How to maintain your child’s heritage language during the school years
Parents of heritage language speaking children are usually concerned about the children’s double language load
Multilingual parenting: supports for multicultural families in Ireland
Parenting is undoubtedly demanding and finding appropriate supports when multilingual parents need them can be difficult.
Will my child want to keep up my language?
How can you as a parent make sure that your child understands how important language and culture is to your family?
When both parents speak a minority language
In families where both parents speak the same language, and that is different from the language of the society or the dominant language, parents might naturally use their language when speaking to each other and to their children.
Being consistent can be hard, but it pays off!
If you are a parent who is trying to keep up a language in a context where very few people support you, being consistent with your approach and your language choices can be hard.
Why being a “good enough” parent is better than being perfect!
Parents often feel overwhelmed and inadequate when it comes to raising children in general, but the added stress of being the only person trying to pass on a language can make parents feel like they are not good enough, especially if the child tends to respond in the majority language.
How to make the most of talking time with your baby
Talking to a baby and with a baby is very important, and bilingual children benefit from engaging with each of their languages on a regular basis.
Track your child’s input in each language with the Language Exposure Wheel
At some point every parent of a bilingual child wonders if there is a special tip to boost one of the languages. There is one very special ingredient that we can all work on.
A language plan for families with a new baby – Step 2
Think about the main carers in your child’s life. What language does each one speak? How often? For what purpose? Is each carer going to address the child in one language, or in more than one? Which language(s) will be used when the main carers are together?
A language plan for families with a new baby – Step 1
Many articles you find around the internet will tell you that there are two or three successful techniques for achieving success when raising children through multiple languages or trying to keep up skills in a minority language.