I'm failing my kids with Foreign Language.....

[hmsch4me]

I have a 7th & 8th grader this year who had 2 years of Latin (though we didn't get far in either program) and my 7th grader is doing Rosetta Stone French (after switching from Galore Park). My 8th grader is focusing on English spelling and grammar instead (needed here). We've not made it through a complete program and I feel like I've failed them in this area. I can honestly say that it has been my issue in having a really difficult time learning this myself. Foreign Language is not my thing and I struggle with it a lot.

Next year my 8th grader will be taking Spanish from a homeschool high school he'll be attending, but not sure if I should continue French with my 7th grader (not being confident I can walk her through some if it) or move on to something like word root study, doing a FL in high school with someone else. Any thoughts?

[8FillTheHeart]

No help, simply an "I understand!" We lived in Brazil and I knew very few people that spoke English....my dh and older kids were fluent in Portuguese.....I had to rely on my oldest to be my translator. :(

I have been trying to learn French this yr with my kids.....we have used Galore Park, RS, First Start French, and Breaking the Barrier. The problem.....they are all better at it than me!!

Honestly, it won't harm your kids if they haven't studied a foreign language prior to high school. That is probably the norm. I am trying to decide what to do myself. My 8th grader will be taking French online next yr for sure. I think I will be switching to Latin next yr with my younger kids (than I don't care if we pronounce the words wrong.)

[Sue G in PA]

I look back to my foreign language studies and I didn't take ANY for. lang. until 8th grade, 2 yrs. of it in hs and then didn't even use it until clge. I went abroad to Spain and that is where I picked up most of my Spanish. I decided to make span. my minor b/c I had the credits. It's nice to know a language, but unless your chosen field requires you know it...it's just that...nice to know! My dd11 has taken an interest in Spanish so I've started her studies now (6th grade). My younger boys could care less about it so I'm not pushing it. I fight them on so many aspects of schooling...why pick another battle now worth fighting? JMNSHO! If they WANT to learn a language..by all means go for it and stick with it (they'll stick w/ it even if you don't!). If not...wait until hs when they can be more independent and do it w/out you, KWIM? Just my .02. Others may disagree.

[Beth in Central TX]

I don't think you've failed your kids. You did the best you could, and now your 8th grader will be taking Spanish from a homeschool high school. Outsourcing foreign language is quite common, and I even keep this in mind as my boys move further and further into Latin. Actually, if they decide they want to do a modern foreign language in high school, I will outsource that subject.

DH and I really wanted to teach our boys Latin and Greek. I started to teach both subjects, but quickly realized that Greek was not for me. I couldn't for the life of me memorize the alphabet, let alone the sounds. I painfully taught my boys the Greek alphabet with the teacher guide right in front of me, and they picked it up very easily. I was done with Greek though. DH really wanted the boys to learn and there are no outsourcing options where we live, so he decided to teach Greek in our school. This has worked out well, but if DH hadn't stepped up to teach, I would have dropped Greek in a heartbeat with no regrets. We (homeschool moms or dads) can only do so much as go through our homeschool journey.