Comments on: Language Links and Little Update

By: Sarah

Sarah — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 17:55:38 +0000

So I’m coming late to the party having just found your website yesterday, but I can totally sympathize! I started off trying to speak Spanish occasionally to my daughter (now 3) and by 9 months felt like I was failing miserably. So, I took the plunge and stopped speaking English with her entirely. It is challenging at times, but it has gotten so much easier as my vocabulary of early childhood words has increased. My husband speaks English with her and she just started at an immersion preschool 2 mornings a week in September. She understands everything, and is starting to respond in Spanish (though she still responds mostly in English.) It is so rewarding to hear your little one speak another language! Keep it up!

By: Tati

Tati — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 13:44:12 +0000

I’m glad I found your site. It is hard to stay motivated. I have to say there are many times that I stop speaking, but I usually make myself do it or I put a movie on for the girls in Spanish and then I naturally start speaking to them again. I think also having a network of people that do it will help. I let my mom know the girls’ progress and then I post on my blog. Thanks for all your ideas!

Tati

By: Jacqueline

Jacqueline — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 15:46:45 +0000

Just found your blog. Great subject! My eldest is approaching 8, followed by her 5 year old brother and then the baby…I very much agree with your post; sometimes we just stop speaking Spanish to the kids, much to the detriment of our bilingual goals and hopes for them. My dd communicates freely in both languages, speaking, reading and writing in both (homeschooling obviously helps here), but her Spanish is not native level. My son has a lot of issues with language in general, he seems to have flipped between one and the other , with English landing on top now. I thought I’d never have a child who answered in English when spoken to in Spanish! We’ve considered dropping English altogether for an extended period of time. In my own experience with language, immersion is unique in its contributions to language learning. I hope more people join the conversation. Blessings!

By: diane

diane — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 04:27:19 +0000

Oh, I definitely go through phases when I'm not as motivated as I should be. For me, music really helps. Just by popping in a fun children's CD in French or Spanish, I start thinking in the language. Plus, it's no-pressure & fun. Usually gets me speaking more. And tonight, since we hadn't done any second language all day, we sang French songs in the bathtub and counted our fleet of rubber ducks. And a French lullaby. (Last chance of the day!) diane´s last blog post..Spanish Homeschool Lessons for Christmas: The Nativity Story