“When traveling to a country with a language that’s not native to your tongue, translation apps are helpful, but only to a certain extent. They enable you to decipher a menu, but not necessarily to spark up a conversation with your server. Fluency in the local language makes for far more discovery potential,” says Richelle Szypulski of Travel + Leisure.
As the world becomes ever smaller and more interconnected, learning another language becomes more beneficial for many reasons. Here are just a few of the many positive effects of becoming bilingual (or multilingual).
- Boosts mental agility. A 2016 University of Edinburgh study showed an increase in several aspects of mental alertness (regardless of age).
- Improves multitasking. The bilingual brain is able to quickly edit out information that’s irrelevant and hone in on what’s important.
- A study conducted in Luxembourg found those who speak more than two languages may be at lower risk of onset memory problems like Alzheimer’s and dementia,
- Bilingual speakers may actually have more grey matter in the brain regions responsible for attention, inhibition, and short-term memory, according to recent research from the Georgetown University Medical Center.
- A study conducted in Spain showed that multilingual people more easily spot anything that is irrelevant or deceptive.
- The first language is also improved.
- Performance in other, unrelated, academic areas is improved.
Ready to explore the world this summer?
Back to Basics offers professional, degreed instructors in 20 foreign languages, at all levels. From traditional Spanish or French, to Italian, Portuguese and Mandarin Chinese, Back to Basics teaches adults 1-on-1. Foreign languages available include:
- Arabic
- Bengali
- Chinese
- Creole
- Farsi
- French
- Greek
- Gujarati
- Hindi
- Italian
- Japanese
- Korean
- Latin
- Portuguese
- Russian
- Spanish
- Turkish
- Vietnamese
About Back to Basics Learning Dynamics, Inc. in Wilmington, Nationwide
Back to Basics offers 1-on-1 tutoring in 60+ subjects, professional development, translating and interpreting in 21 languages, speech therapy, occupational therapy, behavior specialists, reading specialists, paras, ELL services, homebound services, RTI support, psycho-educational testing and test prep. Plus, Back to Basics Private School is Nationwide’s only Department of Education approved 1-on-1 Private School for K-12. We also offer summer school and educational summer camps, original credit and credit recovery, along with unique enrichment options such as music, art and photography. And, Summer Planning starts NOW! Learn about more educational summer camps, summer school, original credit and enrichment options in Nationwide.
