"But, why does it take so long just to say ‘please’ in French?" the girl asked. "Why are there so many words?"
"She’s right, s’il vous plait is longer than please," Katrien Christie, AS ‘92PhD, assistant professor of foreign languages and literatures, says with a laugh. "The French language is a little wordy. She was very perceptive."
The student wasn’t a college freshman, but rather one of many Newark area elementary-school students who regularly take advantage of Christie’s FLY (Foreign Languages for Youngsters) program.
"It’s a pilot program that is fun and playful," Christie says.
The program, for children in grades 1 through 3, is sponsored by the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures and by the Alliance Française of Wilmington.
In its third year, the program gives children the opportunity to start learning a foreign language at a young age. Basic communication skills in a foreign language are learned through a variety of fun and stimulating listening, speaking, reading and writing activities.
Teachers are from UD’s foreign languages and literatures faculty and have been trained in teaching foreign languages to youngsters. Classes are held on Saturday mornings in the fall and spring semesters. Cost is $150 for tuition and $25 for materials for 12 classes.
"Most experts agree that the earlier a child is introduced to a second language, the greater the chances are that the child will become truly proficient in the language and will develop a more native-like pronunciation," Christie says.
Learning languages early is one of Christie’s areas of research. She and the other teachers in FLY also enjoy watching their young students learn.
"At the end of the semester they always put on a performance to show what they have learned," Christie says. "Last year, they chose Star Wars as their theme, and one of the little girls dressed as R2D2. They had a big thing around her and wheeled her around on a skateboard. It was hilarious."
One young student whose father is an airline pilot has flown with him to Paris to practice her language skills. Another, who finished the FLY program, is now helping teach a class for seventh graders at a local school.
For more information, contact Christie at telephone (302) 831-3389 or by e-mail at <katrien@udel.edu>.