My First Armenian Songbook to Serve as a Cross-Cultural Bridge and Learning Tool for Children Growing Up with English and Armenian
LOS ANGELES—Dr. Karenn Chutjian Presti, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Herb Alpert School faculty member who teaches Italian, German, French, Spanish, and English lyric diction and introduction to Armenian Music, is raising her own young children in four languages.
She credits her success largely to song. “A large part of each day is dedicated to language exposure through song, play, and literature. Songs are especially effective in teaching vocabulary and pronunciation, so I developed the translations in My First Armenian Songbook to serve as a cross-cultural bridge and learning tool for children growing up with English and Armenian.” When asked which language is her children’s strongest, she laughs, “They prefer Armenian. It’s probably because I talk too much.”
