking practice here as you will in other programs. There is really only one area where your child is encouraged to speak into the microphone.

You have been invited to participate in a road rally. There are four road rallies which must be completed. Each rally (or level) contains checkpoints along the way. It is your job to finish the race in first place. If you finish first, you will progress to the next rally. You finish first by taking shortcuts (verb practice activities,) and beating the other drivers at fast past 'dashboard games.'

As you travel along the road, other drivers will pull up alongside you and challenge you to a game. These are basically concentration games. Each game will teach you a different category of words, such as fruit, colors etc. If you complete the concentration game, you will be challenged to a fast paced version of the same game. Here you must find the matching words and pictures as they flash randomly on the screen. This takes concentration and patience. This game may overwhelm a younger child who gets frustrated easily, or has visual difficulties.

You will find yourself at other checkpoints along the way. At the market, you must help vendors get the items then need. They are willing to trade items, and you must use your problem solving skills to complete the necessary trades and purchases. At another stop you must earn your fortune from a fortune teller. In order to do this, you must play a version of twenty questions with him. Here you only have five questions to narrow down your choices and find what he is thinking of. Other activities involve scheduling a meeting with an actress, and learning how to deal with the telephone.

When you near the finish line, you must complete a conversation activity. Many of the words will still be foreign to you, but their objective is to get you to listen and learn through trial and error. This is the only spot where you have the option of recording your voice as you take on the role of one of the dialogue characters. One last matching race and you have made it to the finish line. You can now move on to the next level.

This program will appeal to many families who have found other language programs too 'stuffy.' This one is a lot of fun. The learning may be a bit slower, and take more exposure, but your kids will be willing to stick with this one.

Grading for Real World Language Products:

Educational Value: 4

Entertainment Value: 4

Replay Value: 3 1/2

Ages: Any first year student, but your child must be able to read

Buy Spanish for the Real World at Amazon!