Anonymous wrote:I would choose by which teacher has a better reputation. A bad teacher can set your child back in HS when the going gets tough. Spanish teachers are notorious for being pretty bad. They make it too fun and easy and don't properly teach the grammar.

Very much this!

I still regret that my parents gave me a choice and I picked French. I have never used it.

Anonymous wrote:I approach it differently.

Your best asset is when you know something that everyone does not.
We have so many English teachers - everyone speak English, but so few good Math teachers, and so few Engineers who are not foreigners.

Then think about advanced classes. Can your kid compete with Native speaker in Spanish 3, 4, 5?

I would be more open minded.

Why our kids do not learn German, Italian etc. in school?
You would say they are not practical...
Well you will not practice Spanish in your life very much, unless you are going to work in Retail or Constructions...


Everybody should not be the same.

Or international business. My husband got his amazing job because he speaks Spanish. Expanding into Latin American is hot for tons of businesses. I don't know how French or Italian can be so helpful. I think Spanish or Portuguese (because of Brazil, not Portugal) are good languages for any business.

I would choose by which teacher has a better reputation. A bad teacher can set your child back in HS when the going gets tough. Spanish teachers are notorious for being pretty bad. They make it too fun and easy and don't properly teach the grammar.

I would choose the one that my middle school child preferred. Learning a foreign language is wonderful and rewarding but could be a tough road if you're not interested.

I had 5 years of French in school. It has been more than passingly useful only twice in the past 20 years-- when I wrote a paper on Samuel Beckett in grad school, and when I spent a summer babysitting French children.

Spanish, on the other hand, would've been useful over and over, and over again....

Think about which one you or other family members can speak. It is great to be able to practice conversation with someone who knows the language. Also, inquire about the teachers at your middle school to see what people think. At our school the french teachers seem better (IMO) and if I had known that I would have pushed my son to take French. Though in our school, French is 95% girls.. French also travels to Quebec. Spanish does not have a trip[.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our neighbors speak Spanish. Not French...

THIS.

The most common foreign language used by native speakers in this area, and most of the United States, is Spanish. I don't just choose to use it - I HAVE to use it regularly. I had to speak Spanish on Friday and on Sunday. I cannot imagine a sitiuation requiring use of French to get by anywhere in the US except a resturant.

You shouldn't ever HAVE to speak Spanish in this country. While we don't have an official language, we have a dominant one, one that has been used overwhelmingly since our settlement.

French.

In Spain and other areas, Spanish is a lovely language. In the US, Spanish is low-class: the language of people who don't respect our immigration laws and expect to be catered to. And are, sadly.

Anonymous wrote:Our neighbors speak Spanish. Not French...

THIS.

The most common foreign language used by native speakers in this area, and most of the United States, is Spanish. I don't just choose to use it - I HAVE to use it regularly. I had to speak Spanish on Friday and on Sunday. I cannot imagine a sitiuation requiring use of French to get by anywhere in the US except a resturant.

I approach it differently.

Your best asset is when you know something that everyone does not.
We have so many English teachers - everyone speak English, but so few good Math teachers, and so few Engineers who are not foreigners.

Then think about advanced classes. Can your kid compete with Native speaker in Spanish 3, 4, 5?

I would be more open minded.

Why our kids do not learn German, Italian etc. in school?
You would say they are not practical...
Well you will not practice Spanish in your life very much, unless you are going to work in Retail or Constructions...


Everybody should not be the same.

Our neighbors speak Spanish. Not French...

The kids are already getting Spanish through the dual language program in elementary, so I'd continue with that. If they are highly-competent in Spanish by high school, I would encourage the French. As an Africanist, I kick myself for having zero exposure to French because I spent my entire K-undegrad perfecting my Spanish, which I've now all but lost due to lack of practice.

You never know where life will lead you! You use whatever you have. I wouldn't let DC exposure be the sole determinant here. There are communities of native speakers of a number of languages throughout the area.

While fluent in Spanish, I applied my knowledge to studying literature. Outside of giving directions on the subway in NYC and that one summer in Spain, I didn't use it to speak. It was a fun puzzle when I was a child and a key to exploring literature as I got older.

Consider why you want to study. If it's brain development, either would do. For work, there again, either would be fine.

Unless you come in to contact with people who speak French, I think Spanish is easier bc you can give your child exposure to it easily in DC.

Which would you choose for middle school foreign language elective, and why?