I'm a native English speaker and would like to have my newborn learn Spanish and Italian. As Spanish and Italian are not my "mother tongue", and thus we don't speak it in our home, what's the best way to get started for a baby? Also, at what age should we get started?
2006-12-13 02:15:46 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
Good for you! We lived in another country for 17 years and only spoke English in the home and our four children learned Spanish at school, neighbors, family, or outside of the home. The pediatrician told us to never mix languages when they were babies and it would take them about 6 months to sort out the languages themselves before they would actually speak. I did not note that they took any longer than other babies. Anyhow, they would answer perfectly in Spanish or English depending on what language you spoke to them in. Never MIX the languages! They did not realize they spoke two different languages until kindergarten. You could not talk to them in Spanish like many people did and say..."Oh, How do you say car in English?" They could not TRANSLATE, just speak it. That is a higher level of language function. They did not realize until kindergarten that I had a Gringa accent until they got to school and realized mommy spoke Spanish different from other mothers. Now we moved back to the U.S. this year and my kids are 15, 13, 12,9 with no problems in school. Just be consistent in speaking one language and do not mix sentences up because they cannot sort it out. Hope this helps.
2006-12-13 02:31:14 · answer #1 · answered by Chimes 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think it depends on the situation. You say they're not YOUR mother tongue and thus WE don't speak it...are you implying that one or both ARE the mother tongue of someone else in your home? If so, that person should speak one or both of Spanish and Italian--if at all possible, alternating in a very clear way, e.g., in the house/outside the house, when alone/when with others. If only one of the two languages is the other person's mother tongue, I'd suggest s/he speak that language only and add the other later.
If NO ONE in the house is fluent in either of the other languages, I'd say wait until the child is about three and send him/her to a preschool in that language.
If someone is "fluent" in both, but not comfortable speaking ONLY that language to the baby, the best would probably be to pick a situation (at least a few hours a week) that will be "Italian time" and/or one that will be "Spanish time" and for that period only speak that language. The child will not grow up as a balanced bilingual, but should still pick up a fair bit of both languages.
2006-12-13 04:16:06 · answer #2 · answered by Goddess of Grammar 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
From birth. They will confuse the languages until about age 4 and then it all gets sorted out by that age. Just present a good language model from native speakers of that language. Don't spend a lot of time criticizing or correcting. Young children don't understand meta linguistics until much older. Being overly critical can cause a child to become a stutterer in any language. Just model correct language patterns and when the child is communicating, just be interested in WHAT they are saying not HOW they are saying it.
2006-12-13 02:25:59 · answer #3 · answered by Jesse2k 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The prior you begin the bigger. Babies brains are little sponges and the soak up plenty of language data intheire first yr. I simply learn an editorial approximately this a couple of months in the past and scientists now consider in case you desire your baby to talk a overseas language certainly with out a accessory you have to begin earlier than they begin speakme. My local language is English however I additionally talk CHinese Mandarin and Spanish. I've been operating on educating my daughter all 3 because beginning. I real consider in modern day worldwide local weather the only factor in an effort to set our youngsters aside at some point and deliver them a pleasant begin is more than one languages. I shaggy dog story with every body that my daughter do not need any peers as a child given that she'll be speakme 3 exceptional languages without delay and the opposite children would possibly not be competent to comprehend her. That's no longer real despite the fact that. Ideally, authorities agree that its first-class to have unique contributors talk to the baby of their local language handiest. So if daddy speaks handiest English, then he shhould talk to little one in English handiest and if you're a local Italian speaker, you must talk handiest Italian to little one. And if by means of danger there's a third individual who speaks like Russian or somethingm then they must talk handiest in Russian. Unfortunately I'm the one one my daughter has so she will get all three languages from me. Just do a google seek on-line. THere is plenty of expertise in this discipline. Good success!
2016-09-03 16:38:36 · answer #4 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would say immediately - children can absorb language at an icredibly rapid rate - if you start now, by 4 or 5 , they will be babbling away in whatever language you speak the most. Just try to be consistent, or they'll start using different words from diff. languages in the same sentence. So, choose italian or spanish and talk to your baby in one of those languages, along with english.
2006-12-13 02:25:05 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
As soon as he-she is born. TV. Let him-her listen to the languages Cd's. It Will be hard if you do not speak it yourself. But I commend you for wanting to better your children. Try Speaking Spanish at home, because eventually he will learn English with his. friends. By the time he- she is in kinder garden the child should be bilingual.
2006-12-13 02:22:28 · answer #6 · answered by iraqidesertmp 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
hi..dear!i've heard (at news) that children can learn a second language better,at future, if their parents speak sometimes in those foreign languages with them when they're just 6 months...so they'll be capabale to llearn them faster&easier...u're a native English man/9as u said)are u British?i wanna know more about u...i'm a girl aged20,studying medicine in Iran...my favorite subject is English...i also congratulate Christmass to u!
2006-12-13 05:00:19 · answer #7 · answered by afsane r 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Actually it's never too soon. I read many times that children who grow up bilingual do not confuse the two languages and it even helps their brain development more.
Also, the sooner you start teaching them the easier it is.
2006-12-13 02:19:57 · answer #8 · answered by Kristine R 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
When they get a good handle on basic english, but before the age of 12!
http://www.handlethetruth.net
2006-12-13 02:17:57 · answer #9 · answered by truth_handler 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The first five years of a child's life are the crucial ones.
So start teaching your child from day one! The kid will soak it up like a sponge.
2006-12-13 02:25:29 · answer #10 · answered by the old dog 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