My son just turned 2. Our household is English and Mandarin, then he gets some Taigi from the grandparents. I would say your daughter is further along than him, although that’s fairly usual in that girls tend to be a bit more advanced linguistically than boys. He can use a mixture of words from each language, and can take simple direction in them too. He’s also began to switch languages depending on who he is talking too. In general though, he will only use one word at a time, or a few two word phrases that he picked up as one word like “I want” and “all done”. He can’t count in any language yet. In pictures he’ll refer to himself by his name. I’m not particularly worried about where he is with his speaking, I used to teach 2-3 year olds and he’s more advanced that many of them with his listening skills, and also with his motor skills, and I’m sure once he gets going it’ll be hard to shut him up.
From what I’ve heard many mixed parents only speak English at home and just send the children to school to learn Chinese. Some even move the whole family back to Taiwan so that children can learn Chinese.
I find that bewildering. It’s not like Chinese would be useful for their future unless they want to do diplomatic service or become a spy. You might as well teach them Spanish if they are just gonna work in America anyway.
Very interesting. I assume that’s how pidgins and creoles arise naturally, if there are enough kids going through the same language mixture.
After my daughter uttered a long string of gibberish but I was able to guess what she wanted and the answer was no, she would furrows her brows and sigh, and then give me some more gibberish. It’s adorable now, but I bet it’s going to be miserable once I understand the talking back portion of the conversation.
From my experience children can learn amazingly fast. We live in Penghu and at home my wife speaks Chinese to our children, my in-laws Taiwanese and I speak English to her.
I work an expat job so I spend a lot of time not in the country and if I’m generous I speak with my children maybe 1 hour a day. Despite only hearing English for such a short time when I’m back they understand everything I’m asking them with no issues.
The only noticeable thing is that my eldest (almost 3) really does not like to speak English. This is also made worse by the fact that I’m kind of learning chinese with her, so I can understand her when she speaks in Chinese but reply in English, whilst she does the opposite.
I was also really worried at the start, especially with my job but the human brain is an amazing thing.
I think starting at 3 is when kids start to care about their peers and not wanting to standout in fear of being isolated for being different. Even if she is only responding in Chinese I think just by getting the input from you she is still getting a superior English learning environment than the rest of the kids. It would of course be great if your kids are willing to converse to one another in English.
What if Xi got his wish, and the Chinese quadrupled their population so they can run the entire world with Socialism with Chinese characteristics?
My kids do that (in Portuguese, not English) but tend to go back to Mandarin as they find it easier. Sometimes I remind them and they return to Portuguese but other times I just let them continue playing. Kids must be kids anyway!
Exactly our experience. My older son regularly heard six languages on a daily basis and he didn’t really start talking til he was over 2 years old. And I don’t think he’s stopped since.
I would not worry too much. My son grew up with Taiwanese with Grandparents and mother uncles etc… Mandarin at home with me and the mother and Japanese at the Kindy he went to. Mandarin / Taiwanese in 1st year of elementary school in Taichung
He did not learn any English until he was 8 when he went to Australia for a year. Kids will make mistakes and they will correct them later on.
By the way, how old do they have to get before they are able to sit and listen to a story or let you read a story from cover to cover? Mine just want to flip through the pages her self, and stands up and asks for another book as soon as she flipped through the book 2 or 3 pages at a time. Am I just really bad at telling stories?
Depends on the kid. Mine has been happy to sit through stories with me for a while now and he loves going to the library to pick out new books. Different kids have different levels of patience for this though.
Some kids pick up books they cannot read and just make up their own stories to the pictures they see. Let them be creative.
My elder kids all sit well to listen and interact with the story. The 3yo still wants to turn the pages before I finish reading from time to time but is getting more patient recently.
Exactly, my 2nd year old boy, when i “read” some books i take some characters from the story either the main protagonist or secondary character like the ambulance driver, police man etc.
Book page ilustration : “hospital call center receive a call of a mother that is comforting his kid that fell down “.
*Me: Ohh, You / Lucas fell down, does it hurts? Mom is calling for an ambulance, what’s the sound of the ambulance? Who is driving the ambulance? Me? You/Lucas, Mom, Granpa ? Blippi ? ( add random charscter from his youtube videos ) *
Me: The doctor arrived! How the doctor comforts Lucas ? Are you a doctor too? Ouch my knee hurts, please help me Dr.Lucas .
So the trick is not only read it , make it interesting, make him participate or add his own make up stories.
My wife reads him in Chinese, I read him in Spanish.
The text are in English, so the main keywords we repeat it in English, Spanish and Chinese.
