The is the brainchild of an organization known as the Institute for Language Experience, Experiment & Exchange, also known as LEX. It was created in 1981 by , who had been researching
language acquisition
Language acquisition is the process by which humans acquire the capacity to perceive and comprehend language (in other words, gain the ability to be aware of language and to understand it), as well as to produce and use words and sentences to ...
for over 30 years prior to his death. The Hippo Family Club is a transnational network of community-based language clubs in which both children and adults engage in various activities with the purpose of acquiring multiple languages simultaneously. Yo Sakakibara later expanded the organization to the US, Korea, Japan and Mexico. In the United States, the organization is known as LEX America and the language clubs as LEX Language Project.
Concept
The activities carried out at Hippo Family Club meetings are based on language acquisition research projects and studies and supported by language researchers such as
Suzanne Flynn,
Kuniyoshi Sakai
is an associate professor at the University of Tokyo. He was born in Tokyo, Japan and is of Japanese nationality. Most of the research that Kuniyoshi conducts focuses on neurobiology.
History
Kuniyoshi has worked at many institutes. Following ...
and
Noam Chomski.
The underlying concept is that anyone, at any age, can acquire new languages, given a conducive setting for language acquisition. Though languages are superficially different, some linguists argue for an underlying
universality among all human languages, and this is demonstrated in the speed with which an already multilingual person acquires a new language. According to Hippo materials and methodology, the way most people usually attempt to learn a language—in a traditional classroom—does not provide a conducive setting for language acquisition. When infants acquire their
native language
A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongu ...
, they don't do it by breaking the language down into little pieces of grammar and vocabulary, or by looking in a dictionary, so this is seen as the most unnatural way to learn a language.
It is believed that children acquiring their language learn by listening to and mimicking the broadest and most basic outline of the language. Any infant with the physical capability can acquire the language spoken around them by the age of two or three. As they advance, they begin to speak in phrases, but may only pronounce the sounds at the beginning and end of a phrase while humming through the rest. Eventually, they become more precise in their sounds and phrases, until they become a mature speaker. Even as adult native speakers they are always making new language discoveries. Adults who are exposed to new languages in a similar way will go through the same natural process.
Children learn by listening, mimicking and making human interactions with other speakers of the language. Therefore, Hippo works by trying to create a natural, relaxed learning environment in which children and adults are exposed to, and interact with the sounds of other languages. One of the advantages of learning this way would be to break with serial monolingualism,
a condition in which multilingualism doesn't happen on a thorough and smooth manner throughout the speaker's routine.
Hippo Methodology and Learning Environment
Hippo has its work and activities based on certain group practices and its audio materials. Usually these are referred to as "Audio Tapes", which can be the ones used in ''metakatsu'' (the act of repeating sounds and words) or the SADA's (acronym for Sing Along, Dance Along).
The clubs follow a very flexible structure, although there is routine and tradition involving certain practices (such as the ''zai jian'' "goodbye" song). It consists on regular members who pay a relatively small subscription fee and "fellows", individuals who run each club.
On an extensive thesis
written after experiencing both Hippo Japan and LEX America, sociocultural linguist Chad Nilep noted that a feeling of identification with a cosmopolitan identity exists among members, and this occurs possibly through fractal
recursivity.
''Metakatsu''
As noted by Chad Nilep (2009), the ''metakatsu'' (a combination of the Greek prefix ''meta-,'' meaning ''among, after''; and the Japanese '','' meaning ''activity'') is one of Hippo's core activities. It consists on the mimicking and babbling of sounds in any given language. Initially, it is very similar to a baby's process of language acquisition—one is not required to pronounce the words with perfection, only to repeat what was heard as best as one can. This differs greatly to the traditional approach of non-native language learning
SADA's
The SADA's are usually folklore music from around the world, to which some choreography/dance either already exist or is created by club members. The aim of the activity is mainly to establish a playful and friendly setting. Some members note it draws near to psychomotricity, although scientific analysis was not yet established.
Activities
In addition to listening to recordings of speeches, conversations and songs in different languages, Hippo Family Club members get together in community-based clubs at least once a week for interactive activities. Members that feel confident recite what they feel they can from the recordings, even if the sounds are not accurate, and even if they don't exactly know what they are saying; the first step is to get a feel for the sounds, rhythm and melody of the languages.
Members play games, sing songs, dance, and speak with each other in the various languages they are learning. Through interaction with friends and family of all ages that participate, members absorb both new sounds and important context.
