• Jul. 21, 2008
Why Should You Choose Spanish For Your Homeschooled Children?

     It’s a blessing to homeschool your children.  Teaching your children at home brings the family closer together.  Les than one generation ago homeschooling was virtually unknown as a way to educate your kids and keep them away from the dangers of public schools.  On the other hand it can be challenging to teach a second language especially if you don’t know one yourself

      Learning Spanish will help prepare your children for their high school language credits and many colleges look for language credits.  Here are some practical reasons to choose Spanish for your child’s language credit.

      Spanish is much easier to learn because the basic building blocks are straightforward.  You can have meaningful communication in Spanish after only a few lessons.  At the high school level, more than 95% percent of my fellow students chose Spanish to meet the foreign language requirement, according to internet research.

      Employment opportunities are multiplied by having Spanish as a second language.  Adding this skill to your child’s resume when they start working will give them preference over other job applicants.  Employers like hiring people with diversity in their backgrounds and the initiative to reach out to others.

      There are more opportunities in America to use Spanish in the U.S. workforce than any other language.  Just a few professions where Spanish is a necessity include Police Officers, EMS, Doctors and Nurses, Teachers, Grocers, and Sales Personnel.

      Spanish is considered an official language on four continents and is of historical importance elsewhere.  From Spain in Europe to the Philippines , many countries in Africa , all over the USA, Mexico, Central America and nearly all of South America. It is, also an official United Nations language.

      “Ethnologue: Languages of the World” is a web and print publication of SIL International, a Christian linguistic service organization which studies lesser-known languages.  In 2005, Ethnologue calculated 322 million people around the globe speak Spanish as their native language.

      “Encarta” by Microsoft came to the same conclusion as Ethnologue about native Spanish speakers.  But they also found that an additional 100 million people who speak Spanish as a second language.

      With these statistics Spanish is ranked as the second most common language spoken in the world making English the third most spoken language.

      Make sure your child takes part in choosing the language he/she studies.  Children should not be “assigned” to a foreign language class.  Why?  Pressuring children will back fire on you.  Just like with music lessons, unless your child enjoys the language they bock and complain when it comes time to study.

      Show them how Spanish is already a part of English with words like taco, burrito, the game Uno.  You could even show them a Spanish article written for kids from the internet where they can pick out words that are similar to English words.  These gestures will show your child how easy it will be to learn Spanish.

      Children love secrets.  Perhaps that's one reason children sometimes speak in Pig Latin or devise secret codes of their own.  Tell them if they learn Spanish, they can use the language to create an exclusive club where Spanish has to be spoken to enter.

      Native Spanish speakers tend to be more relaxed and understanding about Americans who speak incorrect Spanish.  Incorrect Spanish is easy to understand.  Last year when my church group went on a trip to Guadalupe, Chihuahua, Mexico, we had an American Mexican that was helping us translate.

      My friend, Rosa, was the most experienced Spanish speaker in the group.  Rosa was the one who made the biggest language mistake.  She meant to say to two Pastors and a little girl, “tengo caliente.”  In Spanish that means, “I am hot.”  The funny thing is that kind of hot means she was standing too close to her husband.

      Rosa thought the Pastors looked at her kind of funny.  However, when the little girl’s eyes got really big and she cried out to her mother for help, our “translator” knew she was in trouble.  The mother of the little girl almost fell off her chair with laughter when she heard what Rosa said.  Of course when the rest of us heard what happened we didn’t let Rosa forget about it the rest of the trip.

      Now that Spanish is your language of choice, consider a new learning environment that will excite and encourage your child to learn.  Online teleclasses incorporate new computer skills as well as provide a fun interactive venue for your children.  This is a great way to keep Spanish fresh and inviting for your children.

 Michelle Rothwell has been instructing Spanish classes since 1998.  She is the Founder and Owner of Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish.  The most comprehensive Biblically-based Spanish text.

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• Jul. 21, 2008
How to Make a Piñata.

For your next birthday party why not make your own piñata? It's quick and easy to do. Piñatas are an easy craft for kids and parents alike.



Making a piñata can be a fun craft that gets the whole family involved. You can make one for any theme or holiday. Of course a piñata at a birthday party is always welcome. Make an animal shaped one for a farm themed party, a big oval shaped one all different colors, a car shape or even one that looks like you! The choices are endless - only limited to your imagination.

What you need:
• 1 large balloon
• newspaper
• large bowl
• water
• flour

What you do:

1. First you need to make the paper maché. Tear the newspaper into 1 inch strips. Do not cut it. Lay a ruler along the paper if you need help tearing straight. The strips can be different lengths. You will need a lot of paper strips.

