If you have EAL children in your setting you may wonder whether introducing Spanish could be confusing, or whether children need a good understanding of English before they can enjoy Mini Lingos.
They don’t.
Mini Lingos uses music, repetition, actions, movement and props, giving children lots of different ways to watch, listen and take part, without needing to understand lots of spoken English.
Mini Lingos classes use much more than words:
One of the benefits of our Mini Lingos Licensed programme is that classes are delivered by your own nursery team.
Your Mini Lingos Champion already knows the children in their care - their personalities, interests, confidence levels and individual needs. This means they can adapt how children are encouraged to participate rather than expecting every child to respond in exactly the same way.
A child might sing along, copy an action, shake a maraca, point to a prop, dance to the music or simply watch and listen.
When delivering Mini Lingos to children who are learning English as an Additional Language, we encourage Champions to:
The aim isn’t for every child to participate in exactly the same way. It’s to create an enjoyable experience in which every child has the opportunity to be included.
We wouldn’t recommend routinely excluding children from Mini Lingos simply because they are learning English as an Additional Language.
Just as with any nursery activity, practitioners should use their knowledge of the individual child. Some children may jump straight in, while others may prefer to watch and become familiar with the songs before participating more actively.
Mini Lingos gives children different ways to engage, so your Champion can meet them where they are.
Mini Lingos isn’t intended to replace the important work your nursery already does to support children’s home languages and their development of English.
It simply gives children an additional opportunity to experience another language through music, movement, repetition, actions and fun.
Want to see how Mini Lingos could work in your nursery?
Book a free demo and we’ll show you how Mini Lingos Licensed works, take you inside the portal and answer any questions you have.
