Dessert? Destination? Adorable Dapple Dachshund?
No, my friends. The “D” word I mean is discipline.
You might be thinking to yourself, “I yell at my kids all day long, I’ve got discipline down.”
There are a few things wrong with this statement, but I’m only going to correct one for now. I don’t mean disciplining your children, I mean disciplining yourself.
Children have an innate instinct: they can sense weakness and fear – go ahead, tell me I’m wrong. I’m not – I’m a school teacher. Children are cunning opportunists, always ready to take advantage at a moment’s notice. So, when they see you faltering in your decisions they will push and push until you have given in.
You must NOT let this happen.
How do you keep from giving them an opening? Two key words: predecision and consistency.
What’s predecision? A predecision is a decision you make ahead of time so when the circumstance to this decision arises you are ready for it – no fumbling for words or showing hesitation.
For example: let’s say you’ve decided to never go skinny dipping in a pool of Jell-O (tempting, I know). So, when a friend just happens to have an in-ground pool filled with mouth-watering cherry flavored Jell-O, you can confidently tell them no. They won’t think twice about asking again. (Who wouldn’t want to do that, right?)
Well, the same goes for children. Make that decision, whatever it is and stick to it. Confidently. (Remember, they can smell weakness; their nostrils will flare and they will get a crazed gleam in their eyes – you know the look.)
Now – consistency? That goes hand in hand with predecision. Be unchanging about your answers. Whether the answer is yes, no, or “Let’s talk to Dad about that”, make it consistent.
What does this have to do with teaching my children Spanish?
Everything.
Every conversation, every instance, and every activity needs to be sprinkled with Spanish. I can hear you freaking out from here. “But, I can’t do that! It’s too much!” You’re right. It is. Do it slowly. A phrase at a time. Notice I didn’t say a word at a time – but, a phrase at a time.
Make yourself a list (or refer back to an earlier blog of mine here). What do you say a gazillion times a day? Write it down. Then translate it and say it every time – first in Spanish then in English.
One of my first phrases was “Good job!” “Bien hecho!” – I say it all day long. The babies know what it means now. After listening for a few days, Mi gata (my 7-year-old) learned what it meant and she will use it when she is feeling fancy.
Do it every time. Discipline yourself to do it. Pretty soon it will feel as if this is what you have always said and it won’t require any extra effort.
When you decide to teach a second language, here are some questions you need to ask yourself:
- How often am I going to speak in Spanish?
- Will I say the English version after the Spanish? Or vice versa?
- Will I be consistent with my children when speaking to them?
- Will I be consistent in asking my children to answer in Spanish?
Do you see how much this revolves around your own discipline? You must commit – make the effort to do it yourself. Those wild beasts that run around your home will eventually catch on and follow your example.
I love my children. I want them to have the opportunity to become the best people they can be in this life. It’s my job.
And if you are a parent, it’s yours too.
Creating an environment where our children can learn two languages is a huge benefit in our ever changing country. According to this article by Maria Sanchez Diez, the United States is the second largest Spanish speaking country in the world, just behind Mexico. Being bilingual is a huge benefit in the professional community.
I teach my children to read, write, do math calculations, to bake and to have good manners. Why do I do this? So they will be socially functional and become a productive member of society.
The question we should be asking ourselves is: why aren’t we teaching our children a second language?
Note: There used to be affiliate links in this blog – there are now NONE. Why? Because I got tired of keeping up with it and really, I just want to help people learn and it makes me happy that you even visited this page. Maybe someday, when I have a TON of time on my hands (which will probably be in about 10 years) I may add affiliate links. But, for now, just enjoy the blog for what it is – a great place to get some FREE stuff, read some FUNNY stuff, and learn some AWESOME stuff. 😘 Chao!
Learning Spanish as a Family 