2. Now make the paste. Pour 1 cup of warm water into the bowl. Add about 1 cup of flour to 1 cup of water and mix until there are no lumps. Let set for a few minutes to make sure all the flour is dissolved.

3. Spread some of the newspaper onto the table. Working with paper maché is messy. Now blow up your balloon and tie the end.

4. Dip a strip of paper into the paper maché. Run the strips through your finger to remove excess paste. Place the strip of paper on the balloon. It helps to have a friend help you. One of you can hold the balloon while the other puts the strips in place.

5. Repeat with the strips of paper until you have the balloon covered except for the very top. You need this area to put the candy into. When you have a single layer of paper covering the balloon repeat the whole process with more strips going in the opposite direction, The more layers of newspaper you add the harder it will be to break the piñata.

6. Let the balloon dry completely. When the paper is dry, puncture the balloon and pull it out. Place your candy inside the piñata. Always use wrapped candy.

7. Cover the opening with small strips of paper taped in place. Then cover that with paper maché strips. At this time tape and paper maché down the ends of the string for hanging. Cover the ends with several layers so it is good and strong.

8. Now paint your piñata. You can make paper maché ears or a nose. Build it up however you like. You can also cover it with tissue paper.

In the meantime, feliz cumpleaños (happy birthday),
Michelle

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• May. 7, 2008
Missions Trip 2008

DESTINATION: Guadalupe, Chihuahua, Mexico
PURPOSE: Help build an orphanage for the Lord's children.

"I wanna be Your hands
I wanna be Your feet
I'll go where You send me..."
by Newsboys

This song is the cry of my heart this year as we are preparing to take a group to do the work of the Lord.

We will be teaming up with Tapestries of Life Ministries a non-denominational 501(c) 3 corporation. Please visit their site to see what it's all about.

In order to go on this trip we have to do many fundraisers. So far the most profitable one we've found is selling fundraiser cards for Pizza Hut. A person sells these cards for $10 keeping $6 then sending Pizza Hut $4. We have 60 days to sell the cards and whatever we don't sell we just return. The good part about this fundraiser is we don't have to pay Pizza Hut up front. The customers get 12 medium pizzas for $10. This deal is awesome for the customer because if they use the card only once they've made their money off of it. The cards are good for up to one year. The only catch for the customer is they must buy a large pizza in order to use their medium pizza card.

If you want details on holding your own fundraiser, contact your local Pizza Hut restaurant. Each franchise has fundraising options that are just for their stores.

Dios Te bendiga,

Michelle

 

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• May. 6, 2008
Buñuelos - A Traditional Desert

One of the things you learn when you live in a Hispanic area, when you learn to eat and love their food, is you learn to cook like the natives cook.  I thought I would share with you a traditional Mexican desert.  A couple years ago one of my African American friends and I made some buñuelos from a recipe book that I had.  After my Latina friend ate them she exclaimed they were just like her Mother's recipe.

This traditional desert was eaten by my friends' family at Christmas time.  Well I won't make you wait that long for the recipe but I will probably remind you about this recipe as the season gets closer.

Here's the recipe and instructions:

BUÑUELOS

 
7 cups regular all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 ½ tablespoons sugar

¼ cup (1/8 lb.) butter

2 eggs

½ cup milk

Salad oil for deep frying

Sugar or glazed coatings (see following instructions)

 
Sift 3 1/3 cups of the flour, measure, and then sift again with salt, baking powder, and sugar into a bowl.  Add butter and rub into the flour mixture with your fingertips until mixture is like coarse meal.  Beat eggs lightly with milk, then pour into flour mixture and stir until dough forms a solid mass.  If the dough is sticky, using the remaining flour gradually add to the flour mixture until the stickiness is gone.  If you don’t use all 7 cups of flour, that’s okay.  Turn dough out onto board, and knead for 2 minutes or until smooth. Cut dough into balls the size of large marbles and let stand 15 minutes.

 
Roll each ball on a lightly floured board into a very thin pancake 4 inches in diameter.  Cut a hole in center with a thimble.  After you roll out the circles of dough, place them in a single layer on waxed paper until you are ready to cook.

 
Fry in hot deep fat (375 degrees) until puffed and golden brown, about 30 seconds on each side.  Drain on paper towels.  Use one or both of the following coatings.  Makes 6 dozen.

 
Sugar-Coated Buñuelos.  Mix 1 cup granulated sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon in a paper bag.  Reheat Buñuelos in a 250 degree oven for 5 minutes; then shake gently, one at a time, in bag to coat with sugar-cinnamon mixture.

 
Glazed Buñuelos.  Place ½ cup each granulated sugar, light brown sugar (firmly packed), and water in a frying pan.  Add 1 tablespoon butter, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1 tablespoon dark corn syrup.  Heat, stirring, until sugar melts, then boils rapidly for 1 to 2 minutes, or until two drops of syrup run together off spoon.  The glaze will still be thin syrup.

