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.

Totally agree. My children acquired the language much faster than the other non-native speakers. I wouldn’t say they are especially brilliant. The difference is that we support them at home by learning and trying to speak ourselves and by turning the language on all media to the target language.

My honest advice is to learn spanish yourself. You don’t have to be perfect, but showing you kids how you’re prioritizing spanish will be really helpful. Plan trips to Latin America for vacations, listen to spanish music, volunteer at your kids school. There is no school that will make your child fluent without significant parent input.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One year in my best advice is just to have reasonable expectations for how quickly they start speaking the second language and keep it super low pressure. It’s tempting to want to show off the language skills for grandparents or be constantly listening for “progress.”

But for your kid, this language exists in the classroom and is about play and relationship with other kids and their teachers. It’s hard to explain, but it won’t belong to you (unless you speak it too). So they may never use it at home with you, but speak it a lot at school. (The first time I heard it was when my dd was speaking to her doll while playing alone at home.) Or they may be slow to start using it at school, but their teacher will be the best judge of their pace of learning. So just keep doing all of your normal parenting and keep the language pressure low at home. You don’t have to add a bunch of supports or push them to use it or monitor progress.

+100
Very well stated. My kid has been in Spanish immersion for two years and loves Spanish. Can speak in full sentences, express herself clearly, etc. The caveat is the ONLY reason I know this is because her teachers tell me. She won’t speak Spanish around me or anyone else who she speaks English with. I have heard her speak Spanish with random kids she hears on the playground but her brain truly keeps who she speaks Spanish with separate from who she speaks English with. It’s really interesting but her teachers assure me they are so impressed with her interest and ability in speaking Spanish.

My daughter who is bi-lingual from birth does the same thing. She first started correcting my accent and now tells me “speak English” when I try. It’s normal

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Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Para empezar, debes averiguar si tú o alguien en tu vida puede apoyar el idioma fuera del aula. Si no se refuerza y ​​apoya el idioma más allá de lo que sucede en el aula, entonces el concepto de "inmersión lingüística" es principalmente una estrategia de marketing diseñada para atraer a los padres de clase media alta hacia los objetos brillantes.

Toda la suerte.

B+ at best. Clearly not a native speaker.

+1 Google translate is good, but a native speaker will always be able to tell that google translate was used.

Yeah, “shiny objects” isn’t really something I’ve ever hear in Spanish.

Also, the notion that immersion schools are somehow a trinket to amuse UMC families is strange. We didn’t speak much Spanish to our son until he started immersion, but when he did we all switched to speaking mostly Spanish at home, and it’s been great. Very many families at our school are heritage speakers who depend on an immersion school to maintain their culture.

I didn't use that phrase to describe you all, but I will from now on. It is a genius description.

“ una estrategia de marketing diseñada para atraer a los padres de clase media alta hacia los objetos brillantes.”

So you really don’t understand the Google translate output that you posted at all, huh?

This monolingual person trying to judge bilingual people raising their kids bilingual with the help of immersion school is really pathetic.

How did Spanish hurt you, PP?

The monolingual Pp just hates the fact that immersion schools attract so many families. She is also self-conscious of her choices.