The aim of HIPPO activities is not necessarily to "master" the languages, but to enjoy what Hippo founders call the "process of self-discovery", as members make new friends, strengthen family ties, and create new international connections through language.
Hippo members can attend other Hippo Clubs, including clubs established internationally. They are encouraged to widen their horizons through participation with Hippo club members in other countries. In this way they create opportunities to make friends with speakers of other native languages, and thus come in contact with many languages.
Currently, there are Hippo activities in
French,
Mandarin
Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to:
Language
* Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country
** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China
** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
,
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
,
Korean
Korean may refer to:
People and culture
* Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula
* Korean cuisine
* Korean culture
* Korean language
**Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl
**Korean dialects and the Jeju language
** ...
,
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
,
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
,
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
,
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
,
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
,
Thai
Thai or THAI may refer to:
* Of or from Thailand, a country in Southeast Asia
** Thai people, the dominant ethnic group of Thailand
** Thai language, a Tai-Kadai language spoken mainly in and around Thailand
*** Thai script
*** Thai (Unicode block ...
,
Malaysian
Malaysian may refer to:
* Something from or related to Malaysia, a country in Southeast Asia
* Malaysian Malay, a dialect of Malay language spoken mainly in Malaysia
* Malaysian people, people who are identified with the country of Malaysia regard ...
,
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
,
Indonesian
Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to:
* Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia
** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago
** Indonesian ...
,
Cantonese
Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding are ...
,
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
,
Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
,
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
,
Vietnamese
Vietnamese may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia
** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam.
* Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam
** Overse ...
,
Swahili,
Turkish
Turkish may refer to:
*a Turkic language spoken by the Turks
* of or about Turkey
** Turkish language
*** Turkish alphabet
** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
*** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey
*** Turkish communities and mi ...
, and
Taiwanese
Taiwanese may refer to:
* Taiwanese language, another name for Taiwanese Hokkien
* Something from or related to Taiwan ( Formosa)
* Taiwanese aborigines, the indigenous people of Taiwan
* Han Taiwanese, the Han people of Taiwan
* Taiwanese people, ...
. Hippo Family Club establishments can choose to focus on a few, or all of these languages.
Homestay programs
Hippo members can choose to participate in homestay programs, in which they visit a Hippo Family Club, or other non-profit or community group in another country. Participating countries include the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
,
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
,
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
,
Luxembourg
Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
,
Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
,
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
,
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
,
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
,
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
,
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
,
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
, and
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
.
In Korea, Japan and Mexico, the homestay is completely overseen by Hippo, and in the United States it is co-developed with
4-H Youth. There are currently five types of homestay programs available: the Summer Program (USA, Thailand, Japan or China) the Spring Program (Japan), the Winter Program (Japan or Russian), the World Internship Program and the Yearlong High School Program.
World Internship Program (WIP)
The World Internship Program allows for people all over the world to be an intern at Hippo in Mexico, Japan or Korea. It reaches out with the support of volunteering organizations such as
AIESEC
AIESEC is an international youth-run, non-governmental and not-for-profit organization that provides young people with leadership development, cross-cultural internships, and global volunteer exchange experiences. The organization focuses on emp ...
, or Hippo's own institutional propaganda.
Yearlong High School Program
Through the Yearlong High School program, young students can experience High School in most of the countries Hippo has interchange relations with.
Transnational College of LEX
The Transnational College of LEX (TCL) is a private non-profit education institute focusing on the development of learning using immersion techniques which broadly follow the way in which babies learn multiple languages in a muli-linguistic environment.
The TCL has published many books, most notably a series of three books on Natural Science: ''Who is Fourier? A Mathematical Adventure'', ''What is Quantum Mechanics? A Physics Adventure'', and ''What is DNA? A Biology Adventure''. The nature of the books is such that they allow accessible introductions to traditionally difficult subjects.
Nobel Prize-winning Physicist, Professor
Yoichiro Nambu
was a Japanese-American physicist and professor at the University of Chicago. Known for his contributions to the field of theoretical physics, he was awarded half of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2008 for the discovery in 1960 of the mechanism ...
served as senior adviser for the second book in the series ''What is Quantum Mechanics? A Physics Adventure''.
References
{{reflist
External links
Hippo Family Club Homepage (Japanese)LEX America HomepageHippo Korea Homepage (Korean)LEX Audio Materials
1981 introductions
1981 establishments in Japan
Organizations established in 1981
Japanese inventions
Educational organizations based in Japan
Language acquisition
Learning programs