Tablets help kids tackle new language

Pannawonica pre-school children have been given the opportunity to learn Indonesian using play-based tablet apps.

One Tree Pannawonica Children Services obtained the language learning resources through the government’s Early Learning Languages Australia program which has been delivered in selected schools across the country.

Tablets are provided with pre-installed play-based apps which allow children to learn French, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese or Indonesian.

One Tree Pannawonica Children Services director Rebecca Young said they opted to teach the pre-kindy kids Indonesian.

“We have to select a language so we’ve gone with Indonesian,” she said.

“It’s actually quite surprising how quickly they do pick it up.

“We take a little bit longer to learn it and the children are sometimes teaching us.”

Ms Young said the childcare centre incorporates the lessons into daily routine.

“They’re not only doing it on the iPads, we also do it during mat sessions and that sort of thing as well,” she said.

“The children are getting prepared for going out and getting out into the world and I think that having the Bali orphanage and Bali being one of those places that a lot of families do visit, it’s setting them up for that sort of experience.”

Federal Member for Durak Melissa Price said the ELLA programme is a great opportunity for preschoolers to make an early start on becoming familiar with another language.