Variety Language LearningIf you follow my blog, you can see that I haven’t posted for some months. There are few reasons for that. And I am happy to make a comeback by participating in A to Z of Multilingual Children – a series organised by my blogger friend Annabelle of The Piri-piri Lexicon.

I got the letter V and I decided to talk about Variety of Language Learning Methods in Multilingual Homes.

I happen to start my multilingual journey when I was very young and I was growing up in a small town in Buryatia. We had neighbours who were local and who, apparently, spoke Buryat language to me. My mom accidentally saw me replying to them and having a casual conversation.

I was 4+ when we left that area. And I have since forgotten the language. But I have always had a very strong attachment to new languages. I loved the sound of English, French, Hindi, Arabic – you name it.
And so when it was time for me to choose a profession, I became a teacher and a philologist.

I can’t say I am very consistent with teaching my mother tongue to my children. But until they were two, I spoke Russian to them 90% of the time, with switching to English as it is our family language. Once they turned 2, they sort of chose English as it was the main language my husband and I speak to each other and to our friends.

So, you decided to raise a multingual. Where to start?

First of all, choose a method you want to follow. The variety of methods comes down to the following three:
– OPOL (one person -one language)
– Code-switching (when parents switch between languages they want their children to learn on daily basis)
– ML@H (minority language at home).

There are some variations to that where can dedicate a day or two every week to speak a particular language.

Second, have your family’s support. Or try getting it. People in your family – your spouse, you in-laws, and other relatives, have to understand that you want to raise your child a certain way. I am yet to meet a family where relatives opposed the child learning a language. Though, it is not unheard of.

And third, remember – it is never late to change your methods, or adjust it to suit best you family’s needs. There are so many ways to support language learning – you can find some in my article on 100 Ways to Encourage a Foreign Language Learning.
At the end, I’d like you to take a fun quiz to see what method suits you best!
Mark the statement with “yes”, “no”, or “not sure”: 

1. You speak more than 1 language (if yes, go to #3!)
2. You want to speak more than 1 language.
3. You want your children to speak more than 1 language.
4. When you are upset, you express yourself in your own language (if you answered “no” for #2, ignore this one!)
5. You have no one to speak your language with , so you hope your children will make up for it (if you answered “no”for #2, ignore this one!)
6. You want your children to speak a language that you always wanted to learn.
7. You want to have a secret way of communicating with your children.
8. You really don’t care who speaks what, you just want everyone to get along!

Now, check your results:
– If you answered “yes” to all or most, you can go ahead and chose any methods from the above. And you can’t hold me responsible!
– If you answered “no” to all or most, it is time to move abroad or send your children to a bilingual school!
– If you answered “not sure” or “don’t know” to all or most – you are utterly confused, and I hope you find some clarity for yourself in this post!

P.s. this test was intended as a joke, and didn’t aim at offending anyone. Whatever method you choose to support multilingualism at your home, do so with confidence that it WILL be beneficial to you and your children.

the piri-piri lexicon