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[quote=Anonymous]As a monolingual parent of a child in an immersion program my advice is to just offer support and encouragement.  I know that's going to sound insufficient, but here are some practical things you can do:

1)  The child is going to get frustrated in school, especially early on.  Here is where you provide the support.  Allow them to speak English at home.  Provide as much support as you can in the pick-up/drop-off periods.  Eventually they will adjust to the school.  Remember that they likely are not the only native English speakers in the immersion program.  If the teachers are worth their salt, they won't be *too* discouraging in allowing the  non-native speakers to occasionally converse with each other in English, even if they are enforcing Spanish (or other) only.

2) Try to learn along with them.  Start with some easy words and be exciting.  Kids love excitement.  Pick them up with an "Hola!"  Say "Adios!" to their teachers and encourage your kid to say "Adios" and "Hasta Manana" as they get more comfortable.  Modeling the behavior (of respecting the school and the language of the program) will help them adjust to the idea that it is "normal" to speak one language at school and another at home.

3) Similarly, try to mix in Spanish (for this example, or mandarin or whatever other immersion language) vocab into day to day.  Count numbers in English *and* in Spanish.  Do colors in English *and* Spanish.  Anything to get them more comfortable with additional words and the idea of saying them.  Get some bilingual kids books and read them in both languages to your kid.  Again, you're just trying to normalize them to the idea that there are multiple languages for them.  If they get some screen time, consider a foreign language tv show/cartoon for them (big fan of Pocoyo on Netflix or switching Spidey and His Amazing Friends to be in Spanish--throw on English subtitles to boot so you can follow along and explain what's happening with them).

4) Try to mix in some Spanish-speaking "culture".  Order in from a mexican restaurant and talk about "quesadillas" and "burritos" with your kid.  A lot of this is gonna sound extremely gringo, but the whole point is to try to make it fun while acknowledging your limitations (and it is definitely a limitation for me) as a monolingual speaker.  The school will hopefully do a good job with authenticity and complexity.  You can just be a fun parent at home and meet them where they are going as best you can.  [/quote]

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