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one parent – one language

Q&A: How to change a situation where one parent feels left out in a multilingual family?

by Rita Rosenback | Mar 14, 2019 | Challenges, Coaches, Q&A Being the parent in a multilingual family, Rita R

Question Hello, My wife and I were ethnically Chinese, but she was mostly raised in Japan and considers her native language Japanese. Before we had our first child, we spoke a mix of Mandarin and English at home. While I have familiarity with Japanese (just...

Q&A: How to add English as a third language for a 1-year-old?

by Amanda Hsiung-Blodgett | Sep 6, 2018 | Amanda Hsiung-Blodgett, Babies, Coaches, Language development, Non-native language, Q&A The trilingual+ child, School-aged children, Toddlers

Question Dear coaches, Thank you for the great website and taking time to help parents. Reading your answers to others' questions gave me some general ideas about my concerns but still I have some topics in mind to ask you. So first I give a summary of our situation....

Q&A: How to pass on two similar minority languages?

by Rita Rosenback | Aug 23, 2018 | Babies, Coaches, Language development, Q&A Being the parent in a multilingual family, Rita R, School-aged children

Question Hello, I'm currently expecting a child and I am really torn about what language/ languages we should be talking to the baby in once he/she arrives. My husband and I speak English at home, my family speaks Spanish and his speaks Portuguese and English....

Q&A: How strict should OPOL-parents be with their languages when speaking to a small child?

by Rita Rosenback | Dec 17, 2017 | Coaches, Language development, Q&A Being the parent in a multilingual family, Q&A Choosing the right family language strategy, Rita R

Question Good day, Thank you for the good advice on multilingual parenting. I am Dutch and married to a Jordanian (Arabic-speaking). We talk English amongst each other but try to stick with our mother tongues (Dutch and Arabic) when talking to our 15-month-old son. He...

Q&A: Switching from OPOL to mL@H to maximise the exposure to the minority language?

by Rita Rosenback | Oct 22, 2017 | Coaches, Non-native language, Q&A Choosing the right family language strategy, Rita R

Question Hi, I am wondering whether it would be helpful to change our approach. My daughter is 23 months old and I've been speaking German with her, while my husband has been speaking English. I am a stay-at-home mom and we are living in Germany, so German is...

Q&A: How can a single parent raise a bilingual child?

by Mary-Pat O'Malley-Keighran | Aug 31, 2017 | Babies, Coaches, Language development, Mary-Pat O'Malley-Keighran, Q&A Being the parent in a multilingual family, Single parent

Question Hey, I decided long time ago that I would want to make my possible future children multilingual. I have lived years abroad (English was and still is my study and work language), but recently moved back to Finland. I'm a native Finnish-speaker, but...

Q&A: Should a bilingual family swap from OPOL to mL@H when moving to a new country?

by Rita Rosenback | Aug 17, 2017 | Coaches, Q&A Choosing the right family language strategy, Q&A Moving to another country with a bilingual / multilingual child, Rita R

Question Hello, thank you so much for this website, it has been such a great resource and source of positive reassurance on our journey to raise bilingual children. I have a question regarding switching the language method in the family. My husband is American,...

Q&A: Should an OPOL parent switch the language spoken with a child depending on who is present?

by Rita Rosenback | Jun 29, 2017 | Coaches, Q&A Being the parent in a multilingual family, Rita R

Question Hi Family Language Coaches! I wanted to ask if, in an OPOL household, it would be detrimental if a parent spoke "the other parent's language" to the child in certain public environments. I live in Germany and speak German natively (and English...

Q&A: Three languages and sign language – too much for a two-year old?

by Rita Rosenback | Jun 18, 2017 | Coaches, Non-native language, Q&A The trilingual+ child, Rita R, Toddlers

Question Hello Looking for a suggestion for introducing my second languages to my toddler. My husband and I are native English speakers. I was a Spanish teacher for five years, so I speak it well, but I'm definitely missing lots of cultural background and...

Q&A: In which language should children watch films in an OPOL-family?

by Rita Rosenback | Oct 13, 2016 | Coaches, Q&A Being the parent in a multilingual family, Rita R

Question Hello everyone! My partner and I bring up our children (3 and 4 years old) bilingually. I speak English as I am from England and my partner speaks German as he comes from Germany. The children’s biological father also speaks German to the children as he is...

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