As they progress in English they will still have to deal with the irregularities of this language. However, they will have learned the consonants by applying them to completely foolproof regular vowels.

I said I would be brief. I am very convinced of the value of this method. I have no scientific proof, just intuition and my own experience. To work, you have to teach the child to read the alphabet in Spanish BEFORE they begin to learn in English. If they are already learning in English, it will confuse them. But if you get there FIRST, you will do them a great favor! to see a bunch of alphabet resources for you to choose from.

Toys and Games: Of lesser importance but still a possible beakthrough for certain children could be the use of toys and games (board games and others) as a way to sneak in some fun and variety into the learning process. See if Spanish Educational Toys would be useful for your child.

Computer Programs for kids If you or your child is computer savvy or if you want to combine math or science with Spanish you may want to check out the Educational Software for Children in Spanish: Reader Rabbit, Disney, Jump Start and many more...

Some First Recitations

A long time, universal, traditional favorite is "Pinpón"

Pinpón es un muñeco,
muy guapo y de cartón

(the kids smile for "muy guapo",
and act stiff for "de cartón")

se lava la carita
(the kids make the gesture of washing their face)

con agua y con jabón.

Pinpón dame la mano,
(the kids reach out their hand)

que quiero ser tu amigo
(the kids make the gesture of shaking hands)

¡Pinpón, Pinpón, Pinpón!

Translation:

Pinpón is a doll,
a handsome cardboard doll.
He washes his face
with soap and water.

Pinpón give me your hand,
I want to be your friend.
Pinpón, Pinpón, Pinpón!

Another favorite of our kids was "La Mar Estaba Serena"

Kids like this one because it is easy to follow. The repetition helps them learn the relation between noun and adjective as well as the vowels in Spanish.

The same verse is repeated by using all of the vowels in turn. It begins by the parent singing, "La mar estaba serena; serena estaba la mar". (The sea was calm; calm was the sea.) Then either the parent or one of several children taking turns shouts out, "¡con A!", meaning, "Let's sing it with all "a" sounds"! And you sing, "La mar astaba sarana; sarana astaba la mar."

"¡con e"! "Le mer estebe serene; serene estebe le mer".

"¡con i"! "Li mir istibi sirini; sirini istibi li mir".

"¡con o"! "Lo mor ostobo sorono; sorono ostobo lo mor".

"¡con u"! "Lu mur ustubu surunu; surunu estubu lu mur.

You'll find the kids really like this one.

English (sic!) As A Second Language

It might be interesting to do some "reverse engineering" and look at the world of those Spanish Speakers who want to learn English. Check out www.leerespoder.com

Reading in Spanish for the Parents

If you want to keep up your Spanish. Try to keep reading books in Spanish on a wide range of topics, la familia, la salud, los negocios, el niño, el adolescente, etc. A good source is http://www.bookslibros.com/LibrosEnEspanol.php

Good Luck! Your Kids will thank you!

About The Author Frank Gerace Ph.D has lived and worked in Latin America on Educational and Communication Projects. He currently teaches English in New York City at La Guardia College/CUNY. He provides help to parents wanting to have their children speak Spanish at: http://www.bookslibros.com/SpanishForNinos.htm.