In these slightly panicky pandemic times, it's a joy to see a business that is not only surviving but thriving.

Such is the case with Greystones Languages for Children, celebrating its eight birthday this year.

With Georgia Gallagher helping make the next generation fluent in both French and Spanish, it’s clear the woman loves her work.

And so do all those happy, smart, bi-lingual kids.

Here's the lowdown...

Eight years ago this month, Georgia Gallagher set up the first out of school French classes for local children in Greystones and Delgany. A small room at the local Parish Centre was the venue where a handful of children, some as young as 5 years old, wanted to see what it was all about. As word got around how much fun learning French was, Georgia was soon adding more and more classes and venues. And, due to popular demand, Spanish was also add to the timetable.

Fast forward to today and Georgia’s language school, Greystones Languages for Children, is thriving! Not even the pandemic has stopped her teaching and her students from continuing with their bilingual journey!

Georgia says, “It’s hard to believe that we have been teaching French and Spanish in Greystones for eight years! It is brilliant to be able to offer language classes in our community and to see children developing great linguistic skills from such an early age.  Young children have a wonderful advantage in that they pick up languages with ease. When they are exposed to language in an engaging and interactive way, they learn so much more in this pressure free environment. Learning then becomes a thoroughly positive experience and by the time the child begins secondary school their foundation of language learning will provide them with a significant head start”.

When the first lockdown happened, schools and venues closed, and all classes ceased. Against all the odds, Georgia was determined to keep her students bilingual journey moving, so instead of cancelling classes, she simply took them online. 

Although nothing beats face to face teaching, my online classes are working really well. As well as benefiting from continued learning, my students have really enjoyed working together and seeing their classmates on screen. This week we all celebrated our 8-year birthday virtually, playing fun games, singing songs and, of course, having some yummy cake!” 

Article originally published at Greystones Guide available online at https://www.greystonesguide.ie/georgia-celebra-huit-birthday/