Getting kid to talk in french

[toawh]

My husband is half french and he has only spoken to our sons in french, but they still reply in english. Any suggestions? They definitely understand french. We read bedtime stories in french only and they laugh at the humor and such, but they don't talk in french. Are there any french play circles around? I live in Southeast Michigan. I want them to be fluent so they can live in France when they grow up if they choose to or speak with relatives if we go visiting. Anyone had this situation or knows what to do? Also am having a hard time finding stories in French. We love Babar, but besides that there are only dictionaries at my library which are sort of pointless 'cause they already know the names of everyday stuff.

[Rosie_0801]

What happens if your husband asks them to reply in French?

 

Rosie

[Matryoshka]

My husband is half french and he has only spoken to our sons in french, but they still reply in english. Any suggestions? They definitely understand french. We read bedtime stories in french only and they laugh at the humor and such, but they don't talk in french. Are there any french play circles around? I live in Southeast Michigan. I want them to be fluent so they can live in France when they grow up if they choose to or speak with relatives if we go visiting. Anyone had this situation or knows what to do? Also am having a hard time finding stories in French. We love Babar, but besides that there are only dictionaries at my library which are sort of pointless 'cause they already know the names of everyday stuff.

 

Try and find out if you have a French expatriate community. When my kids were little I was on a Yahoo group for people raising their kids bilingual English/German (I have no memory of how I found that Yahoo group), and through that I found a local German playgroup (well, 45 min away, but it was worth it). I was one of very few people there who were not native German born.

 

Since it was so far away, I also posted a flyer in my local library for a German playgroup, and I found a surprising number of families. I still went to the faraway one, as it was so large and well-organized, but not weekly anymore.

 

I think it's really important for kids to know that the language is spoken by people other than a parent, and to have peers that speak it.

 

A lot of dvds can be played in French as well as English - that's another nice way to have them hear the language. As for books, is it doable to order from Amazon Canada? I'd think they'd have a sizable French book selection.

[C_l_e_0..Q_c]

It seems to me that young kids will decide whether a language is useful to them by the number of people they can talk to in that language. If there's only one person, the kids won't bother. Sure they will understand the language, but they won't use it.

If there's a group of extended people, not only family members, the kids will pick up the language.

[Mabelen]

It seems to me that young kids will decide whether a language is useful to them by the number of people they can talk to in that language. If there's only one person, the kids won't bother. Sure they will understand the language, but they won't use it.

If there's a group of extended people, not only family members, the kids will pick up the language.

 

This is soo true!

 

Playgroups definitely help, especially if they start early on. Kids pick up on the adults' interactions in the language, this is just as important as having other kids with whom to speak that language.

[yvonne]

Hi toawh,

 

No advice, just commiseration. :) My husband is French and his family is all in France. He only speaks French to the kids, but they reply in English. I told him he really needed to insist that they reply in French and play that he can't understand English, but it's just too hard for him after working all day, I think.

 

My latest tack has been to have them read aloud from an easy reader in French. I order what looks good and have it sent to my in-laws. They bring it with them when they visit twice a year. Right now we're reading a Sophie and a Cabane Magique (Magic Tree House) book. Can't get much simpler than that! :) Even my 7 year old can make out most of the words.

[yoda]

I was in the same situation with my kids, but I just really, really insisted and it did work, but it was and still is hard work and you have to want it really bad. My kids are now in fourth and second grade and are fully bilingual and are able to read and write both in English and Dutch (their second language), despite the fact that there are no other Dutch speakers around at all, we've never had a playgroup, we have very limited books available, and did not have any dvds till this christmas, and the fact that my dh doesn't speak Dutch, so the only interaction they have in Dutch is with me, and once a year when we see travel to Europe to see my family for a couple of weeks. Their Dutch isn't quite as good as their English but it is possible to get them bilingual. The one thing that is important though I think is persistence, and I have to retake that vow myself every 6 months or so, I tend to slack of and respond in English or let them get away with responding in English, and then I have to catch myself and make it a priority for awhile again.

Hope this helps

[Friederike in Persia]

I was in the same situation with my kids, but I just really, really insisted and it did work, but it was and still is hard work and you have to want it really bad. My kids are now in fourth and second grade and are fully bilingual and are able to read and write both in English and Dutch (their second language), despite the fact that there are no other Dutch speakers around at all, we've never had a playgroup, we have very limited books available, and did not have any dvds till this christmas, and the fact that my dh doesn't speak Dutch, so the only interaction they have in Dutch is with me, and once a year when we see travel to Europe to see my family for a couple of weeks. Their Dutch isn't quite as good as their English but it is possible to get them bilingual. The one thing that is important though I think is persistence, and I have to retake that vow myself every 6 months or so, I tend to slack of and respond in English or let them get away with responding in English, and then I have to catch myself and make it a priority for awhile again.

