“How do I introduce another language for my toddler?”
“How can I motivate my little one to speak my language?”
“How to have fun when practicing the kids’ minority language?”
These are questions I often get in the queries sent to our team. One of the recommendations I often give to parents of small children is to dedicate a puppet, teddy or some other toy to the language. In this post you will find some practical ideas on how to use “monolingual toys” when raising a bilingual child.

Choice of toy

First, you need to choose the right kind of toy. The first criteria is that your child should like it – otherwise you fall at the first hurdle. Secondly it should be a toy that invites a child to communicate. Children can of course conjure up discussions with anything, be it a toy house or a ball, but I would recommend choosing a teddy, toy animal or doll of any type, be it a superhero or a rag doll. My personal favourite is a hand puppet thanks to its versatility. With a hand puppet, you can easily show different emotions and move in a way that supports the understanding of what is spoken.

Create a backstory

To make the “monolingual toy” concept more real, create a backstory for the chosen toy. Give it a name which is specific to its language. Give it any other additional external features that tie it to the language and to the country the language is spoken in: clothing and other accessories (our bear hand puppet comes with a Moomin-character!) It would be great if you could get someone to send you the toy so that it arrives from its “home country” (maybe an idea for a gift that grandparents or other relatives could send?) Together with your child, create a story about where the toy was “born”, what it has been doing until now, why it has come to your home, what it likes and dislikes and so on.

Give the toy a distinct personality

It is beneficial to give the toy some personality traits that will help you have a varied communication. Obviously, it should like to talk. It should be inquisitive and ask a lot of questions about anything, even the most obvious things. “Is this my ear?” “What is your name?” “How old are you?” “Where is the door?” It should sometimes get things wrong, so your child can help it. It should be engaging. However, it may not always listen you, so that you have to repeat what you have to say.

Act as a translator when needed

Depending on how well your child knows the language he or she is learning, you may have to do some translating. (Yes, I know that this means you will be talking to yourself, but just go with me on this one.) This is your opportunity to introduce vocabulary you would like your child to learn or expand on.

Examples of a dialogues

If your child knows nothing or very little of the toy’s language

– Tell your child that you are going to ask for the puppet’s name
– Ask the puppet for its name in its language. Repeat the question a few times (the puppet may be “distracted”, so you must ask again)
– Once the puppet has said its name, make it ask your child for his or her name
– If your child does not understand the question, make the puppet ask for your own name and give an answer (this way you are acting as the role model for answering in the toy’s language)

You can repeat this with similar other discussions, introducing simple, important words like yes and no, mummy, daddy, play, eat, sleep etc.

If you want to expand on certain vocabulary (in this case colours)

– Point at different colours in a book or in the room, ask the puppet what colour it is.
– The puppet answers with the colour, then points to something else of the same colour and asks your child to name the colour.
– The puppet could also answer with the wrong answer if you are sure your child already knows it. Children usually find it funny when someone else gets something wrong and engage in a discussion.

Your imagination is the only thing setting the limits to these discussions!

The concept of “monolingual toys” will of course work best with small children, but they can be the perfect way of introducing a new language to your toddler, creating more engagement in your child’s minority language or just having more fun while expanding the vocabulary.

In my former life, I was a preschool teacher and teacher trainer for a publishing company.  That was quite a few years ago before I married, began having children, and started my work as Community Manager for Learn Safari. As it turns out, however, you can take a girl out of teaching, but you can never take the teacher out of the girl! I never stopped loving being a teacher, and now that I’m a mom raising a bilingual child, I see myself thinking back to those days and using some of those same skills in my home.  As it turns out, my classroom was also something that I could not completely give up! I ended up creating a Language-Learning Corner for my child based on the following 5 reasons, and after hearing me out, you might be inspired to do the same!

I Wanted to Create a Space Where Bilingualism is Encouraged

Raising a bilingual child is very important to me. I was raised bilingually and I must say I will be forever thankful to my parents for sticking to it, even when it was hard and I was set on not speaking English!  (“no habla Inglés mami!”) I was able to advance in my career, had access to more information, and was able to communicate with relatives and make new friends because I was able to speak English. These are all things I want my little girl to have.

Of course, as parents raising bilingual children, we all know that it’s a lot of work! Sometimes it feels like it’s much easier said than done and there are many ways to go about it and many philosophies to guide parents. The one thing I knew, however, is that I needed a space where we would be encouraged and inspired to use our second language.

Last Summer we were visiting relatives in Florida and we made a Target run. Low and behold, I found that much talked about  dollar spot!  Two Frappuccinos later, we had a cartful of teaching aids and all kinds of cool stuff to stock a mini classroom, and that’s how I got my learning corner started.

I Wanted to Give Her a Work Space She Could Call Her Own

A sense of independence, responsibility and ownership helps children build self-confidence, and the sooner we started, the better.  My little girl likes things that are “hers” and setting this space works for both of us, as she can color, draw, sing and read in one spot.  She can store and find everything she needs! The space is her own, which also helps to motivate her to clean up with very little help (yes, that one’s for me)

I Wanted to Ease Her Into The Habit of Studying Every Day

Living in Venezuela means that school is mandatory from a very early age and tons of homework is expected every day.  We’re talking 4 year-olds getting homework every day! So, to stay ahead of the curve, I decided that it was in our best interest to start this habit early. I figured that if we started in a fun, enjoyable way, we could make this a good habit and set her on the path of lifelong learning.  I know this all sounds way too serious, but if you’ve had to stay late with a cranky child finishing a last minute assignment, you know this makes sense.

