4 year old Daughter and English AfterSchool

[concerned]

Hi
My Daughter is going to Japanese kinder Garden and does english lesson there twice a week.
I speak english with her at home, she generally watches english TV. My wife speaks Japanese with her.
She generally understands english but rarely speaks it.
I was thinking of having her join one of the English after schools

"Kids Passport" charge about 30,000 for twice a week (Excluding Tax) from 15:00 to 18:00 which is a bit pricey
ECC Junior may also be an option I need to check the price of this.
We will probably visit each and then decide

Just wondering if anyone else have experience with these schools or have other recommendations?
Thanks

[RetireJapan]

My granddaughter is 11. I have only ever spoken to her in English, we watch English streaming.

No one else in the family speaks English in daily life.

With that very limited input, she basically understand spoken English but doesn't speak it, reads basic English, and doesn't write.

If you want children to speak, read and write at a native level it takes a lot more work. Things like having English only at home, spending summers in an English speaking country, attending an international school can help.

Good luck!

[captainspoke]

How about reading together w/your daughter, then following on with any other activities/interaction that that then leads to? Basically--read a lot, then read some more.

Also, not a comment on your post/situation, but maybe some casual reading here: https://www.bsig.org/monographs (free PDFs)

Pick and choose, but they're all good in their own way.

[concerned]

Thanks! Ben and CaptainSpoke for the replies and the link.
I guess taking her back home for extended stays would be a good option, would also help with her motivation I believe.
I should read a bit more with her for sure, will do that, Thanks!

[Bushiman]

I speak english with her at home, she generally watches english TV. My wife speaks Japanese with her.
She generally understands english but rarely speaks it.

I have 2 kids, one 4 and one 8. I I've only ever spoken to them in English, they only watch English TV, my wife speaks Japanese with them but English with me. It wasn't until they both hit 4yrs old that they actually started to put full sentences together. They could understand what I was saying, but yeah, it wasn't until they both became 4 that they actually started to communicate in English sentences...
My oldest who is now a 2nd grader at at a public elementary school has near perfect spoken English and just out of interest I do JHS speaking & listening tests with him for fun and he finds them a breeze, 1st grade through 3rd. He has had zero paid English lessons. He can read a little, and write basic words which I guess we could/should work on at home, but as far as vocabulary, it's pretty damn good. Very proud...

[TokyoBoglehead]

Having your wife speak English with the child will make a massive difference. Reading with your child in English nightly should also be a given, and something your wife can also help with.

I would recommend less ekaiwa, more activities in English. Instead of looking for an English school look for actives that are conducted 100% in English. Although your specifi location could make this difficult.

[kuma]

+1 to extended stays overseas if practical; I was amazed at my then 2-year-old's development last summer
+1 to activities where your daughter is genuinely motivated to use English

My family has branches scattered in different countries and we have a weekly slot for a video call. It's a casual thing; no biggie if people don't join. It's good for the cousins to use English with each other. Interspersed with my lot bouncing on the sofa, grabbing each other's hair, and shouting "unchi!" to bewildered cousins, providing them with some choice Japanese vocabulary for future visits

[Nancy]

I enjoyed reading captainspoke's PDFs of different people's experiences. I think also that it really depends on the child, their personality, and their talent for foreign languages, and what resources you have around you. Some kids do have a better ear for languages and can pick them up easier. I think that Eikawa lessons can serve as a place for a child to learn with peers, as long as they aren't bored with the lesson. It's a scheduled time during the week, and kids do like routine. A lot of times they will have English homework to do, which can also be motivating and everyone can pitch in to help with the homework. I tried to teach my daughter to read and write, and it did not go well at all, so from third grade, I had her go to Kumon. It wasn't ideal, and there is a lot of repetitious writing involved, but she was able to take and pass the Eiken exam for Grade 3, I think, in 5th grade, so was very motivating and her peers were envious of her.

[concerned]

Thanks! everyone for the replies and recommendations

[Gulliver]

It really depends on what level of English do you think they’ll need in the future. If you want fluency, eventually total immersion is a must.

My very young Japanese dentist and I successfully communicate fairly complex diagnosis with a mix of broken English and Google translate.

I suppose some questions you could ask yourself are: On what level do you want them to the experience the world in the future?/Are two languages even enough?/Will English still be the lingua franca in 35 years?