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Good approach

If you're hoping to introduce your preschooler to the concept of foreign languages, the "Preschooler Learns Spanish" DVD by Galloping Minds takes the right approach.

This 36-minute DVD aims to teach youngsters ages 1 and up some basic Spanish vocabulary. Don't expect anything sophisticated here; if your goal is to have you child fluent before entering kindergarten, you've come to the wrong place.

But if your goal is to help your child realize that there are people in the world who speak using different words, this is a good place to start.

Simple format

The format of this DVD is fairly simple: A series of video clips focus on a person or object while a narrator repeats its name in English and Spanish as the words in both languages appear on the screen. For example, while a close-up of people's eyes appear, the words "eye" and "ojo" are clearly repeated as well as displayed. Occasionally, you may hear a brief, untranslated descriptive sentence in Spanish, such as "Usamos las piernas para cambiar" ("We use our legs for walking"), but otherwise there is no attempt here to go beyond simple vocabulary-building. The lessons are in nine "units" of three to five minutes each covering family; members, food, nature and animals, action words, means of transportation, numbers and colors, parts of the body, and everyday objects. Because of the DVD's bilingual presentation, it would also be suitable for Spanish-speaking parents to introduce their youngsters to English.

Only the lesson on counting doesn't include the English words.

Aimed straight at preschoolers

There's not much here to find fault with. The only negative, if it is that, is that this DVD is aimed squarely at the preschool set. Unlike some preschool shows, such as "Sesame Street," where you'll sometimes find a plot or subtle humor that goes above the heads of preschoolers, this DVD makes no overt attempt to appeal beyond its core audience. That said, this is well-paced for the preschool mind without being overly flashy.

This DVD would best be used, not as a baby-sitter, but as a catalyst for the parent to interact with the child and explain what is going on, what those things called letters are, and so on. This would be a good way to help parents instill in their children the idea that the world is full of people who are different than they are, that people who speak other languages are real people too, and if you want you can find things in common with them and learn to communicate with them.

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