Listening to radio stations in the target language can provide another opportunity for exposure to the language and culture. Radio stations created for children, especially bilingual kids, are perfect for this, as their content will be specifically created, or curated, for them. It can also be a learning opportunity for adults whose mother tongue is not the target language.
Our favourite radio station
A few months ago, we discovered a radio station aimed at kids who speak Portuguese (see section below for radios in other languages) and have been listening to it regularly since. It’s called Radio Miudos. Here’s why we like it so much:
- It’s accessed through a browser 24/7, so you can listen to it any time of the day wherever you are in the world, as long as you have access to the internet
- It’s mostly in European Portuguese, but it also has songs from Brazil, Cape Verde and other Portuguese speaking countries
- Around 90% of the airtime is music, however, it also has some programmes, such as a philosophy programme where a psychologist converses with a group of kids about a set theme.
- We love the music selection: from old classics that will appeal to parents to modern versions of old children’s songs.
Both the girls and I enjoy listening to Radio Miudos and we often have it in the background while we do things (cook, crafts etc). As part of our routine, I tend to put it on first thing in the morning so it sets the mood (and language!) for the day. The music is really good and we dance to it regularly, which the girls adore doing.
Kids radio in other languages
Trilingual Children did a fine job in compiling kids radio stations in many languages including English, Russian, German, Spanish, French, Polish, Serbian, Slovak, Dutch, Belgian Dutch/ Flemish, Lithuanian, Turkish, Czech, Norwegian, Italian, Greek, Albanian, Hungarian, Romanian, Portuguese and Persian
Chances are, your target language will be represented in this list – go have a look now.
