Raising Bilingual Children How Any Family Can Get It Right

Raising Bilingual Children How Any Family Can Get It Right Raising Bilingual Children: How Any Family Can Get It Right Families make so many difficult decisions for their children.Deciding on the best way to discipline them.Looking for good role models for them.Saying no to chocolate ice cream for breakfast even though that would be awesomeFortunately, theres one decision thats a no-brainer:  Teaching children more than one language from a young age.The benefits of bilingualism will impact all areas of their life, from opening up fantastic job opportunities to broadening their perspective on the world.Theres also  research  ?showing that bilingualism positively impacts the development of cognitive abilities, and that bilingual speakers have, among other  enhanced capacities?, greater reception to feedback and criticism and a higher level of attentive focus.In essence, the question should never be should I  raise a bilingual child?  but instead, how can I  raise a bilingual child?And thats exactly what well address here today.The answer of how will depend somewhat on your household and who already spe aks what language(s). Whether youre monolingual or bilingual, well give you some practical tips for building a happily bilingual home that your children will thrive in. Different Ways to Structure a Bilingual HouseholdDepending on the languages spoken in your household, there are a number of different models you can choose to effectively encourage bilingualism.To get started, check out  these six models  outlined in Martyn Barretts The Development of Language.  Theyll help parents and guardians decide when and in what environments to use native versus target language communication.For instance, a Spanish-native parent and an English-native parent living in the U.S. would use the one parent, one language model, with each parent using his or her native language to speak with the child.Identifying the model your household uses will establish clear communication guidelines within the  natural and healthy?  confusion that does come along when a child is learning two languages at once.D ont Let Myths About Bilingualism Get to YouParents raising children in a bilingual household are often on the receiving end of well-meant-but-ignorant comments made by teachers and others who arent familiar with how bilingual children learn.First of all, its important to know that some bilingual childrens vocabulary skills will seem behind their peers in early education, but this gap quickly closesâ€"research shows that its gone by age five, and other skills arent affected.Moreover, the perceived academic gap in earlier years is largely due to a  failing?  in standardized tests to properly measure dual-language learners.Raising Bilingual Children: How Any Family Can Get It RightAs noted earlier, different households will approach their kids bilingual educations in different ways. Below, well provide practical tips in two categories: one you can use if youre monolingual and another if youre bilingual.Of course, there may be some overlap depending on your environment and what language s other members of your nuclear or extended family speak. Overall these tips should help you make conscious linguistic choices for your home that support bilingualism.Before we get to those, theres one tip thats useful no matter what your household looks like: Exposing your children to authentic target language content like childrens stories, games and more.One especially effective and kid-friendly tool is FluentU, which has real-world videos (like movie trailers, childrens songs, cartoons and more) thatve been transformed into language learning experiences. Each video comes with interactive captions that provide in-context definitions and pronunciations for any word.FluentUs innovative Learn Mode also creates flashcards and exercises for each video, to help with memorization of new vocabulary. Its an awesome way to teach your kids both the sound and culture of the target language, while ensuring they actively build their vocabularies.Plus, there are plenty of TV clips, YouTube vide os and more that adults will love, so you can develop your language skills alongside your children!Tips for Monolingual Parents/GuardiansPlan Family Activities in the Target LanguageHands-on activitiesâ€"especially ones that utilize visualsâ€"will help children contextualize and absorb their target language.For example, you can get a cookbook in the target language and learn to cook a traditional dish from a country where its spoken.  Board games in the target language are another great way to build language skills and have family bonding at the same time.Attend Local Cultural Events That Involve the Target LanguageCities have tons of these and offer a great opportunity to expose children to the cuisine, language and people whose native language is their second.For example, Chicago hosts an annual Flavors of Mexico  festival and  New York City hosts an annual 116th Street Festival, the largest Latin festival in the Northeast.To find these types of events, try searching on sites like Meetup.com or checking out the Events tab on Facebook (on the left side of the page, under Explore). Your local universitys language department or public library could also point you to some great options.Encourage Children to Read Aloud from Books in Both LanguagesReading aloud can help children parse through the  different phonetic rules  of each language while supporting overall literacy.Better yet, encourage them to read theatrically and dramatize the story! Beyond just making reading more fun, it can also help them find their distinct voice for each language, which is a bilingual  phenomenon that tends to happen naturally.Become a Homestay Family for Kids Who Speak the Target LanguageIntroducing your child to a new friend who speaks their target language will give them essential, authentic communication practice from a young age. Itll also help them understand the relevance of bilingualism as they build a new friendship in a second language.Simply asking around, such as making a Facebook post asking for recommendations, can be a good starting point to find homestay opportunities. Many families get put in contact with one another through a mutual friend.If youd like to go through more official channels, Cultural Homestay International is a thorough and reliable resource for families wanting to learn more about hosting an international guest. Another option is registering as a host for international families looking to send their child overseas through Homestay.com.Tips for Bilingual Parents/GuardiansBe Deliberate About When You Code SwitchThis gets back to the bilingual household models we discussed earlier. Its important not to vacillate randomly between your native language and other languagesâ€"instead, consider your surrounding environment and (if applicable) your partners languages, and be deliberate about when, if ever, you switch languages with the child.However, note that code switching (or switching between languages/modes of communication) on th e childs part is common and shouldnt cause concern. Its actually  a good sign and evidence of their expanded vocabulary capacities.Remember that its important to stick to your communication model even when switching to another language may feel easier.This is especially relevant when disciplining or reinforcing rules; it may be easier to switch in the moment but, barring safety issues, try to adhere to your dual-language model as strictly as possible.Read Aloud? to Kids in the Target LanguageThere have been tons of studies done on the value of reading aloud to children, but this is especially important in raising a bilingual child if youre bilingual. Not only is it great exposure to the target language, itll also get them comfortable reading itâ€"not just speaking and listening to it.It might not seem like a big deal now, but developing target language literacy skills early can help lay the groundwork for bilingual academic and professional success down the line.Have Children Write Letters in Both Languages to Family Members and FriendsWriting to relatives or family friends is a good practice to adopt in general because it encourages children to expand their concept of family.Writing in different languages supplements this by reminding them to expand their concept of languageâ€"its not just something theyre learning for themselves, its something that has positive implications for their relationships with others.Plus, its great practice! Check their letters for grammar or spelling errors and have them correct any that you see before sending the letters out.Leave Lunchbox Messages in the Minority LanguageThe minority language in this case refers to the household language thats not spoken in the surrounding environment. For example, if youre a native Mandarin speaker teaching your child Mandarin while living in Canada, Mandarin would be the minority language.Leaving lunchbox messages will help keep the language relevant throughout the childs day without interrupt ing the schoolwork or social communication thats done in the majority language. Plus, itll be a sweet reminder of family and home!Now that youve solidified and verified your resolve to raise a bilingual child, its time to choose a course of action and dive in.Strategies will and should vary from household to household.Every bilingual household is different with regard to who speaks what language, the surrounding community and the temperament of the child.Just remember that youre giving your child a wonderful gift thatll last a lifetime.Good luck!