Tom Pugh, an English father raising bilingual children in Germany, emphasizes the importance of a structured approach to parenting. His experiences highlight the challenges and rewards of helping children navigate multiple languages. Despite being in a privileged position compared to other multilingual families, both he and his wife found it essential to agree on language strategies for their children. Initially mixing languages led to confusion, so they committed to speaking consistently in their native tongues, which facilitated better language acquisition and fluency in both English and German.
As an English-speaking parent in Germany, I know I'm in a relatively privileged position compared with friends whose native languages range from Swedish to Hebrew to Swahili, but it's still far from a straightforward process.
Agree on a consistent approach and stick to it! Parenting books love praising the benefits of consistency especially when it comes to language acquisition.
When my daughter was born, I had spent the previous three years learning German. Proud of myself, I talked to her in a mix of German and English until my wife pointed out how insane it was to try and impress a baby.
I was also terrified she might stop talking to me altogether. My third argument, the only one which cut any ice with my wife, was that I didn't want to risk m
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