 | NadiaB
Fresh Boarder | |  | | Re:Having a hard time with 3 languages - 2009/04/23 13:12
My son is 2 1/2 years old and we also raise him in 3 languages. I speak German to him, my husband Arabic and he learns English in the nursery. So far it's really going well. He speaks words in all three languages and understands them. We really try to stick to OPOL although every now and then a word in another language may slip in.
My husband doesn't speak any German although he now understands a few words. I do understand basic Arabic. We talk English to each other but only address our son in "our" language.
It is normal that children mix and match languages at this age but you as a parent should try not to. When I tell my son something in German, I translate it to my husband or other people around us.
When my son tells me something in English or Arabic, I will repeat the same in German for him to learn the vocabulary and associate the "right" language to me.
It's about putting in an extra effort and it might seem hard but it is definitely worth it.
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| | Abu Tufton
Fresh Boarder | | | | Re:Having a hard time with 3 languages - 2010/10/02 20:06
Nadia B- I think you're doing the right thing. Maybe you're worrying too much about translating for others...
It's not easy, it does take a lot of effort and the child's productive skills may be a bit slower than monolingual children initially, but they soon catch up.
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