 
Remove from heat and cool for 1 minute; then place Buñuelos in pan, one at a time, and spoon over syrup until coated on both sides.  Drain on wire rack for 30 minutes.  The coating will be slightly tacky, but not drippy.  Makes enough to glaze about 20 Buñuelos.

¡Buen apetito!

Michelle Rothwell

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• May. 5, 2008
Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Throughout the United States and Mexico are hundreds if not thousands of celebrations going on right now for Cinco de Mayo (the 5th of May).  The biggest celebration of course is in Puebla, Mexico where the victory took place.  On May 5, 1862 the French were defeated in battle and Mexico got their freedom from the French.  This is not to be confused with THE Independence Day on September 16th, 1810 when Mexico declared itself independent of Spain.

The fight with France had to do with Mexico suspending payments of interest on debts they had with France.  Back in the day Mexico was hurting financially and the government was trying to cut costs to keep the budget balanced.  Does that sound like any other countries you know?

Some of the bigger celebrations can be found in Austin, TX; Chicago, IL; Denver, CO; Portland, OR; Reno, NV; St. Paul, MN; San Antonio, TX; San Diego, CA and more.  Some of the cities have sister cities like Portland for this special occasion.  Guadalajara is the city that is the sister of Portland.  Guadalajara sends musical groups like the Ballet Folklorico and the Mariachis.  This year there is a pavilion dedicated to artisans and other businesses from Guadalajara.

This is definitely a celebration you don't want to miss.  When you participate you will be immersed into the Mexican culture; the sites, sounds and smells.

While putting together this post I found a great site that has instructions for Cinco de Mayo crafts for kids.  These crafts can be made from items you already have at home.  Please visit Mail Just 4 Me Playground and your kids can learn how to make maracas, a serape, nachos, non-alcoholic sangria, and Mexican mosaics.  Have fun!

Well I think I've had enough celebrating for one day.

Buenas noches,
Michelle

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• May. 3, 2008
The Difference Between

As in all languages there are tricks to the trade.  In order to learn better we develop keys to our understanding.  In Spanish it isn't any different.  Today I want to share with you the difference between buenos dias, buenas tardes and buenas noches.

The nice part about most languages that have Latin as their "grandparent" is each language uses feminine and masculine differences.  Now it doesn't mean the feminine words are girly and the masculine ones are rough and tough.  Most times you would be able to tell the difference if they are masculine or feminine by their endings.

For instance, in Spanish if a word ends in "o" then it is considered masculine.  The difference for feminine is the words would end in "a".

Now plural words are the same way but with an "s" added to it.  The difference between masculine and feminine plural words are the feminine words will end in "as" and the masculine "os".

Aren't we having fun yet?!

What type of word is "buenos"?

I hope you said masculine because that's the right answer.

Buenos ends in "os" so it it masculine.

You can say the mornings are for the men.

Buenos dias.  Good morning.  Or good day.

With our trick to the trade, what type of word is "buenas"?

Ding!  Ding!  Ding!

We have a winner!  I know you said buenas is feminine.

You can say the afternoon and evening is for the women.

Buenas tardes.  Good afternoon.

Buenas noches.  Good evening.  Or good night.

Please don't get me wrong.  I'm not saying "lady of the evening".  We are a family blog so don't let your mind go there.  LOL!

Now you will remember to always say buenas noches (the right way) instead of buenos noches (the wrong way).

The difference between all three are very clear once you apply the keys.

Please let me know if this information has been helpful or not.  And, if you have other problem areas, let us know about them.  We are here to help make your Spanish learning easy and fun.

Adios, hasta luego,

Michelle Rothwell

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• Apr. 16, 2008
The Law Of The Garbage Truck

I hopped in a taxi and we took off for the airport. We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his breaks, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches! The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us. My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was really friendly.

So I asked, 'Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!' This is when my taxi driver taught me what I now call, 'The Law of the Garbage Truck.'

He explained that many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you.

Don't take it personally. Just smile, wave, wish them well and move on. Don't take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets.

The bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day.

Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so.....

'Love the people who treat you right. Pray for the ones who don't.'
You are the people who treat me right, so I wanted to share this with you. Thank you for being a part of my life.

Success... is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.

Good days give you happiness; bad days give you experiences; both are essential to life....

Vaya con Dios,
Michelle

 

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• Apr. 15, 2008
Children's Games from Across The Border

Sharing is how people grow.  Here we will share the children's games that you would find across the border.  Some of these games are similar to ours.  Plus there's some children's games that aren't. 

Today I would like to share with you a Mexican game called "Gallina Ciega" (Blind Chicken). This game is similar to our blind man's bluff.

