The setting is this: Me and my wife live in Italy, she's Italian and I speak Spanish and English. Since the baby is going to grow in Italy, he will speak Italian. However, I would like to teach the baby Spanish and English. Should I talk to him mixing Spanish and English or would that be too much for him to handle? Should I just choose either Spanish or English?
2006-09-22 05:51:39 · 16 answers · asked by charliebrown 1 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Toddler & Preschooler
just use the language you want your baby to learn and i'm sure that he will get it
2006-09-22 05:53:30 · answer #1 · answered by Baby G 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I hope this makes sense. I haven't had to use it in a long while. I was the "Spanish only" teacher for an early childhood program and this is based on what we did to help a 2 yr old from Mexico learn English with out him being completely lost when he first started preschool.
Have his mother speak only Italian to him and around him whenever possible. You should choose one language and speak only that for a while. When doing things like pointing out green apples v/s red apples say it in both.
Having one parent speak a language teaches the child that the vocabularies are seperate. Teaching colors, household items, numbers, ect in all three connects them as all being language.
2006-09-22 06:03:55 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Since you are in Italy, I suggest you teach the baby Italian and English. The Spanish can be easily picked up when the child is grade school age. Good luck.
2006-09-22 05:56:41 · answer #3 · answered by DMBthatsme 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Wow, that's a lucky kid! what a great opportunity you're giving him.
Don't worry about confusion, from what I've read bi-lingual children sort out the languages they're taught and won't wind up speaking a mix of the two in the long run. I'd think this would apply to tri-lingual children as well, particularly with the similiarites between spanish and italian.
I think learning muliple langages does wonders for a childs literacy, as they have more occasion to think about the structure of language, etymology, etc.
2006-09-22 06:41:18 · answer #4 · answered by answer faerie, V.T., A. M. 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
We are speaking both Spanish and English to our son. We'll say a few things in Spanish and a few things in English. For example: we might talk to him one day in English about changing his diaper and then the next day we'll talk to him about the same day but in Spanish. He's only seven months and only babbles but this is how our parents taught us. We don't speak Spanish or English on purpose...it just happens to be what language we feel like speaking at the time!
2006-09-22 05:56:27 · answer #5 · answered by .vato. 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Just let it happen naturally....... I have a Chinese husband, we currently live in China and we have a 28 month old son, who speaks both English and Chinese fluently, we never distinguished who spoke what or when, he has been able to do that by himself, even at this young age, he replies in the language that the questions are asked, and he knows mommy can only read English and not Chinese, and even though my spoken Chinese is quite concrete, he always translates it to English for mommy just encase I get confused. Never fear if they are surrounded by the three languages they will pick them up faster than you or I ever could. Just be careful, because they can over power each other quickly, try to keep his speaking, (when the time comes), to a balance between the three.
2006-09-23 02:56:05 · answer #6 · answered by notachinesemomma 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Children are brilliant with language. They just soak it up like a sponge. I would suggest that once he begins to speak that you show him things and tell him how to say it in each language. He may mix the languages in his sentences at first but he'll outgrow that. Typically a second language is required for foreign schooling, usually English. Also, as you know, Spanish and Italian are extremely close in words, so it won't be that difficult for him to learn, you did didn't you?
2006-09-22 06:00:44 · answer #7 · answered by Kelly S 3 · 1⤊ 3⤋
first of all i think ur situation is cool, but n e way this is what i think. since u say ur child is a baby dont even worry about him not beign able to handle it because its been proven that kids learn differnt lauguages very fast. in ur situation i think its ok cuz ur dealing with a baby so he will handle it totally fine.and this is how you do it. we speak spanish as well, and the way my mom and grams taught us was by speaking to us in spanish then repeating it in engish. my suggestion to u is that u do the same but not telling ur baby something then repreting it in both lauguages jus one at a time. n e way ur baby will soon catch on when he begans to hear all 3 lauguages spoken. believe me.
2006-09-22 06:00:49 · answer #8 · answered by Nina Chula 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
teach at a young age...use english i guess but also teach italian with it, then you can connect in to the second language...after hearing it growing up they will know it.
Also Leap frog and Baby einstein stuff tapes that get there attention really helps...online or maybe toysr us
2006-09-22 05:56:14 · answer #9 · answered by harmonieclark 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
whatever you do make sure u never mix one language with the other inthe same conversation. maybe more than one language is too much for a baby but his linguistic skills are right now at their peak
2006-09-22 06:39:50 · answer #10 · answered by Lara^mt 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That's a toughie. Just stick to spanish and then later on in your baby's life teach him/her english.
2006-09-22 05:53:54 · answer #11 · answered by rudolph228 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