SDSU offers free summer language camps for students in grades 9-12

SAN DIEGO – San Diego State University’s Language Acquisition Resource Center offers free four-week summer language camps to students entering ninth through 12th grades. STARTALK Language Camps offers an engaging and creative experience for motivated students who have no prior knowledge or understanding of language study.

Students may choose Arabic, Persian, Portuguese, and for the first time, Russian camps held on the campus of San Diego State University. Students will practice communicating in their chosen language through a variety of fun, engaging and meaningful, activities while learning about the life of young people in the target language country. In addition to being immersed in the language, students will participate in a variety of cultural activities that will deepen their understanding and appreciation of the culture.

Catherine, a past camp attendee said, “Everyone should try to learn another language and understand other people’s culture.”

Another past participant said, “I went from knowing literally nothing in Arabic to being able to form sentences and have basic conversation in a short period of time where I enjoyed every part of it.”

STARTALK language summer camps have been provided by the university for the past 11 years. Class sizes are small, with only 12 seats available in each language camp. Instructors have extensive knowledge in the language they teach, and some are first-language speakers.

“These free summer camps are an exciting opportunity for high school kids to learn a language from scratch, a language that is normally not offered at high schools. These courses are at the level of a first-semester university language course and students can receive credit for it,” LARC Director, Mat Schulze, said. “Cultural activities, sports, role playing, and just plain fun are an integrative part of these camps.”

“Students can work/play with technology to develop linguistic proficiency and communicative competence in the target language, which also helps shy students to participate more and gives the students a feeling of pride and achievement,” Ghassan Zakaria, Arabic instructor, said.

Classes begin July 8 and registration is open through April 15. For more information, visit https://larc.sdsu.edu/startalk-multilinguage-students.

Submitted by San Diego State University.