Setting up your bilingualism plan
This post serves as the show notes for the Bilingual Parenting Podcast. This episode is a special one for all of the newly expecting parents!
We’re talking about planning for your child’s bilingualism while they’re still in the womb! If this pertains to you, I want to be sure to say CONGRATULATIONS on your bilingüito, your little bilingual, this is such an exciting time. I know this first hand because…
Well, because the inspiration from this episode comes from a very exciting fact… I myself am pregnant with my first child! My husband and I are over the moon excited to be welcoming our first baby to our little family toward the end of this year. At the time of this post, I am just over 36 weeks along, so we’re officially on Baby Watch! Little Baby Díaz has nooo idea what’s in store for him or her having a linguist as a mom. But of course, my wheels have been turning for a long time now, thinking about my own Family Language Policy and how my husband and I will go about ensuring that our baby grows up in an environment where bilingualism will be naturally cultivated.
So today we are talking about three things you can do while planning out your family’s language strategy while baby’s still in the womb. If the timing works for you to be able to plan this far in advance (maybe you’re planning even before babies completely! I know I did), then you’re in a great position to set things up in a way that will truly help foster bilingualism for your growing family. If you’re listening to this with babies now outside the womb, I hope you can still find some helpful takeaways from this episode as it’s NEVER TOO LATE to start implementing a plan for bilingualism.
Tune into the episode, or continue to the show notes & summary of the biggest takeaway points below.
Highlights from this episode…
Three things that you can do RIGHT NOW to set up your family’s bilingualism plan before baby’s arrival.
(1) Language Mapping
Language mapping creates a visual representation of the different domains your family participates in and where each language is used. If you see an overwhelming representation of the majority language, you’ll know that you’ll need to intentionally seek out more opportunities where your child will hear and see the target language at play. Tune into the episode to hear more about how to go about creating a language map.
This exercise is not just for expecting parents – you can do this at whatever stage you’re at. If you have kids, you can help them create their own language maps as a FANTASTIC conversation starter about their bilingualism. We’ve done this numerous times in the classroom and it’s honestly one of my favorite activities we do with our bilingüitos.
(2) Journaling to baby in the TL (target language)
Language is relational. You form a bond with someone in a certain language, and later on, if you try to break out of that language it feels unnatural. Set up your bond with your baby in the target language by journaling to him or her in that language right off the bat. By putting words on paper, it helps your relationship with the baby to feel more real and solidifed.
I personally started writing to my baby as soon as I found out we were expecting, just little updates and milestones along the way. But it was revolutionary for me, honestly – like something just clicked. Like wow, this is my little baby, my bilingüito, my buddy, and our language of interaction is Spanish.
(3) Recruit your bilingual friends & family members in the Bilingualism Plan
You’re not alone in this! There are others in your life that will also serve as key players in your baby’s life. If you have friends or family that speak the language you want to focus on in your family, then recruit these people to help! Tell them that you’re ‘enlisting’ them in your family’s Bilingualism Plan. Let them know that you can’t do this alone, and that you’ll need their support in raising your child bilingually. The more input in the target language the better, so whenever they have the chance to speak to the baby in it, you’re all for it!
You and I are in the midst of a bilingualism-centric world – that’s why you’re tuning into this podcast or this blog post. We know the benefits of raising kids bilingually; we also know the huge challenge it can be, but of course we know the great reward that it brings. But guess what, not everyone in your world knows this! They’re not on the up & up. It’s your job to help them get there. Have them listen to Episode 001 of this podcast (found here) to get them on board if they’re not already. Your bilingual (or TL-speaking) friends and family are invaluable to your family’s FLP!
Action Steps
So there you have it – three things you can do right NOW, before baby is even born, to set up an environment primed for bilingualism. Do you have any other ideas of things you can do before baby’s arrival? We’d love to hear from you! Some action steps for you to consider are as follows:
Draw up your family’s language map and share it with the world! Not only will it help you to get a plan in place, by sharing it, you will be spreading the message of ‘bilingualism for all!’ to your friends and followers. Be sure to tag us, (on IG we are @bilinguitos) so we can see what you come up with!
Share this podcast with friends or family members that will be part of your baby’s life – the more they’re informed about raising bilingual children, the more they will be able to help and support you in this endeavor. And maybe, just maybe, it will be life-changing for their own kids if they have them!
Join our group on FB called the Bilingual Parenting Network and comment on the thread about this episode, telling us what you think, telling us how you’re planning for your bilingüito, or little bilingual’s arrival 🙂
These are the show notes for Episode #004 of the Bilingual Parenting Podcast, “Planning for Bilingualism while Baby is in the Womb.” Subscribe to our podcast here or check out our homepage for the Podcast.