You blind fold one person.

Turn that person around a couple of times as everyone says:

"Gallinita Ciega
Sí, tu quieres ver
a la que toques
la has de conocer."

"Blind Chicken
Yes, you want to see
who you touch
no one knows"

Once the "blind chicken" touched you and knew who you were, that person would then become the blind chicken.

My good friend from high school, Maritza shared this game with me. Maritza shared that when she was growing up they would play "house", "school" marbles and escondite (hide and seek).

Thanks, Maritza for sharing some of your childhood with us.

I encourage everyone to practice this childrens' game before you go with us on our mission trip. We will probably have the opportunity jugar (to play) with some of the children while we are there.

Buenos dias,
Michelle Rothwell, Founder

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• Apr. 14, 2008
Accents Can Give You Fits

Many times while learning a language it's hard to get the accent right while speaking. My question is how can you show the accent(s) when typing that particular language?

Diacritical marks - (1.) A mark, such as an accent, that is used in conjunction with a character to indicate phonetic value. (2.) Marks added to letters or symbols to distinguish it in some way, often indicating pronunciation. (3.) A diacritical mark or diacritic, also called an accent mark, is a small sign added to a letter to alter pronunciation or to distinguish between similar words. The term derives from Greek διακριτικός (diakritikos, "distinguishing").

Microsoft Windows® and Macintosh® have codes that you can type to have your accents inserted. Or like in the Word® program if you go under "Insert" then choose "Symbol" you can choose whatever language you are typing. A list of symbols will show up, click the one you want.

I personally like to do things on the fly and don't like to take the time to do all those steps. Plus I'm a numbers person so it is easy for me to memorize the keystrokes. The following list will give you the codes to use with Microsoft® products.

All Spanish questions start with an upside down question mark then ends with a right side up one. The code for the upside down question mark is 0191. So type holding down the (Alt) key the number 0191 and then hit (Enter). ¿ See even in HTML you can create anything you want.

Here are the rest:

(Alt)0161(Enter) = ¡ The exclamation mark is used like the question mark. Always upside down at the beginning of the sentence then right side up at the end.

(Alt)0209(Enter) = Ñ
(Alt)0241(Enter) = ñ

(Alt)0193(Enter) = Á
(Alt)0225(Enter) = á

(Alt)0201(Enter) = É
(Alt)0233(Enter) = é

(Alt)0205(Enter) = Í
(Alt)0237(Enter) = í

(Alt)0211(Enter) = Ó
(Alt)0243(Enter) = ó

(Alt)0218(Enter) = Ú
(Alt)0250(Enter) = ú

¡Aye carumba! That was a lot of work but in the end you will all be better off for it. If you have any questions, please feel free to post them here.

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• Apr. 13, 2008
Sunday A Day Of Rest

Genesis 2:2 (NASB)

"And by the seventh day God completed His work which He had done; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done."

Genesis 2:3 (NASB)

"Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made."

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• Apr. 12, 2008
Un-Tie Your Tongue: Spanish Pronunciation Made Easy

People get tongue tied when they are learning a new language. They might even wear out their tongues because of the new muscles  they are using.

We can help you un-tie your tongue so you can have better Spanish pronunciation.  Please keep in mind that pronunciations can be different from country to country as well as from city to city.  Most of the pronunciations you will see Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish working with are what we call border Spanish.

Here's an easy pronunciation guide:

A as in the word STAR

E as in the word TEST
If there is more than one E in a word the first one sounds like test the second
one sounds like hey.

I as in the word MACHINE

O as in the word OBEY

U as in the word SPOOL

B as in the word BEST
But a letter B between vowels is pronounced very softly.

C as in the word CAKE Before A, O, U is pronounced K.
C Before E, I is pronounced S.

CC as in the word ACCENT is pronounced X.

CH as in the word CHIN

D as in the word DOT
However, when the D is the last letter of a word or when it appears between vowels it is pronounced as a soft TH.

G as in the word GO Before A, O, U.
G as in the word HAT Before E, I.

H is always silent.

J as in the word HAT

L as in the word LIGHT

LL as in the word YEAR

N as in the word CANYON is pronounced NY.

R trilled like you're playing with a toy car and making the noise for it.
RR strongly trilled.

T as in the word ATTEND

Y as in the word YEAR
But when the Y stands alone it is pronounced EE as in NEED.

Z as in the word SO

SPECIAL GROUPS
GUE as in the word GUESS
GUI as in the word GEESE
QUE as in the word KETTLE
QUI as in the word KEEL

These pronunciations will get you on the right track for speaking like a native.

To keep these lessons going, visit Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish before the classes fill up.

Hasta luego (See you later),
Michelle

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