Teaching a Three Year Old Spanish as a Second Language

Is there some spanish speaker (first language) that he can play with? Or maybe find a babysitter or someone that speaks spanish - immersion is the quickest way to learn different languages. I was about 6 when I "learned" spanish, but all I remember is before I lived in Costa Rica I didn't know spanish, and then when we left a year later I did. :)

Videos and books will probably help, but the best way to teach a child this age a new language is simply by exposing them to it. Your son will learn Spanish in the same way he is learning English if Spanish is spoken around and to him regularly. Do you or his father speak Spanish? Is there a Spanish language preschool you could try? Your local library may have childrens books or Disney videos in Spanish you could check out.
Good luck!

Find whatever his favorite movie is but in Spanish. My son LOVES the movie Cars, He's watched it so many times in English he has it memorized. Now he watches it in Spanish and it helps a ton! :)

Or you can try the flash cards and sit with him, they have them at Barners& Noble.

We love the books and cds from www.letsplayinspanish.com and have found them to be very effective and entertaining for our kids.

- V.

You haven't given us a lot to go on, but if you can't just speak Spanish to him, which is the best way, try Diego and Dora. My hubby and mother-in-law are Spanish speakers but my kids, 2 and almost 4, learned the majority of what they repeat by watch Dora and Diego. Be forewarned though, watch it with him so you can correct pronunciation. Because they're learning from a cartoon, it's a little hard to figure out exactly what the characters are saying every time.
I know very little Spanish but when we're out and about, I'll offer my kids my limited knowledge by speaking to them in Spanish as often as I know what to say.
Best, if you can afford it, would be a Spanish speaking caregiver!

A better way to teach him Spanish is to go to a Spanish language mommy and me. Pasadena's Community College mommy and me classes include a Spanish one. I'm going to enroll my kids in it this fall. I think it is on Mondays. Watching a video is too passive.

Does he watch DVDs? Most of them have a language setting that can be set to Spanish; if he's already familiar with the story all the better. That by itself won't make him fluent, but at least exposing him to the sounds will help his pronunciation and grammar when you add other methods.

YES!!!!! MUZZY. It's a wonderful childrens program made by the BBC. It's a cartoon and you can order it in Spanish, Italian, French or German. I love MUZZY and we have watched it for years. Worth it's weight in gold. Enjoy!