Making Mistakes

 

When learning a new language, plan on making many mistakes.   Albert Einstein said, “Only the one who does not question is safe from making a mistake.” In the process of learning, you make mistakes and get things wrong. No one has ever learned without making mistakes. Given that making mistakes is both inevitable and necessary, it’s OK to make mistakes when learning a new language. When speaking a new language, you’re going to make mistakes and that’s OK. If you can reduce your fear of making mistakes, you will undoubtedly learn better. The willingness to make mistakes is an important element in learning.

Fisher Hill has two series for learning English for Spanish-speaking teens and adults. One series provides a whole language approach and the other program provides a very systematic, structured approach for learning how to read and write in English.

The whole language approach series is called English for the Spanish Speaker. This is a four workbook series. It is for Spanish speakers who know how to read and write Spanish. Each book in the series has eight lessons. In Books 1 and 2, the lessons are about every day activities. In Books 3 and 4, four lessons are about every day activities and the other four are about United States history or government. The print in the workbooks is large. The reading level in Book 1 is at the first and second grade level. The books get progressively more difficult. The reading level for Book 4 is at the fourth grade reading level. Each lesson begins with a vocabulary list, then a conversation, story, activity pages, and finally an answer key. The lessons are bilingual with the word lists, conversations, and stories presented in Spanish and English. The directions for the activity pages are in Spanish but the activities are in English. There are two dictionaries at the back of each workbook: a Spanish dictionary and an English dictionary. There is a CD available for each workbook so the student can listen to the vocabulary lists, conversations and stories in English.

The program that provides a very systematic, structured approach to learning how to read and write in English is a four series literacy program. How does this literacy program work? Each of the four series has six volumes. Each volume is a workbook. These four series can be used in conjunction with each other. The very first book to use would be English Reading and Spelling for the Spanish Speaker Book 1. This series introduces students to reading in English. The series uses a very systematic, explicit approach to teaching the forty-four speech sounds used in the English language. After completing English Reading and Spelling for the Spanish Speaker Book 1, students are ready to practice their beginning reading skills by using English Reading Comprehension for the Spanish Speaker Book 1. They can also begin practicing writing by using English Writing Composition for the Spanish Speaker Book 1. English Vocabulary for the Spanish Speaker Book 1 reviews the vocabulary presented in English Reading and Spelling for the Spanish Speaker Book 1. After completing the Book Ones in the series, students can begin the Book Twos. The four series, each with six workbooks, were written to be used together. By using the four series together, students get a good foundation in English literacy.

Adults and teens like our workbooks because the pace is reasonable, print is large, directions are in Spanish, there’s lots of pictures but the content is for adults. Teachers like our books because everything is ready to go! There’s an answer key at the the end of each lesson and an English translation of the Spanish directions at the end of each book.

                                                         

Visit our website at www.Fisher-Hill.com to learn more about our English workbooks for Spanish-speaking teens and adults.