The other day at the mall I spoke with a mom who, in passing, expressed some slight “frustration” about her daughter refusing to speak in her second language. Her quick description was very familiar to me. Since before her daughter was born, she spoke to her only in Spanish hoping to teach her a second language. However,now that her daughter is almost 6, she has decided to only answer in English. In the past few weeks, as we have met families during our camp fairs, this is a story that rings true for many bilingual/multilingual families.
As I spoke with the mom, I could sense the mix of emotions that could only be described on the surface as frustration, but was really much more than that. For some of us moms, that second language connects our children to another part of us, that is not as prevalent in our daily lives now. For many of us, it connects our children to our own culture which can get lost in our daily lives here.
For me, raising my children to speak Vietnamese provided me with a connection to my mom who died before they were born. Because of my mom, or in honor of my mom, when my kids were born I decided I would raise my biracial children in a One Person One Language (OPOL) system. I would be the one person responsible for speaking to my kids 50% or more of their waking hours. Since I set that goal, I have failed miserably a thousand times. And a thousand times I have started over and told my kids, “No More English!” I have to rid myself of the disappointment and remind myself that I am only One. Person.
Teaching your children a second language is a long and difficult, but hopefully rewarding journey. Its important to keep children exposed to the language and be patient with them whether they answer in the target language or in English. The important thing is to keep language learning fun and meaningful!