Speaking of reading stories - last week, @Celeborn passed on some awesome links and tips about reading stories that I think you’ll really enjoy. Check them out!
Highlights from "How to read out loud to your children, according to audiobook narrators"
The blog post aims to guide fathers and parents on how to enhance the experience of reading aloud to their elementary school-age children. It provides expert advice from professional audiobook narrators on how to make bedtime storytelling more engaging and effective.
Key Themes:
1. Importance of Reading Aloud: The article emphasizes the emotional and cognitive benefits of reading aloud to children. “It’s a time to have with your children, uninterrupted, one-to-one,” says Rachel Bavidge.
2. Techniques for Effective Storytelling: The article offers various techniques to improve the quality of storytelling, such as pacing, character voices, and book selection. “Always think: am I trying to engage my children, or get them to sleep?” says Bavidge.
Valuable Tips:
1: Choose the Right Book for the Right Time: Different stories are suitable for different times of the day, depending on whether you want to engage or soothe the child.
Practical Application: Choose exciting books with cliffhangers for engaging sessions and more subtle, familiar books for bedtime.
2: Never Rush the Reading: Slowing down the pace adds texture to the narration and enhances the child’s listening experience.
Practical Application: Read slower than feels natural to make the storytelling more engaging.
Highlights from "How to Read a Bedtime Story"
The blog post aims to enhance the quality of bedtime storytelling by fathers to their elementary school-age children. It emphasizes the importance of reading aloud for children’s academic and language development and offers practical tips for making storytime more engaging.
Key Themes:
1. Importance of Bedtime Stories: The article underscores the educational and developmental benefits of bedtime stories. “Research shows that when dads read bedtime stories, their kids do better at school.”
2. Effective Storytelling Techniques: The article provides various techniques to make storytelling more engaging and beneficial for children. “Bedtime stories should be told in a relaxed atmosphere — so let’s begin by switching off the TV.”
Valuable Tips:
Tip 1: Get into Character: Adding dramatization and different voices can make the story more stimulating and enjoyable.
Practical Application: Use different voices for different characters and mimic actions from the story to engage the child.
Tip 2: Have a Regular Read: Reading the same story regularly can help in language development and memory enhancement for the child.
Practical Application: Choose a favorite story and read it multiple times to help the child become familiar with words and establish speech patterns.
Overall Assessment:
Relevance to Target Audience: Highly relevant, as it provides actionable tips specifically aimed at fathers.
Quality of Content: High-quality, research-backed insights.
Actionable Insights: The article offers practical and easily implementable tips for improving bedtime storytelling.
Recommendations:
Would you recommend this blog post to others? Yes, it is a valuable resource for fathers looking to improve their storytelling skills and understand the benefits of reading aloud to their children.
Any additional resources or readings that can complement the insights from this blog post? Further research on the psychological benefits of reading aloud to children could provide a more rounded understanding.
Highlights from "How to Read to Children (Tip: Always Do the Voices)"
The blog post in question is an in-depth guide aimed at educators and parents, particularly fathers of elementary school-age children, on the art of reading aloud to children. The post emphasizes the importance of reading aloud in a captivating manner to engage young minds and foster a love for reading.
The main objective is to underscore the significance of reading aloud to children in an engaging manner. The author aims to equip fathers of elementary school-age children with techniques to make the reading experience more enriching and enjoyable for both the reader and the listener.
Key Themes:
1. Importance of Reading Aloud: Reading aloud is not just a leisure activity but a powerful tool in child development. It enhances vocabulary, listening skills, and fosters a love for reading. “When you read to kids, you are conditioning them to associate print with pleasure, whetting their appetite for reading, and fostering a lifelong love of books.”
2: Techniques for Effective Reading Aloud: The author provides various techniques like changing voice, using body language, and adding sound effects to make the reading session more engaging. “Reading aloud requires the voice of an actor, the timing of a playwright, the expressions of a mime, and the rhythm of a musician.”
Valuable Tips:
Tip 1: Changing Your Voice Altering the voice for different characters or situations can make the story more engaging.
Practical Application: Use a high-pitched voice for a child character and a deep voice for an adult character in the story.
Tip 2: Using Body Language Acting out the words or showing emotions can make the story come alive.
Practical Application: If a character is sad in the story, show a frown to convey the emotion.
Most kids will not. You could get her one of those books with pages of cloth, they make for learning textures, do not tear and are machine-washable. They also helps the kid learn to turn pages without tearing them. By the time she is done with her book she will be more likely to pay attention to the page contents.