Hope this helps

 

:iagree: If you (and your dh) want it (them being biligual) bad enough he can stop responding when they speak English to him. To begin with just a sentence with a bit of French in it would be acceptable, with time it would have to be all French.

My ds 6 still throws in plenty of English words when he speaks to me. When I get the impression that he's not even trying I'll tell him in German to repeat it in German or I wouldn't respond. When he seems to try I sometimes repeat his question for him in German and he can then repeat it after me and we go from there. Somewhat cumbersome, but my dds were the same and now at 9 and 10 they don't use many English words any more.

I must be the only mum in the whole of Germany who tells her kids to not speak English, with that whole nation being English mad and everybody else jumping for joy whenever their kids speak some English!:lol:

[stripe]

I once had an acquaintance who was the only Spanish speaker around and she successfully raised her kids to speak to her only in Spanish. My kids (so far) have been tricked into speaking both languages at home, OPOL-style, for the past year.

 

I'd look into interlibrary loan (in your case, likely here) for children's books or visiting nearby libraries that might have more French stuff. Maybe you could go on a field trip to another library? Some libraries allow reciprocal borrowing, so that you could borrow from their branch -- it'd be worth seeing if that's a possibility for you.

 

I'd also suggest Tumblebooks. Many libraries subscribe. You can see animated books in English, French, and Spanish via your library's website.

 

The International Children's Digital Library has online stories in many languages; they have 53 in French.

 

Also listen to French radio (there's quite a bit online, from all over the world) and music. I think it helps to feel that there is a French environment that real people use.

 

I also found Les Petit s Livres-- an online book rental service a la Netflix.

Edited March 2, 2010 by stripe

[Kate in Arabia]

 

I once had an acquaintance who was the only Spanish speaker around and she successfully raised her kids to speak to her only in Spanish.

I had a friend do the same with Arabic. She taught herself Arabic, then insisted on it as the primary language at home. I remember when her middle child entered public school in KG, he was put with the ESL kids. She talked about insisting they only spoke Arabic to her, it took a lot of effort and willpower on her part.

[stripe]

The URL got *ed out for Les Petit s Livres (omit the space) when I posted before:

 

The male plural of "petit" (I had a spelling error previously, but URL was still being *ed out). I have given it a tiny URL: it's for petit slivres.com, but remove the space.

 

Here it is, in a direct link to the tiny URL, which won't edit it:

Les Petit s Livres

[Nan in Mass]

I wondered why there was a space. The perils of living in a monolingual country LOL. (That seems to be changing now, though.)

[toawh]

I haven't checked this site since I posted. Lately my son will ask his dad questions in french when he really wants something badly. He's into speaking his "own" language ( a bunch of nonsense ) too. I guess he figures if I'm pulling his leg (Daddy doesn't understand when you speak english, etc..) he may as well give it a try too. I really want to find a play circle. I think I'll try the library nothing else has been successful yet.

[toawh]

International Children's library is a great find.:001_smile:

[burckeri]

In Southeast Michigan, you can access some resources in French more easily than in other parts of the US because of your proximity to Canada. You can listen to Radio Canada from Windsor on AM 540. If you drive over to Windsor, you can visit a great little book/toy store that specializes in French books. It's called the Toys & Activity Store on the sign and Librairie Toys & Activity in the window; it's next to the Tim Hortons at the corner of Wyandotte and Lauzon. The Windsor Public Library has a large selection of children's books in French. I don't know if there's a way for you to pay and get a library card as a non-resident, but you could at least park yourself in the library and read with your kids. The main library downtown has a cozy children's area with toys and fun places to sit and read. You could also check into Place Concorde--the French community center. Windsor has a rich French history which is rather unique in southwestern Ontario and there are still many French-speakers in the community (including some of my family members). I hope this helps.

 

Erin

[4littleones]

:grouphug:

 

I know the feeling... and I am really really guilty because both myself and DH speak Greek, but we are so conditioned to English - we think in English - and frankly, we are loosing the battle with the children.

 

It doesn't help that we cannot find any noteworthy children's books... My SIL sent me some and I really was wondering why they cut trees to print those modern Greek stories... Bleau!

 

We must keep ourselves accountable to each other... what about a club: "I am not talking to you unless you speak .... to me"

[justasque]

Scholastic has a Canadian version - a few years back I was part of a group that got the fliers and we'd put in a group order. Lots of good books in French, plus things like holiday-themed seek a word books and so on.

