As fellow Ontarians will know, French is part of the Grade 4 curriculum "back home". As such, we've been trying to work French into the boys' schooling time here in BsAs this year. It's especially important because this is their first year of French, so I don't want them to fall behind.
As fate would have it, a close relative of a friend from Canada happens to be living and studying here in BsAs this year, and for a small fee, agreed to take on the boys' French tutalege (sp?) once a week for a few hours.
The once a week part is going great; the practice and homework in between sessions, not so much!!
Surely, I thought, there must be an app for this sort of thing... ?? Mind Snacks is the answer I was looking for!
A Comprehensive Overview
Mind Snacks covers vocabulary, spelling and grammar, which was important for me. I didn't want just another word-building, flashcard-style app; I wanted something that would allow Alex and Simon to build sentences and learn the language in context, and have fun doing it. Mind Snacks appears to fit the bill, all while tracking player progress and differentiating for the needs of the user.
The French app includes fifty lessons covering everything from numbers and colours, days of the week, months of the year and seasons to greetings, time and date, the weather, possessives, using "etre" and "avoir", and more.
As fate would have it, a close relative of a friend from Canada happens to be living and studying here in BsAs this year, and for a small fee, agreed to take on the boys' French tutalege (sp?) once a week for a few hours.
The once a week part is going great; the practice and homework in between sessions, not so much!!
Surely, I thought, there must be an app for this sort of thing... ?? Mind Snacks is the answer I was looking for!
A Comprehensive Overview
Mind Snacks covers vocabulary, spelling and grammar, which was important for me. I didn't want just another word-building, flashcard-style app; I wanted something that would allow Alex and Simon to build sentences and learn the language in context, and have fun doing it. Mind Snacks appears to fit the bill, all while tracking player progress and differentiating for the needs of the user.
The French app includes fifty lessons covering everything from numbers and colours, days of the week, months of the year and seasons to greetings, time and date, the weather, possessives, using "etre" and "avoir", and more.
Personal Accounts
After initially downloading "Learn French with Mind Snacks", I discovered I had to create an account. I'll be honest; I was not crazy about this, because I don't like to give out my email, plus I think it's a hassle -- I'm a bit lazy that way -- I just want "plug and play"!
BUT... am I ever glad I took the time to sign up for an account and learn more about this app. Here's why:
High Challenge/Low Threat
First of all, this is no mickeymouse app; it looks and is fun -- there are several games to play and levels to unlock, but it's set up in such a way that provides just the right amount of challenge without too much frustration for the player.
Games aren't all available at once; players must acheive a certain level of success before new games are available to them. This encourages students to continue to learn.
A Customized Language Learning Experience
After initially downloading "Learn French with Mind Snacks", I discovered I had to create an account. I'll be honest; I was not crazy about this, because I don't like to give out my email, plus I think it's a hassle -- I'm a bit lazy that way -- I just want "plug and play"!
BUT... am I ever glad I took the time to sign up for an account and learn more about this app. Here's why:
High Challenge/Low Threat
First of all, this is no mickeymouse app; it looks and is fun -- there are several games to play and levels to unlock, but it's set up in such a way that provides just the right amount of challenge without too much frustration for the player.
Games aren't all available at once; players must acheive a certain level of success before new games are available to them. This encourages students to continue to learn.
A Customized Language Learning Experience
Having the app linked to a specific person's profile allows the program to "remember" that person, and give her the lessons she needs, when she needs them. The app tracks progress, and offers challenges and choices of quests to the player.
Teachers and parents in the know will appreciate the brain-compatible, differentiated approach that Mind Snacks provides.
More than just French
Creating a Mind Snacks account allowed me to discover that languages other than French are also offered. (I sure wish I had known about this before we left for Argentina... would have loved to have co-learned some more Spanish with the boys in a fun, engaging manner before we arrived!)
Teachers and parents in the know will appreciate the brain-compatible, differentiated approach that Mind Snacks provides.
More than just French
Creating a Mind Snacks account allowed me to discover that languages other than French are also offered. (I sure wish I had known about this before we left for Argentina... would have loved to have co-learned some more Spanish with the boys in a fun, engaging manner before we arrived!)
We'll definitely continue on with French, but I also intend to use Mind Snacks to bring the boys' German back up to speed -- during our year in South America, we've skipped the Saturday morning German School classes!!
Customer Service
Perhaps the most compelling reason to sign up for a Mind Snacks account is the outstanding customer service. In addition to having an easy-to-navigate website with a comprehensive helpdesk section, Mindsnacks is easy to contact via email, and someone gets back to you in short order (within 24 hours, in my experience).
Mindsnacks is more than just a simple language game. The app offers those learning a new language fun and educational support. Teachers can apply for volume discounts in order to use Mindsnacks with their classes. Language keeners can purchase an "all language pass" for full access to all of the languages Mind Snacks offers.
You can check out the free version of one of Mind Snacks' language apps, but as both a teacher and a parent, I highly reccommend going ahead and getting the paid version. It's definitely worth it!
Customer Service
Perhaps the most compelling reason to sign up for a Mind Snacks account is the outstanding customer service. In addition to having an easy-to-navigate website with a comprehensive helpdesk section, Mindsnacks is easy to contact via email, and someone gets back to you in short order (within 24 hours, in my experience).
Mindsnacks is more than just a simple language game. The app offers those learning a new language fun and educational support. Teachers can apply for volume discounts in order to use Mindsnacks with their classes. Language keeners can purchase an "all language pass" for full access to all of the languages Mind Snacks offers.
You can check out the free version of one of Mind Snacks' language apps, but as both a teacher and a parent, I highly reccommend going ahead and getting the paid version. It's definitely worth it!