A Love of Language

Learning new languages is a fun and educational way for children to explore a new culture, communicate with different people, and develop an appreciation towards the world around them. We talked to some of our favorite language programs in the city to find out how they can help kids learn a new language and fully immerse them into a new culture all without leaving New York in 2018.

China Institute

“This year, China Institute will be offering two new adult programs. We are offering a new course called Reading Modern Chinese Literature to advanced readers. Starting in January, we will be offering a new studio class called Chinese Go. Chinese Go is a strategy board game in which two players use stones to surround more territory than their opponent.” -Waling Zhang, associate director of education, language, and culture classes at China Institute

French Institute Alliance Française

“The French Institute Alliance Française is thrilled to offer local kids and their families special Fun in French winter programs. During this fun-filled week, kids will be immersed in French as they create, sing, dance, and explore the best in French culture through arts and crafts, dance, cooking and many more kid-friendly activities. The themes that will be featured in the program include Arctic Animals, Winter Wonderland, and Bundle Up and Play.” -Edith Boncompain, Vice President of Education at French Institute Alliance Française (FIAF)

!HOLA! A Playgroup In Spanish

“At !HOLA! A Playgroup, we continue to create programs that will get kids excited to learn the Spanish language! We design programs to provide children with a great introduction to Spanish or boost their Spanish skills. Our programs are combined with teacher led instruction and unstructured play and fun. This year we are offering a 16-week winter session at apple seeds in the Flatiron district and are proud to welcome back Miss Iliana, our educator and expert face painter who will be running two of the programs. The goal of our programs are to teach kids the proper way to speak Spanish using a wide range of vocabulary and to help them learn the correct use of phonetics, improve their motor skills as well as their social and artistic capabilities. ¡HOLA! is also renewing its Exploring Cultures Program which is dedicated to teach kids about the richness and traditions of Spain and Latin America with an array of lovely activities. It will be available for children ages 6 and up who have had some exposure to Spanish.” -Veronica Braun, founder and director of !HOLA! A Playgroup in Spanish

HudsonWay Immersion School

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“This year at the HudsonWay Immersion School we will begin our Mandarin Immersion Program that will cater to kids as young as 2 and continues through age 11. This program will allow kids to achieve high levels of language proficiency in Mandarin and maximizes cognitive development. Our program is built on a foundation of 12 years of learning, is led by experienced immersion educators, and has achieved academic results that surpass that of monolingual students in both gifted & talented, and independent schools. Our Mandarin Immersion Program supports children who may not speak Mandarin at home and provides them with a supportive and nurturing environment and best practices that maximize the learning at school. -Sharon Huang, founder
of HudsonWay Immersion School

Lycée Français de New York

“This year, the Lycée Français de New York will host its 19th annual Festival of French Theater on January 26-27. This two-day celebration and competition is a unique opportunity for 400 students, ages 10-18, from schools across the US, Canada, and France who will perform French language plays. This year, students will be given a chance to create and perform their own plays or presentation on the theme of nature. It takes an enormous amount of courage for students to generate a script, learn lines, delve into French language and act in French, whether they are learning it in the classroom for the first time or have grown up speaking it. Every year, the festival brings a sense of discovery, surprise, and incredible energy that fills the Lycée’s theater!” -Elisabeth King, director of communications at Lycée Français de New York

Planet Han

“Planet Han is adding a new class for the spring semester called Chinese Preschool Prep. This program is a condensed version of our preschool geared towards 20-30 months old. Our new 90 minute long playgroup program allows children to sing, cook, and play—all in Mandarin! We cover fundamental themes in our program that include colors, family, the human body, weather, seasons, and so much more that our staff will prepare children for Chinese preschool.” -Irene Coeny, director of Planet Han

Keep The Conversation Going

Here are more of our favorite language programs for kids in NYC!

Avenues, The World School, avenues.org
Billingual Birdies, bilingualbirdies.com
China Institute, chinainstitute.org
French Institute Alliance Française, fiaf.org
German American School, german-american-school.org
!HOLA! A Playgroup in Spanish, holaplaygroup.com
HudsonWay Immersion School, hwis.org
I’m Billingual, imbilingual.com
La Scuola d’Italia Gugliemo Marconi, lascuoladitalia.org
Lycée Français de New York, lfny.org
Manhattan Mandarin, nycmandarin.com
Planet Han, planethanchinese.com
Speech Within Reach, speechwithinreachnyc.weebly.com
TLB Music, tlbmusic.com