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I stumbled across a video on YouTube a few weeks ago by Evan Edinger wherein he talked about how he learned German using Duolingo (https://duolingo.com).

If you’re not familiar with Duolingo, it’s a website and app that helps you learn to speak a foreign language through gamification. It’s also free. It uses a very novel approach that I’ve previously discussed on the podcast (https://thewiredhomeschool.com/174).

I though I’d pull out some of the points in his video and share them with you if you’re thinking about using Duolingo to teach your kids a foreign language.

How to Use Duolingo to Learn a Foreign Language

1. Be Consistent

Consistency is very important when learning anything. With a foreign language it’s especially important. Taking time every day to learn something new and become familiar and comfortable with that language will go a long way.

2. Competition As Motivator

Some people are natural competitors. The creators of Duolingo understand that and they provided a little friendly competition withing their application and website to motivate people to learn a new language.

3. Don’t Rush

Spend at least 10 minutes every day with the website or app. Occasionally you’ll want to use it for up to an hour. If you just open the app and match a few words you’re not going to learn a foreign language. You really need to spend as much time as possible learning the language.

4. Use the Website More Than the App

The website has a much richer experience than the app. It requires you to recall more than just vocabulary. In addition, there are forums and discussion for each question you encounter so you can understand why your answer if right or wrong.

More immersive.

5. Engage With Your Foreign Language

As you progress through Duolingo, you’ll want to engage with the language in a natural way. One way to do that is to read books (simple ones) or blogs, watch TV shows, or listen to podcasts.

I hope this has helped you and you’re ready to learn a new language. That’s right, you should learn the language with your kids so that they can practice speaking it!

You can see the original video below.

Big Announcement

I’m teaming up with BecauseFamily (http://becausefamily.org) present workshops to churches, homeschool groups, and schools that will inspire and equip, parents, teachers, and teens to responsibly use technology.

I’ll be primarily providing these workshops in the northeast. For more information, please visit BecauseFamily.org (http://becausefamily.org).

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. In some cases, I may have been given a free sample of a product to review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsement