Are you teaching your child a second language?

[True2marie]

In my experience, children pick up new languages much quicker than adults. However, most of the time, they only acquire a second language if they move to a new environment where the second language is primary to locals or at school. 

So, for all of you bi-lingual parents, are you teaching your child a second language now or opting to let him/her make this decision later?

[dickybird]

I think it is a great idea to teach children second languages, they do tend to pick it up quickly. My partner is from Turkey, but his mother tongue is Kurdish and we live here in Turkey. So when we have children they will need to learn three languages, English, Kurdish and Turkish. If we continue to live in Turkey, they will be going to a Turkish school, and if we later decide to move back to the UK, they wll need to be fluent in English. I think if my children are bilingual they will be more determined and work harder. One of my friends is Fnnish and her husband is Turkish, they have a one year old and they speak to her in Finnish, Turkish and English, they want her to learn all three languages.

[Alrikidokie]

With the way the world is growing I think it would be a great idea to teach my child another language, if not several. I don't know if I'd be able to teach them to full fluency but I'd like them to at least be able to use the basics of different languages.

[MyDigitalpoint]

My godchildren (twins) are 3 years old and can speak 4 languages.

Their parents speak English, Spanish and German, plus their mother speaks also French and while they were afraid to teach them more than one language, they were advised to talk to them naturally using any of them without fearing they could be confused.

And yes, they don't have a large vocabulary yet, but can speak and understand any of the above languages without confusing or mixing them.

[Trellum]

My current boyfriend is Dutch, we plan to start a new life together in the Netherlands. We both speak english, his mother language is obviously dutch and my mother language is spanish.  Just today we were saying that it would be wonderful if our kids could speak not only dutch, but also spanish and english!  Trilingual kids!  I don't even know if that's possible, but we lose nothing by trying it

Since I'm still learning dutch and my boyfriend only speaks dutch and english, I think our kids will be listening the english and dutch language on a daily basis, but as I learn more dutch they will hear less and less english! So hopely by the time I'm fluent enough in Dutch, the kids will already know some enlgish.  Hopely we will teach them some spanish too.  I'm not hopeful tho

[True2marie]

I am actually teaching a neighbor's child English.  He and his family came from Iran.  He spoke only Farsi.

We began a few months ago.  I started off with visuals around my house and now have advanced to simple dialogue. He's like a sponge. You tell him once and he's got it. 

[Bill_H]

During the eleven years that I lived in Hungary, I taught my stepdaughter English -- not by any formal lessons but by speaking it with her mother, who was an English teacher.  Years went by, and my stepdaughter always responded in Hungarian, no matter which language was spoken to her. But one day, everything changed. She told me in English, "Daddy, I want to speak English from now on," and she meant it! From that day on, she has always interacted with me in English. Her English ability is like a free gift from me to her!

[FatesWing]

I don't have children of my own but I do have three nieces and a nephew. They all speak English and are currently learning Spanish as well. There are many Hispanics in our area and I find that Spanish is a great second language to pick up as soon as you are able!

[Baburra]

I don't have any kids yet, but I'll surely teach mine when it's my turn to be a parent. I think it's very enriching to know a few other languages, and it's especially easier to learn as a kid when you are more open to learning and have much more time to do so.

[mareebaybay]

I too, don't have children. However when I have children I will more than likely push them to learn a second language, however I will not make it mandatory or anything. I will just push them to do so, because I will not force them to do anything though.

[Denis Hard]

Kids just pick up language if they hear it often. My little niece stayed with me for long time and the people I met all day long [the job I had then required me to meet and talk to lots of people in three different languages [depending on their preferences] but much as I didn't teach her any of the two languages she didn't know, just by hearing us speak, she picked up words and could communicate [albeit with an accent] in the two languages no one actively taught her.

So well, kids, you need not to bother teaching them a language if they can acquire it elsewhere.

[PSLoveCharli]

I do not have any children as of yet, but when I do, I plan to start giving Spanish lessons at a very young age. Like I said in another thread, I think all K-12 schools should be bilingual especially in this day in age where Spanish is the primary language in most regions in the US.

[sidney]

I'm not a parent yet and I don't plan to be, but I think that it would be nice if a child knows 2 languages, so that he has the "upper hand" if the situation calls for it.

[Astdua]

I don't have children myself, but I am speaking from general knowledge here, and it's a fact that when you are young and developing, the mind is a very powerful tool, and I hear of cases where children growing up can learn 3-4 languages at a native level, if their household provides them!

So while I wouldn't "force" my own kids, I'd like to expose them to a varieties of linguistic paths, and they would develop on their own, a simple push towards that direction will give them a stable ground.

[Rosa]

I think it's a great idea to teach children a second language. With the rate at which things are going these days the sooner and the more they no will prove rewarding in the end .