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Raising children bilingual, trilingual (or more) - Page 7

post #91 of 103
9/25/06 at 11:06am
Quote:
Originally Posted by globetrotter

I thought that it was very cute.

That is adorable. Smart kid.

I have a little boy that is exactly the same age. Fun, isn't it (no sarcasm intended).
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post #92 of 103
9/25/06 at 11:33am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alter
That is adorable. Smart kid.

I have a little boy that is exactly the same age. Fun, isn't it (no sarcasm intended).


its a great age. aside from the potty training, pretty much every age till now has been a great deal of fun. started him on soccer lessons this month, having a great deal of fun with that.

what kind of school/framework is your son in? I was looking into relocation to Japan a few years ago, and I remember that the early childhood schools looked very strong, compared to the US. is that right?
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post #93 of 103
9/25/06 at 12:34pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by globetrotter

what kind of school/framework is your son in? I was looking into relocation to Japan a few years ago, and I remember that the early childhood schools looked very strong, compared to the US. is that right?

At this point he is in the equivalent to a nursery school a couple of mornings a week. He will be starting kindergarten in March. We are actually going through the hell that is applying to private schools in Japan this week. The one we want to get him into requires camping out for two days just to get an application form. Really! We have the option of sending him to an "International School" but have decided to send him to a private Japanese school.

I can't compare with the US but the education system is quite good here though there are many that complain that the system is too weak on teaching creativity and critical thinking skills. The education system is going through a transition period right now though and it seems to be improving.

What points did you feel to be stronger?
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post #94 of 103
9/25/06 at 4:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alter
At this point he is in the equivalent to a nursery school a couple of mornings a week. He will be starting kindergarten in March. We are actually going through the hell that is applying to private schools in Japan this week. The one we want to get him into requires camping out for two days just to get an application form. Really! We have the option of sending him to an "International School" but have decided to send him to a private Japanese school.

I can't compare with the US but the education system is quite good here though there are many that complain that the system is too weak on teaching creativity and critical thinking skills. The education system is going through a transition period right now though and it seems to be improving.

What points did you feel to be stronger?


the camping out for a form sounds like new york.

I get the feeling that america early grade schools seem light on the math and hard subjects.
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post #95 of 103
10/31/06 at 1:24pm
Thread Starter 
Reviving this thread. Progress report, anyone?

On my end, the Mo-Fri French school is very beneficial to my son on many levels. I couldn't be more pleased with it.

German is going well. It's full immersion, and it doesn't seem to bother him in the least. The other day, I heard him say a few words in German while playing alone in his room.
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post #96 of 103
10/31/06 at 1:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fabienne
The other day, I heard him say a few words in German while playing alone in his room.

so, what the wermacht couldn't do, berlitz has done, eh?
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post #97 of 103
10/31/06 at 2:14pm
Thread Starter 
I'll force a smile.

As to Berlitz, I would never use their services, I know how they exploit the linguists.
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post #98 of 103
11/1/06 at 7:26am
Great thread. Extremely useful for me and the husband. I'm American, he's French, and right now we're living in Buenos Aires. Our girl is due around Christmas and we are planning to raise her trilingually. He will speak to her in French, me in English, and I also want to eventually have her in a split bilingual school that is half day Spanish and half day English.

Her paternal grandparents only speak French (well grandfather speaks some Spanish as well because he is Basque), and unfortunately her maternal grandparents have already passed on.

We have a lot of friends who are raising kids in multillingal households and the biggest thing they've said it not to push the kids, and not to get lazy about sticking with the language you've chosen to speak or the kids will get confused. Incidentally, we're friends with a family that speaks Spanish, English and French, the mother is a translator. She told me that when very young children learn more than one language it opens up their brains for more complex mathematical learning later in life.

Once we're back in the States we are planning to be in an international area so I hope we don't go backwards and lose everything.
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post #99 of 103
11/1/06 at 10:23am
Up until I was 4-5 years old I was fluent in French and English. At that age I simply refused to speak french anymore, possibly because my dad does speak the language. My dad speaks ukrainian but he never taught me the language.

So here I am now, after growing up in an environment where I had the potential to be tri-lingual, speaking only English. I think it's kind of sad. Looking back I wish I hadn't been so stubborn!
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post #100 of 103
11/2/06 at 2:17pm
Our 2-1/2 year old daughter is a fluent spanish speaker, we decided to let her learn english in school programs being that its much easier to learn
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post #101 of 103
11/3/06 at 8:22pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fabienne
As to Berlitz, I would never use their services, I know how they exploit the linguists.

ugh, this is so true. they charge a lot for their classes and don't pay the teachers anything. my mom taught like 10 years ago, and only recently went back to one night a week for extra money. she only goes back for this group that she really likes who really wants to continue. berlitz wouldn't even throw down some cash for a book she wanted to use for her class. they told her "why don't you use one of the ones we have?" so i guess the students pitched in. it's really terrible.

as for the method they use, it's actually pretty fun. i have been taking portuguese this semester at school and one of my mom's students took portuguese with berlitz and let me borrow the cd's to listen to. i like they way that they introduce the concepts and everything. it's very conversational and fun.
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post #102 of 103
11/18/06 at 7:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by benecios
My son is 4 months old,and we are trying to bring him up speaking Dutch and English.We live in England but my partner is Dutch.We regularly visit Holland and my partners Mother and Grandparents don't speak English that is why we are hoping he will learn Dutch.The general plan is for my partner to only speak Dutch to him and I will speak English(I don't speak Dutch),obviously as the only language he speaks at the moment is gaga I will have to post again in 18 months to tell you how its going.
Here is a picture of the little guy:


I'm sure he will learn,my kids speak english and french.
I spoke english to them and my husband spoke french,they learned fast,so go for it girl.
Your little one is very cute,
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post #103 of 103
5/14/10 at 2:58am
There are many reasons to teach children multiple languages when they are young. Young children can pick up a new language faster and more easily than a teenager or an adult, although some experts suggest this difference can be attributed to the level of exposure rather than the age of the child. Either way, a second language is a skill that allows a child to explore other cultures, and communicate with more people - at home and abroad. Plus it can create broader opportunities for employment in the future.

Tips for Parenting Teenagers
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