PICK A VILLAGE!
Our campers are called "villagers," and from the moment your Village Passport arrives in the mail, you'll know this will be an experience you won't forget! Villagers choose a Language Village based on their interests. You can register to visit the Arabic, Chinese, Danish, English (as a second language), Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Russian, Spanish or Swedish Language Village. Portuguese is coming in 2008!
IT'S LIKE VISITING ANOTHER COUNTRY
At the Villages, you'll participate in cultural activities including authentic games, crafts, sports and arts. You might try bocce ball at the Italian Language Village, or salsa dancing at the Spanish Language Village. Music, theater and film production are other great ways to have fun with language. Each participant will have an opportunity to try brand-new things, as well as extend or enrich previously learned skills.No previous language study is required for attendance. When you arrive, you'll pass through "customs" and exchange your money at the bank. You'll pick a new name that matches the culture of the Village and from that moment you'll hear the Village language all around you! Twice a day, Villagers participate in language learning groups (with others at the same level of proficiency) that focus on communication in the Village setting. And four week villagers can earn one entire year of high school credit at any level or even college credit in German, French or Spanish!
Villages are located around Minnesota and near Savannah, GA. Each Village is in a beautiful forested setting on a lake. Some are built architecturally authentic to the culture they represent. Others are traditional camps converted into Language Villages for the summer.
Summer family weeks are for parents, grandparents and kids at German, Chinese, Finnish and Swedish. Since 1961, more than 130,000 kids have been villagers working toward a common goal of responsible citizenship in our global world!