The Vici Blog
French Immersion… at its best!
I’ve been teaching French as a foreign language to young children for 16 years now. It’s extremely enjoyable and we have lots of fun but it isn’t, by any means, an easy task. Being able to engage children constantly in different languages activities that will ‘speak’...
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We call on schools to do more to improve their teaching!
This year, we will celebrate ten years of coaching learners of all ages. Of the record 5.7 million small businesses operating in the UK today, less than half will survive beyond five years, let alone ten, yet we continue to go from strength to strength. Something we...
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Viva España! But could you do business there?
When it comes to spending a week on the beach in Spain, it might be that a combination of English, holding a certain number of fingers aloft and, of course, pointing will suffice and most of us could manage a “por favour” when ordering food or drink. However, as I...
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When in Rome…
... And the power of immersing yourself in another language. Have you heard how much easier it is to learn another language when you immerse yourself in the words and culture behind foreign linguistics? Perhaps you have even experienced this phenomenon first hand? I...
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If you’ll excuse my French, I experienced déjà vu!
Wide-eyed children are sat cross-legged before me as another hand shoots in the air ‘What are the uniforms like?’ and another asks: ‘Tell us about the food?’ There is no end to the boundless curiosity of children, not least at the VICI Language Academy. However, this...
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Have you ever wondered how your language teacher learns?
Amid the fun that learning a language brings to students who come to the VICI Language Academy, they can be forgiven for not sparing a thought on how their language coach stays on top of their game. However, just because few think of it, this does not mean it isn’t at...
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The Inner Confidence That Comes With Being Bilingual…
This short but sweet story illustrates perfectly the extent to which we empower our kids when we make the bold decision to raise them bilingually. My eldest son Sacha always told me he wanted to spend a term in a French school. So in Year 8 that is exactly what he...
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Would love your opinion on this…
I just read a really good article in the Guardian about the languages that schools should teach - it's been inspired by the Polish PM saying that Polish should be taught in English schools. I think you'll find it an interesting read:...
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A Second Language – the Greatest Gift You Can Give A Child
The science proves it - being bilingual keeps your brain fit! Experiments have shown people who speak more than one language recover faster from a stroke; are more agile in their thinking; and are more resistant to the onset of...
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Kinaesthetic Halloween costumes…
Last week, I shared a really interesting article about how children learn language. (If you didn’t get a chance to read the article, you can do so here.) This week I just wanted to expand on the article, and give you a few ideas to...
Useless, French? We tell Paxo to get stuffed.
If Jeremy Paxman is to be believed “… the real problem with French is that it is a useless language.” He took a real pop at the language in an opinion column in the Financial Times, which was followed up by much of the media. Naturally, this sparked outrage among...
How Language & Culture bring people together
The people of France are well known for their hospitality so little wonder we gave regulars at the Fox in Peasemore a thoroughly warm welcome at our recent annual evening of all things French. The students at the VICI Language Academy pride themselves on being part of...
Staving off dementia?
One of the reasons there is such a great atmosphere at the VICI Language Academy is because everyone who enrols to learn a language is passionate about it for a host of reasons – but imagine being compelled to learn a language until you left university! We’ve written...
New Year New Language?… (The "Resolution Month" hasn't ended yet!)
As 2016 is now well underway, did you resolve to do anything differently? A quick poll among friends reveals most people seem to be giving something up, cutting back to make a positive change. Surely it is harder to stop doing something than it is to try something...
Jonny Wilkinson and the universal language of rugby
Amid the excitement of the 2015 World Cup it can be easy to dismiss the importance of learning another language in order to play another sport. Rugby, like many sports, is surely a universal language? The game speaks for itself and when ‘Les Bleus’ clash with a team...
Why foreign language software does not work.
The inadequacies of trying to learn a language simply by listening has long been recognised, no doubt why many turn to a new breed of linguistic attainment, that is software – both for computers and apps for smart phones – the answer in any language? In a word “no”,...
Three cheers for local champions of customer care (…and we are one of them!)
Customer service scaled even greater heights at Mercedes-Benz of Newbury when it played host to finalists from next month’s West Berkshire Business Awards (WBBA). The London Road Retailer is sponsoring the Mercedes-Benz of Newbury Customer Care Award and welcomed...
Now my child learns languages at secondary, does she still need VICI?
“Well my daughter used to come to VICI when she was little but now she goes to Secondary school, she doesn't really need you anymore... does she?" A great question that parents committed to their child’s language learning should ask and they are right to wonder. Here...
Why I don’t want my son to learn French at Secondary school.
What do you do when you child is bilingual and heading to secondary school? If they can speak French, the main language taught in UK secondary schools, should they still do it? How well do they speak and indeed write French? If they are truly bilingual then you have...
