FLES Resources

Elementary Online Resources for Students

• Online dictionary: www.wordreference.com
• Duolingo: A fun way to learn and practice Spanish on your own. You can download the free app to a phone, or play online. www.duolingo.com
• Arlington Public Library Learn Languages website: Learn Language. Arlington Public Library offers various ways of learning and practicing language, especially for children.
• BBC Languages website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages. This site has resources, review games, and teaching videos in more than 30 languages.
• Brain Pop websites: en español: http://esp.brainpop.com. These sites have videos, quizzes and reading material in Spanish and French across subject areas.
• Ideas for studying Spanish over the summer: This document, created by Leni Bronstein, Spanish Teacher at Williamsburg Middle School, has many ideas to keep up your Spanish skills during the summer–or anytime.

Resources for Parents on Language Learning

• Center for Applied Linguistics website:http://www.cal.org/earlylang/benefits/benefits_of_being_bilingual.html. This site contains articles about benefits of learning another language and other websites and resources that apply to language learning.
• American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages website: http://www.actfl.org/advocacy/discover-languages/advocacy/discover-languages/what-the-research-shows/references-cognitive#improves_cognitive. This website has many articles to show cognitive improvements as a result of learning another language.
• Brain benefits of being bilingual article: http://todayhealth.today.com/_news/2013/01/08/16416451-being-bilingual-can-keep-your-brain-young-sharp?lite. This article demonstrates some of the ways that speaking another language can have positive effects on the brain.
• New York Times article on bilingualism: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/18/opinion/sunday/the-benefits-of-bilingualism.html?_r=3&. This article speaks to the impact that speaking another language can have on long-term intelligence.
• The Atlantic Times article on brain benefits for multilinguals: http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/10/more-languages-better-brain/381193/?single_page=true&google_editors_picks=true.