I Can Read and Speak in Spanish (Book + Audio CD) [Abridged] [Hardcover]

Maurice Hazan (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up | Series: I Can Read and Speak

A unique learning experience geared to the way children learn best

The biggest hurdle young children face when learning a new language is stringing words together into coherent sentences. Developmental psychologist and veteran language teacher Maurice Hazan has created an ingenious new way to help kids over that hurdle. The I Can Read and Speak series makes learning fun with an exciting combination of dramatic action pictures, sounds, symbols, and learning activities including flash cards and stickers.

Kids are introduced to 60 new words that are used in simple illustrated stories. Learning activities at the end of each story encourage kids to re-create the sentences and create new sentences of their own, using specially designed flash-card symbols. Each book includes:

• A colorful storybook illustrated with photographs
• Lively storybook narration (on CD) for proper pronunciation
• Flash cards and stickers to encourage sentence and story creation
• Tips for parents on how to adapt the material to their child’s learning style

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Kids learn to read and speak—immediately!

The biggest hurdle kids face when learning Spanish is stringing together individual words and phrases to make complete sentences. Now I Can Read and Speak Spanish gets children, ages four to nine not only reading and understanding complete sentences in Spanish but creating their own—from the very first lesson!

An exciting combination of dramatic action, pictures, sounds, symbols, and learning activities, I Can Read and Speak Spanish is a unique learning experience that makes getting the hang of Spanish fun and easy with:

• Colorfully illustrated stories that introduce kids to fifty new words
• Activities to help kids recreate story sentences and make new ones of their own
• Flash cards and stickers that make sentence and story creation fun and easy
• Lively storybook narration (on audio CD) that provides correct pronunciations and step-by-step guidance that lets kids work with little or no help from a grownup

About the Author

Maurice Hazan has been teaching languages in St. Louis for more than a decade. He developed the Symtalk method, featured in this book and used in schools across the country, based on his teaching experiences and his studies in developmental psychology.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (July 28, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071440437
• ISBN-13: 978-0071440431
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 12.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #64,700 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #37 in Books > Children's Books > Education & Reference > Foreign Language Learning > Spanish

More About the Author

Maurice Hazan grew up speaking five languages. In the mid 1990's he came to America from France and soon began teaching French in the Midwest.

Having been a student who struggled with traditional learning methods, he began sharing with his students some learning techniques he had used himself as a language learner. Soon fellow teachers were asking for their own sets of Maurice's language learning tools and the Symtalk publishing company was born.

Maurice sold Symtalk in 2005 with hopes of taking his method worldwide, and then decided to pursue his dream of opening his own language center. In 2007, he opened Tribeca Language, a language instruction and materials testing center in Manhattan teaching seven different languages to students of all ages, from toddlers to adults. After these years in development, Maurice knows his method makes learning a second language as uncomplicated and fun as possible. And it works. Not a novelty or fad, but a genuine breakthrough in language instruction based on scientific cognitive research, the QTalk® method incorporates ideas, suggestions and requests from hundreds of teachers over the years. QTalk® has been proven successful in the place where it counts - real classrooms, with real teachers and students.

Maurice's McGraw-Hill book series for teaching language to young children continues to be popular with teachers and parents. In addition, Maurice's new company, QTalk Publishing LLC, is offering a complete homeschool bundle including student book, teacher guide, a special version of Maurice's trademark "Q-Card" vocabulary images, as well as online games subscription. Look for this product soon on Amazon.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars From a teacher, this is pretty neat!, August 26, 2007

By 

Senora Gose (Bryan, Texas) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: I Can Read and Speak in Spanish (Book + Audio CD) (Hardcover)

As a Spanish teacher and Spanish curriculum author (Flip Flop Spanish), I'm always looking for great tools to pull out in my classes and keep things fresh and interesting. This is a neat book! You cut out all the little cards inside, and then use the cues to put together your own sentences. I haven't yet used the CD.

My own children did not jump at the chance to use these cards, but once I sat down and made a few examples by tossing cards out like a poker player, they joined in, especially when we were al making silly sentences. I am bilingual, and so this was a fun event in the household, and I believe in the class, it will prove useful as well. But if you are a beginner, get a foundation with another book first, then add this in to build confidence and usefulness in your language learning.

The best age for these cards is five and up. Younger than that, the children are more focused on just looking at the picture rather than using them to communicate and speak in Spanish. -Being able to read fairly well might also be a prerequisite for your child too, to cut down on frustration. I will listen to the CD this week and update the review soon.
Sra. Gose
Author of Flip Flop Spanish: Ages 3-5: Level 1 & Flip Flop Spanish: Ages 3-5: Level 2

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for Beginners and those starting to make sentences in Spanish, September 28, 2007

By 

K. Roe - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I Can Read and Speak in Spanish (Book + Audio CD) (Hardcover)

My 5 year old and I started learning Spanish together. We tried multiple books, CD's, etc., which did not help. This book is one that actually taught us a lot, and we retained what we learned. Since the same picture is repeated every time a particular Spanish word is used, there is visual reinforcement of the word. I would highly recommend this book for beginners.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars MAKES LEARNING SPANISH EASY!!!, December 24, 2008

By 

Michael J. Moultrie (Queens , NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: I Can Read and Speak in Spanish (Book + Audio CD) (Hardcover)

For those just learning to speak spanish from ages 8 to 80 this book, CD and flashcard package makes learning spanish extremely easy. My 11 year-old daughter was struggling in her 6th-grade spanish class and this combo really helped. Very soon you'll be prepared to buy another program to get to the next level.