A Space to Keep Our Daily Routine in Check

We could talk about the importance of a daily routine for hours, but most of us will probably agree that even if it’s hard, in the long run, a routine is better for both child and parent.  Small children rely on this to feel safe and in control.  Parents rely on routine for the same reasons.

Our routine is loosely as follows:  After school we talk about our day, change clothes, eat lunch and take a nap. After that we have our little “English Immersion Program” where we set the date on the calendar and sing, talk about what we’re going to do, read a book, do seat work which includes coloring, sorting and/or matching. It takes us about 45 minutes, depending on her mood and stamina. Afterwards, she enjoys her screen time and free play.

A Space to Spend Time Together and Check on Her Daily Progress

This is my favorite reason! My baby girl is smart, funny and willful; a powerful combination that drives me both to laughter and tears (both of frustration and pride).  To see how she grows and how her mind works is a privilege and I’m lucky to spend so much time with her. This corner of our house is a special place where we get to learn, grow, and bond together! And it’s even a place where she can invite other special people to participate with her in the learning and fun.

What Should You Put in the Language Learning Corner?

The possibilities are endless! You want it to be a print-rich environment, but you also want it to be interesting and adapted to their needs and age. But here are some basic suggestions to get you started:

• Books
• Signs, posters, etc. in target language
• labels in target language
• Paper
• Writing Utensils
• Art Supplies: paper, crayons, markers, scissors, glue sticks, paint (if you dare!)
• A Maker kit: loose pieces, nuts, bolts, pliers, hammer, nails
• A world map, atlas, or globe
• Images of the places and cultures that speak the target language
• Puzzles
• Games and manipulatives
• Calendar and weather info (especially for younger kids)

This learning corner is a work in progress, but so far my Twinkle Toes is enjoying her work time. Sometimes we spend a good amount of time in our learning space, sometimes it’s just a few minutes, but the important thing is that she’s using the target language and starting to look forward to it.  But remember, do not limit the second language exposure to just a corner of your house, you can take a bilingual break anytime, anywhere!

I’d love to read your comments! Do you have a language corner?  How do you keep the target language at home? What’s your child’s favorite activity? Please share your experience with our community below.

For more ideas on how to create a Language Corner, and what it should include please read article A language corner for teaching a foreign language in the home. I hope all of these ideas inspire you, and help you build a language corner perfect for your family.

I don’t remember teaching my elder daughter to read … because I never did. I do however remember when a carer at her nursery told me that my 5-year-old used to read Finnish story books to other children. They found that she loved reading aloud to others and was able to do it better than the carers – who were all bilingual but most of them had Swedish as mother tongue. In Finland children start school when they turn seven, so she had not yet had any formal tuition.

So how did this happen? The answer is in the picture – she was about two when she was given the alphabet puzzle and she absolutely adored it. She would hold up a letter and wait for me to say the sound before placing the piece in the puzzle. This way she little by little learnt all the sounds, and then she started recognising the letters in books I read to her. Next she noticed that she could decipher words by herself and this is how she started reading.

[It has to be said, that children who learn to read Finnish have it easier than most children in so far that all words in Finnish are pronounced as they are written (with a few minor exceptions). This makes the step from knowing the sounds of the individual letters to sounding a whole word much easier than in many other languages.]

Of course, this is not a “method” that can be used in every, or even most languages, so why tell it? The reason I want to highlight the story is that there is not one right way to teach your child to read, the best method is the one that works for you and your child.

There are some aspects you do need to take into consideration when teaching your child to read and write at home. First of all, your child needs to be ready for this phase – the readiness shows as an interest in letters and text and wanting to write something, often the own name. It is important not to put pressure on your child to start before he or she is ready.

What you can do as a parent to nurture this interest is being a great role model for literacy. Read lots of books to (and later with) your child. Following the words with your finger while reading allows your child to make the connection between the sounds, letters and words. Write notes, cards and letters. If you have nothing else to write on a day, make writing the shopping list something that you do together.

Your role as a parent is also to be there to motivate, encourage and help your child discover the world of written text and to learn to master it. Make the experience more fun by providing different materials to aid the learning. If your child prefers colourful pens to start the writing, make sure there are plenty of these, along with a lot of paper available. Some children love white boards or others want to start with building blocks or puzzles, like my daughter. Have a lot of books in the home with bright interesting pictures and clear text.

Keep in mind that normally you would have to spend a fair amount of time with your child to teach him or her to read and write. If you think you may not be able to spare this time, ask if others – such as grandparents or other relatives – could be of help. Remember that your children can always become biliterate later in life: both of my daughters learnt to write Punjabi at school and during weekend classes once we came to England. After they moved away from home, emails and text messages became a great way to keep up the skill of writing Swedish.