I think I'm the only parent who could not care less about DC learning multiple languages

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, the research really does show that bilinguals can multitask better, in general. Studies also suggest greater vocabulary, better use of language etc. Doesn't mean that every bilingual will display these traits, nor that monolinguals are hopeless losers. Still, there are some real cognitive benefits to being bilingual, which is why so many parents want their kids to learn another language.

That's correlation, not causation.

[Anonymous]

Ditto to OP. One can pick up a language- even as an adult- in a few months immersion. Why waste all that valuable class time when you could be learning history or reading classics? I wasted 7 years on French, which MAYBE enables me to order water at a French bistro, before I end up having to convert back to English when they think I can actually speak French.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ditto to OP. One can pick up a language- even as an adult- in a few months immersion. Why waste all that valuable class time when you could be learning history or reading classics? I wasted 7 years on French, which MAYBE enables me to order water at a French bistro, before I end up having to convert back to English when they think I can actually speak French.

Typical of the mindset of this country, unfortunately.

If a child learns a language through immersion, s/he learns subjects like math, science, and history in that language.

Moreover, I wasn't aware that the English language is the only language in which classics are available to read. Many of the classics that I read (Greek classics, Latin classics, French, Italian and Spanish classics) were originally written in a language other than English, LOL, and we read them in (imperfect) English translations in English or Ancient History classes.

I'm so sorry that 7 years of French enabled you to only order a glass of water. My six years of middle school and high school French enabled me to navigate Paris without any problems as a 16 year old when I went there for the first time, read French newspapers and magazines, and read a number of French classics in the original French (Sartre, Ionesco). And this was at a public school, albeit a very good one. Continuing the language in college gave me that much more depth.

[Anonymous]

There are several immersion programs in DC:

WIS
Yu Ying - Mandarin
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/476350.aspx
http://washingtoncitypaper.com/display.php?id=36480
Shepherd - French & Spanish
Oyster - Spanish
DC Bilingual - Spanish

& John Thompson downtown does FLES (Foreign Language in Elementary School but not immersion I don't think) - Spanish & Mandarin

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a long winding OT question -

We're immigrants and speak Chinese (mandarin to be specific). Most of our friends speak Chinese. My DC (3&5) were born here and English is their dominate/best language. In fact, they speak very little Chinese due to lack of efforts on our part.

So, with that background, here's my theory on how to entice their interests to learn Chinese and use it: Meet up with mandarin speakers of different races (it's actually not hard to find them in DC). My thinking is, if the language is only spoken when 'Chinese-looking' people is around, and never between non-Chinese-looking people, they're going to associate the language with race. Since the majority of their lives they encounter much more people of a different race than their own, they will not see Chinese as a commonly-used language, and thus have little motivation to learn/use it - in other words, "because it's only spoken at home."

I hope I'm making (some) sense.... Thoughts? I'm especially interested to hear from moms who speak Chinese at home (2nd-gen Chinese?) and never get a chance to use it anywhere else.

Thanks!

Why not enroll them in a Mandarin Immersion program?

There are 2 public schools in DC which offer Mandarin and your children would be exposed to people of all races going out their way to learn Mandarin. Your kids would even be at an academic and social advantage, which could provide exactly the incentive you're looking for to keep them interested in Mandarin. Washington Yu Ying (http://www.washingtonyuying.org/) and John Thompson (http://www.thomsonelementary.org/) would both LOVE to have your children enrolled, and because they speak Mandarin they probably could get in even if there's a waitlist or an OOB application.

[Anonymous]

Maybe there's a distinction to be made between "speaking" another language and true "fluency." Fluency is more than the ability to order off the menu on your trip to France, it's the ability to actually think in another language. At that level, language is a tool - the tool that shapes and reflects a worldview. True fluency in more than one language is a gift that allows the individual to literally see and experience the world through more than one cultural lens.

I know many, many people who "speak" more than one language, but far fewer who are truly "fluent" in more than one and the difference is profound.

[Anonymous]

I work in an international field and speak 5 languages. It was not my parents' choice but mine. I chose to study languages, live several years abroad, and work in my field. None of my 3 siblings speak more than a smattering of bad Spanish. They don't need to for their jobs and rarely travel abroad.

Your children will follow their interests (and I hope you will let them do so). My son understands some French, Spanish, and German but he is not in any immersion school and I didn't go out of my way to hire a nanny or au pair who speaks another language. I did visit one immersion school but (here I go being elitist) the teachers had much stronger American accents than I do. If he enjoys learning about other languages and cultures I will let him know about opportunities to be a foreign exchange student as I was. That teaches not only languages but cultures as well.

[Anonymous]

I'm the poster who said 7 years of French got me the ability to order water in Paris... yes, you said it, that is pathetic I know! Every report card I'd bring back over 100 percent grades in French too, the teachers created extra work for me because I surpassed my classmates. This was the public school experience for me. That's why I know my kids deserve something different and I brave the snide remarks from parents on this board when I ask questions about the independent schools. Honestly, I think despite my good grades in it, I just wasn't a language person and never fostered it as I could have. More to the point some make that you can't pop your kid into Mandarin immersion or hire a Chinese au pair for a year and think they will have a lifetime of Mandarin fluency. It's something that needs to be constantly fostered.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm the poster who said 7 years of French got me the ability to order water in Paris... yes, you said it, that is pathetic I know! Every report card I'd bring back over 100 percent grades in French too, the teachers created extra work for me because I surpassed my classmates. This was the public school experience for me. That's why I know my kids deserve something different and I brave the snide remarks from parents on this board when I ask questions about the independent schools. Honestly, I think despite my good grades in it, I just wasn't a language person and never fostered it as I could have. More to the point some make that you can't pop your kid into Mandarin immersion or hire a Chinese au pair for a year and think they will have a lifetime of Mandarin fluency. It's something that needs to be constantly fostered.

As a non-native speaker raising a child bilingually, thanks primarily to early Spanish child care and now immersion school, I can't agree enough with you about how you have to work at fostering a child's second-language development. We do a lot of things to do this - Spanish-language theatre, Spanish pop music, lots of books, some TV, some travel, even religious practices. The key is to make it fun. Finding the resources in this area is easy, but it does require a commitment.