Top Tips for Learning a New Language in 2015
January’s now upon us which means most people are planning their resolutions as the Christmas festivities end and a clean sheet presents itself in the form of a new year. As well as getting fit, losing weight and ditching the alcohol, learning a foreign language...
Discover why we don’t do group lessons to learn English
We strive to meet our foreign language students’ needs with a variety of teaching options available, however when it comes to learning English we do not offer group lessons even though we are continually asked, preferring to only offer private lessons. Why? Well...
Why children should start revising for their 2015 GCSE exam now!
Wait! What? Yes, school might have broken up for the long summer holidays and that 2015 GCSE seems distant ship smoke on the horizon, but there really is no time like the present – or maybe September – to start revising – and VICI can help! Firstly let us say the...
Going back to school to inspire the future generation
The brightest budding linguists at St. Bartholomew’s School in Newbury were given an insight into the importance of being bilingual in the modern world. The audience of some 50 students from years nine to 13 were taken from the school’s Gifted and Talented programme...
The Wimbledon Wobble
When Andy Murray set about defending his Wimbledon title, he got off to a flyer – three matches, 9 straight sets, absolutely clinical. But when his Wimbledon world fell apart after defeat to Grigor Dimitrov on the 2nd of July, Murray had some thinking to do. What...
The VICI Language Academy will be closed within five year
Well, if you believed a debate raging on social media over recent weeks. A discussion within a language group on LinkedIn asserted that all language schools would be closed within five years. Yes, apparently the onward march of apps on mobile telephones and tablets...
Learning a language will pay career dividends
Here at the VICI Language Academy we are always telling people about the difference learning a language can make, and for young adults they often want to know if a second or third language is going to make a difference to their career prospects. Naturally we say it...
Not just a pretty face!
Have you ever wondered about actors speaking a foreign language in a movie? I bet you think they have been coached to simply deliver those line with a hopefully convincing accent? Well it would seem plenty of the famous actors who grace the big screen are actually...
Celebrity Lifestyle for your children… And no paparazzi!
Did you know many children of celebrities are bilingual? Learning a second language is 'de rigueur' in Hollywood with Angelina Jolie’s twins, Knox and Vivienne, reportedly speaking French. While, Gwyneth Paltrow’s children speak Spanish. Of course celebrities often...
Why face to face is better in any languages?
It has never been easier to communicate without actually meeting up with someone – emails, texts, Whataspp, Facetime, Skype, Google Hangouts or you might even send a letter! The point is we often resort to one of these methods rather than meet face to face. We know in...
Birds of a Feather learn together
You must have heard the idiom ‘Birds of a feather flock together’ and certainly when learning English such phrases can be both insightful and tricky! However, here at the VICI Language Academy we use the idiom to describe why our classes are so successful whatever the...
Did you hate learning a language at school?
“But I hated learning a language at school…” is sadly something we hear all too often here at The VICI Language Academy in Newbury; however just because you had a bad experience does not mean you cannot flourish and enjoy learning a language today. Let’s be clear why...
I can ask for a beer in 10 different languages
Good for you if not for your liver! Seriously this witty retort is usually given by someone who doesn't speak a second language when asked if they do… Little do they know how close to being bilingual they actually are! Assuming for a moment they are not diehard sports...
Inaugural French Ambassadors Club was a great success!
Over 30 of the adult students learning French at the VICI Language Academy attended the inaugural French Ambassadors Club at The Fox at Peasemore this week and indulged in Francophile fun and games and a veritable French feast. The venue...
Can you learn a language online?
Hardly a day goes by at the VICI Language Academy in Newbury without an enquiry from someone who is passionate about learning a language but who has been deterred after trying - and failing – to learn a language online after downloading...
So you’re good at languages? What career should you choose?
Here at the VICI Language Academy we are often asked this question by students: “I’m great at languages… what would be the best career choice?” Parents and teachers also ask questions like this too for their children and students. Often our students will say they want...
Your approach to language shouldn’t be a hobby when you mean business
Once again a business has hit the headlines amid accusations that it banned foreign workers from speaking their native tongue while at work. At the distribution centre for Hobbycraft in Burton there are myriad languages spoken by workers for whom English is clearly a...
Raising bilingual children: can we get it wrong?
It’s pretty tough to disagree that teaching children to learn a second language is wonderful! The benefits are evident; not only is it genuinely fulfilling and fun to do, when our children are older, the opportunities will be fantastic. But can we get it wrong when we...
Discover how to get your children speaking French before they’re potty trained!
Here at the VICI Language Academy we are fair bursting with pride over our students most of the time, however sometimes you want to run through the streets of Newbury telling everyone! Readers of our newsletter will have already seen the case study about Tilly and...
Why French IS important?
The popularity of French in New York schools would surely be a reason to pop the Champagne corks with so many children benefiting from learning a second language? Not according to the website New Republic, which has demanded “Let’s Stop Pretending That French Is an...