It's Carnival Time Again

The September edition of the Blogging Carnival on Bilingualism is being hosted by Jan at Babelkid. Head on over and check it out.

Is there such a thing as the perfect balance?

I can't help but wonder whether there really is such a thing as the perfect balance where bilingualism or multilingualism is concerned. I'm not just talking about a balance in ability but also in passion, commitment and even confidence.

As a mother who has chosen to speak French only (ok...ok.. I'm not going to paint myself as the saint that I  clearly am not.... so I will rephrase that ..) - As a mother who has chosen to speak French as consistently as possible to my daughter, I naturally have a vested interest in her French language development. Recently, I have been over the moon to watch her responding to more and more words and phrases. She now actually comes to me when I say "Viens!" (Come here!). It's amazing to watch a child's development and to witness the wonders of the human brain. How a brain comes to process and understand the spoken word is mind boggling whatever language is in play. However, I can't help being that little bit more excited about the fact that my 11 month old English daughter is more than capable of responding to a command/ request spoken to her in French.

So... when I went to collect Poppette from nursery last week, I couldn't help feeling a little bit protective towards her French language skills when the nursery nurse told me that she had been saying 'Ta' all day long, on each occasion that someone had passed something to her. I was surprised as 'Ta' is not a word that Papa or I  ever use - clearly Poppette has learnt this word from her time in nursery. Argh... she has only been there a month and already they are filling her head with English... help...

Seriously, I am now starting to realise that I am going to have to talk, talk and talk some more at every given opportunity if French is to be given even a fighting chance. Five days a week in nursery are clearly going to lead to English immersion. Where's the balance in that :-(

Il est où, Doudou? (Where's Doudou?)

I am so excited to sit down and write this post.

Poppette understands French!!!!

I have no idea why I am so suprised - afterall, I have been speaking French to her since she was around 3 months old (so for the past 8 months of her life). Still, it was such a shock when I first realised.

Without doubt she understands the following:

"Il est où, Doudou" - (where's Doudou (her little lamb comforter)) - when I ask her this question, she looks all over until she can see him then crawls over to wherever he happens to be and grabs him. So now we often play a game where I show here Doudou, then put him in a box or behind a toy or something, then I ask where he is and she sets of to retrieve him. Brilliant!!!

"Elle est où, la lumière" - (where's the light) - when I ask her this she looks straight up to the light fitting in whichever room we happen to be in and holds her hand up towards it.

I'm also pretty sure she understands "encore" (more) and "fini" (finished).

Actually, in my more excitable moments I sometimes wonder if I might have just heard her say "ouais" (yeah) but then I am not sure that this is really possible at the tender age of 11 months....

It's Carnival Time Again..... July Bilingual Blogging Carnival

Maria over at Busy as a Bee in Paris has hosted this month's Bilingual Blogging Carnival. Head over and have a look.

Trying to keep one step ahead on the non-native path

I am oh so conscious that I just haven't had the time to sit down and write for far too long now. Sometimes life gets in the way and other priorities raise their head. That said, there is barely a day goes by when my brain doesn't whiz around ruminating upon some element of this bilingual life we have chosen. So... as it's Bilingual Carnival time again, I have been spurred on to get back on my blogging horse.

Over the past few weeks I have been grappling with the worry that my language skills may not keep up with the ever evolving needs of Poppette. Of course, I know that it's a moving feast and as time goes by I will, with the right effort and determination, pick up more and more appropriate vocabulary and turns of phrase. But really.... that commitment seems huge... especially in the dark hours of the early morning when I should be sleeping but my brain won't allow it! It's the seemingly little things that monolingual and native-speaking parents won't ever need to give a second thought to that create such potential minefields for a non-native ... such as making Halloween masks, baking cupcakes, making friendship bracelets....

At this stage... all I can do is panic! My common sense tells me that I just need to buy some French crafting and activity books and look out for DVD's in the same vein as Disney's Art Attack (but en français) and learn from them. It's a daunting prospect though... trying to keep one step ahead at all times.

I know that attending the French Saturday school we have found will really help; or at least I hope so. This is a place where Poppette can play with other children in French and I can mix with French and Francophone mums... both of us absorbing more and more language. School is now out for summer though and I await September term with real anticipation.

I read an interesting letter on the pages of InCultureParent Magazine yesterday which reinforced the validity of my concerns. The non-native (OPOL) Maman in question had written for advice as to whether she should give up speaking Spanish to her 3 year old son as it is becoming exhausting. She makes a really solid point in that, although she is fluent in Spanish, with the best will in the world it is still her second language and her level when compared with a highly educated native speaking Spaniard is ‘rudimentary’; the result being that her son is nowhere near as eloquent in Spanish as he is in English. The expert's response was reassuring, namely: - 'Bravo for how far you have come on your own so far' and 'Now it's time to get some help!'

If any one has any experience or advice about how (or how not) to proceed, or any resource suggestions, then please do either leave me a comment or email me at non.native.adventure@gmail.com

George Saunders just landed on my doorstep.....

George Saunders is arguably the most well known non-native bilingual parent of them all. His book "Bilingual Children: From Birth to Teens" is held in the highest of esteem and has become somewhat of a bible for many people who are considering or who have already begun bilingual parenting.

Born in Australia, both George Saunders ("GS") and his wife speak English as their first language. GS also speaks German (and French) and, due to his great interest in language, linguistics and bilingualism, decided to raise his three Australian born children to be bilingual (English/ German). His book chronicles the process and contains a wealth of information and advice.

I have hunted high and low for this book. It is out of print and sells for a king's ransom. I thought all my Christmases had come at once when the local librarian found a copy on the library catalogue... only to see his crest fallen face moments later when he realised it had been nicked six years ago.

Oh well... King's ransom or not... I just have to read this book.

It arrived this morning. I can see me not getting much sleep this week as I try to cram all 258 pages in during Poppette's downtime.

Today's Buzz

Continuing the theme of talking French to Poppette as much as humanly possible and in the interests of keeping things fresh and fun for the both of us, I am always on the look out for new ways to amuse. Today's inspiration came from a great little book called 365 activités avec mon bébé - in the guise of activity 244 "Marielle L'abeille".....(Marielle the bee).

We already had a head start in that Poppette has a small bee with a very similar name - Poppette's bee is named Mireille after the character in her book by Antoon Krings - Mireille L'abeille. She also has a beloved little bear whom I have affectionally named Nounours (Teddybear). So, out came the two cute little soft toys and I set about learning the little story set out at activity 244 by heart...

Connais-tu Mireille?
Elle est jaune et noir
Elle aime le soleil, les fleurs et le miel.
Un jour sur sa route, elle croise un gros ours
Qui veut lui voler son beau pot doré.
Hors de ma vue, compère Ours!
Si tu voles mon déjeuner,
Je serai obligée de te piquer le nez!

(Translation:-

Do you know Mireille?
She is yellow and black
She loves the sunshine, flowers and honey.
One day when she is out and about she bumps into a big bear
who wants to steal her golden pot.
Out of my way, Dear Bear!
If you steal my lunch,
I will have to sting you on the nose!)

What a gorgeous little story.

Bees aside, the other buzz of the day - Poppette made two more sounds! Almost a month to the day that she first said "Dada", this morning she added "mamama" and "nanana" to her repertoire. Although I am aware that these are just sounds and not actual words that Poppette is linking to people as yet, I would be fibbing if I said I didn't feel a tingle of excitement down my spine when she said "mamama" and I know that when Nanny hears her say "nanana" she will be hard pressed not to feel the same...