Finding out you and your partner are expecting a baby throws many discussions that might have once been hypothetical into stark relief. This certainly may be the case if your partner speaks another language beyond the one spoken where you live and that the two of you communicate in.
“I’d like to bring the baby up to speak my language”, they say, and suddenly what seemed a wonderful idea – a bilingual child – might throw up panicked visions of being left out of private jokes and conversations at the dinner table. But growing up with two or more languages can be hugely beneficial for children, and there’s plenty you can do to help out and get involved.
When children acquire a minority language – a language other than the dominant language or languages in the place they live – spoken by one or both parents, they have the key to that culture. It offers the possibility of a deep relationship with extended family and others they might otherwise not be able to talk to at all. You really want to do everything in your power to support your partner and your child in this venture.
Learning something of your partner’s language will effectively....
Una Cunningham, Professor emerita, Department of Teaching and Learning, Stockholm University
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