Spani Deana Lancaster News Reporter eana@nsnews.com NORTH Shore parents seeking a bilingual environment for their children needa’t be limited to French. Los Chiquilinos Daycare recently expanded from one North Vancouver location to two — and with the expan- sion even more children have 2n opportunity to sing, play and learn in Spanish. Owner Ana Maria Chacon, who has 20 ycars of experience in the field, opened the first location of Los Chiquilinos Daycare in 1991. “Los Chiquilinas means ‘little children’,” said Chacon. She said she opened the centre to provide local children wich an opportunity to become fluent in’ the Spanish language and Latin culture. Most of the children are Canadian and don’t have any Latin background. Almest ali of the instructors have an Early Childhood Education diploma. According to Chacon, the centre is a busy place. During the summer thev spend days atthe water park, and go on a field trip = most Fridays, including an annua! trip to Dinotown, near Laidlaw. This year, the children have aiso been busy singing and danc- ing in a variety of Latin festi- vals, including the “Latino Soy” fundraising festival, to raise money for the children of Cuba “We were in a festival yes- terday,” said Chacon on Friday. “The children were dancing salsa and marenguc. They are such a big hit in che Latin community.” But par- ticipation in the festivals isn’t their only contribution to the community. The children have helped raise money and collected clothing and toys for disaster relief in South America. They also participated in a radiothen for moncy to build a home for the homeless chil- dren of El Salvador. The chil- dren made their own contri- bution of $20 by collecting and selling bottles. Los Chiquilinos is located at 767 East 17th St., and at 3202 Mountain Highway. For more information, call Anz Maria Chacon ac 986- 2152. Encouraging your child to write WRITING is one of the most im it skills your child will learn in . school, - Whiting helps to provoke choughts Sad to organize them logically and concisely, and most of:us write thank-you _ motes and letters to friends at - Ga aho be helpfil to expres cn to express feelings that _be |, your dil “ fand to enjoy doing it. * 3) Writing is. more . than ; porung + words on paper, It’s a _ the. complex commaunicating that ante thinking.” ‘Whiting is an n espedily impor fant stage'in communicaon, ‘the intent being to leave no rooni for doubs. Has any coun- try ratified a verbal treaty? One of the .first means of coramunication for your child is through drawing. Do _emcourage your child to draw . and .to discuss. his/her draw- -’ ings. “Ask questions: What is the doing? Does the house fook-li “story about this picture: Most chil speech patterns are Menied by the time they enter school, By that time children speak clearly, recognize most letters of the alphabet, and may try to write. -. Show an interest in, and ask - questions about, the things your child says, draws, and may ours? Can; you tll a, ", basic. Writing, well requires: @ Clear thinking. Sometimes the child needs to have his/her memory tefreshed about a past event in order to write about it. @ Sufficient time. Children may have “stories in their heads” but need time to think them through and write them down. School class periods are often not long enough. &@ Reading. Reading can stimu- fate a child to write about ae iF oor child ‘reads ife. If your chi good books, (s)he will be.a better writer. $8 Interest. All the time in the world won’t help if there is nothing to write, nothing to say. Some of the reasons for writing include: sending mes- sages, kecping records, express- ing feelings, or relaying infor- mation. @ Practice. And more practice. @ Revising. Students need experience in revising their work — i.e, seeing what they can do to make it clearer, more descriptive, more concise, etc. In helping your child to learn to write well, remember that your goal is to make writ- _- ing easier and more enjoyable. @ Provide a place. It’s impor- tant for a child to have a good place to write —.a desk or table with a smooth, flat surface and good lighting. Have the materials. Provide plenty of paper — lined and unlined — and things to write with, including pencils, pens, and crayons. _ Ei Allow time. Help your child Cen we : ROLE? Ensiched English, weet ‘A preschool (Eaperlence witb Daycare Hours .@€éative Ait’ Music © Math * Science (7:30am-6:00pm) 16 months - 12 years » Regular Geld tips * Preschool based programming -* Qualifed Early Education Edueaiors 4 zee ee Nae Conmaniy Sco) spend time thinking about a wricing project or exercise. Good wnters do a great deal of thinking. Your child may daw- dic, sharpen a pencil, get papers ready, or look up the spelling of a word. Be patient — your child may be thinking. & Respond. Do respond to the ideas your child expresses ver- bally or in writing. Make it clear that you are interested in the gue function of writing which is to convey ideas. This means focusing on “what” the child has written, not “how” it was written. It's usually wise to ignore minor errors, particular- ly at the stage when your child is just getting ideas together. ® Don’t you write it! Don’t write a paper for your child that will be turned in as his/her work. Never rewrite a chiid’s ioe Mecting a writing dcad- taking. Fespo responsibility for the finish product, and feel- ing ownership of it are impor- tant parts of writing well. @ Praise. Take a positive approach and say something good about your child’s writ- ing. Is it accurate? Descriptive? Thoughtful? Interesting? Does it say something? coe Activities that will encour- age your child to write, include: Bl Make it real. Your child needs to do real writing. It’s more important for the child to write a letter to a relative than it is to write a one-line note on 2 greeting card. Encoura: ie child to write to relatives als friends. Perhaps your child would enjoy corresponding with a pen pal. @ Suggest note-taking. Encourage your child to take See Suggested page 38 a} Every little boy or girl's. dream. f Elaborate handmade costumes, § 5 mystical crafis, games, music ay Stosies. Something specia Bf for your omg B® reason in particular. 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