 

Also, there are lot of French podcasts (free!), and we've been enjoying French music as well.

[yvonne]

Pauline,

 

Do you have any suggestions for French podcasts for kids (7-12 yo)?

 

Thanks!

yvonne

[Nan in Mass]

Or ones for 16yos?

[stripe]

I am rather fond of NHK (Radio Japan). They have broadcasts in a variety of languages. Here's their French stuff:

http://www.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/french/top/index.html

 

They sometimes have interesting science stories, as well as stuff about Japanese culture in other languages.

[justasque]

CBC has one called c'est la vie word of the week. They take a word and interview Francophone Canadians on how they use the word. The host is very pleasant and it's quite interesting, even if you don't know much French. This is not a huge vocabulary builder as it's only one word a week, but they cover that word's usage very well. So this word would be a "fun" interlude for someone who is studying French, but also interesting for someone who is not actively studying French but wants a taste of it.

 

I also listen now and again to one that is designed for learners of French, called "Learn French with Daily Podcasts". They pick a topic, typically from the news. (A recent one was about those annoying horns they use at the World Cup matches.) There is a brief paragraph about it, with the words said slowly, and a lot of repetition, and sometimes an explanation (in French or sometimes in English) of a particular word or phrase. I think there are .pdf files you can get to go with it, for a fee, as well as other learning tools - I haven't done this but if you were using it for serious study they'd be very useful. This is intended for adults, and the topics are taken from the news, so it may be unsuitable for kids - I haven't listened enough to judge this (plus I only understand some of what they say!)

 

My hubby likes "Coffee Break French" - I haven't tried that one.

 

There are also the French in Action videos from PBS (which go with the FIA curriculum) - you can view the videos free; I don't know if they podcast them.

[JadeOrchidSong]

I am interested in this. I would like to teach my kids to speak French. I studied French for 4 years and was able to carry a conversation for an hour or so with native speakers. But I haven't practiced for a long time and now I cannot do it anymore.

By the way, what is a good French program?

J

[toawh]

Thanks for all the ideas. I guess what I'm really fishing for is fluency. Spanish was my first language, but my parents stopped talking to us in it and I lost it ALL. Now I'm struggling to make myself understood in it and it's so embarrassing with relatives and such. I want my kids to really speak french!

[toawh]

Are there any people out here that live in the South East Michigan area and are french? I can't find a play circle in french. Maybe I need to start one. If you exist and are interested let me know.

[AHASRADA]

Do your kids have the opportunity to visit French-speaking family, especially cousins they can play with? My family has visited my in-laws overseas about every other year throughout my ds's childhoods, and it makes a huge difference.

 

With my ds, we never had a problem with him responding in Arabic (his dad's language). We decided from day one, I speak English, dad speaks Arabic, done, no exceptions. Ds was about 4 when he finally realized that his dad could understand English :001_huh: (I don't know how he thought we communicated, but hey, it worked!)

 

When dd came along, she sneakily realized that everyone in her everyday life who spoke Arabic (dad, uncles, aunts) also understood English, so why bother? It probably didn't help that she had her brother, in addition to myself, speaking to her in English all day. She would say a few words to her grandparents if they came to visit, but definitely was not fluent.

 

The situation changed when she was old enough (about 5/6) to want to play with her cousins when visiting them overseas, and realized she would have to speak to make that work. She became "fluent" in no time. She still isn't as fluent as her brother, but she talks to her cousins on Skype all the time, and speaks Arabic to any of us when she doesn't want others around to understand ;).

 

If your kids have a relationship with your dh's family, Skype (especially with a webcam) can be a great way for them to use French. If not, you need to take a trip to get that relationship established, then maintain it on Skype. Of course a playgroup would be helpful too, and the movies and books suggestions are great, but they really need to find themselves in a situation where they have no choice but to use French to communicate.

[stripe]

There is something especially compelling, I think, for a child to need to speak a language to other kids. (Who, even if they know English, say, rarely are very keen to use it. At least among the kids I know.) And they talk about an entirely different set of things than adults do.

[toawh]

The communication between my son and his father seems to revolve around the same things. Besides story times, my son can get away with just saying things like "Can I have _____?", "Can we do _______?" and stuff kinda like that. It's nothing compared to the constant chatter I get from him all day in English. His cousins are a lot older than him, but maybe if we go visit Grandpa (and he doesn't let him speak to him in English "Grrrrr!" because Grandpa understands and is fluent in english) it'll work!:confused: