What's funny is all the stares I get constantly. They think it's odd or that it's amazing that my English is so good and that I am making the effort to speak English to my children so they can learn English! They think I am doing this deliberately to help my kids get a leg up on the English. When I get the stares I remember that it is time to switch to Chinese. I have to remind myself I am supposed to be teaching them Chinese! Woops, I forgot! (Then perhaps the stares are because my Chinese has such a strong ABC accent they start to wonder where I am from. Where are you from, they politely ask.)
My latest strategy is to speak Taiwanese to Seraphine because she will never learn this in Chinese school and to speak simple Mandarin with lots of vocabulary explanations in English to Moses so he can learn new words. I am not pushing the Chinese too much, I just want him to have fun here in Taiwan, get close to his grandparents, learn about God and another culture. He is in Chinese school 8 hours a day five days a week. That's enough, I think. He may not speak a lot of Chinese, but what he does say comes out perfectly!
So how is the Mandarin coming along for Moses? He understands most of what is being said in class and can communicate with his teachers. He can say many phrases quite naturally and with perfect pronunciation such as "Mom, I'm bored," "More please," "I am sleepy," "My socks got wet." It's amazing how it comes out naturally. But he is still shy to speak to his classmates, which probably means he does not talk much during the day. He is naturally shy so making friends and having rapport with classmates is still a challenge, though with boys it seems like running around is fun enough. He was just starting to enjoy making friends and having play dates when we were in the States. He must feel lonely sometimes here.
I am beginning to realize that 9 months is a very short time in which to pick up Chinese and that this will be a great foundation for his brain structures but I cannot expect him to be speaking fluently in this short period of time. Alas, I think another year would be what he needs to actually start talking and having conversations and enjoy friendships in school. Friends to hang out with after school and on weekends would probably be best. English or Chinese-speaking. I'll keep working on it.
So how is the Mandarin coming along for Moses? He understands most of what is being said in class and can communicate with his teachers. He can say many phrases quite naturally and with perfect pronunciation such as "Mom, I'm bored," "More please," "I am sleepy," "My socks got wet." It's amazing how it comes out naturally. But he is still shy to speak to his classmates, which probably means he does not talk much during the day. He is naturally shy so making friends and having rapport with classmates is still a challenge, though with boys it seems like running around is fun enough. He was just starting to enjoy making friends and having play dates when we were in the States. He must feel lonely sometimes here.
I am beginning to realize that 9 months is a very short time in which to pick up Chinese and that this will be a great foundation for his brain structures but I cannot expect him to be speaking fluently in this short period of time. Alas, I think another year would be what he needs to actually start talking and having conversations and enjoy friendships in school. Friends to hang out with after school and on weekends would probably be best. English or Chinese-speaking. I'll keep working on it.
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