storytime success, more or less

(If you count the number of people present, that is: 27!)

Our first French storytime at the Lafayette Library made me happy. A room full of parents and kids, all gathered because they wanted to hear stories and songs in French. There clearly is a need for something like this in this area!

The kids ranged in age from 1 to 10, which was much wider than we had expected. On the other hand, we deliberately scheduled it after school hours, so perhaps we shouldn't have been surprised to see elementary schoolers there. And since we'd publicized it heavily at the Monday morning French playgroup in Boulder, it makes sense that toddlers and their parents showed up too.

Some of the librarians have mentioned to me that they find planning for the all-ages storytimes very challenging, because it is nearly impossible to find materials that appeal to and are appropriate for toddlers, fifth graders, and everyone in between. I so understand that now! It didn't help that the older boys at our French storytime were more interested in chatting with each other and comparing their rubber band bracelets, and unfortunately, they were sitting in the front, so they disrupted everyone. (I had never chastized a misbehaving French child in front of his mother before that day!)

I was anxious about co-leading the storytime, especially when the room started to fill up with Real French People. I would turn to my cohort Delphine and point to a family that had just entered and ask if she knew them. And usually she didn't! At least half of the attendees were strangers to us. When we went around the room to do introductions, it sounded like just about everyone was a native speaker of French--maybe two other American moms (including my sister-in-law, who brought Carl!) plus a nanny for a girl from a French family. Nerve-wracking!

Delphine and I also hadn't planned carefully enough--we had too many CDs, for example, with too many different versions of the songs and rhymes, without choosing ahead of time which one to play. It took a while to cue up the CDs when really we probably should have just sung a cappella. (I can't really carry a tune, but maybe that doesn't really matter when singing in a group.) She also had brought a portable DVD player to show a video of one of the songs, but that also took a couple of minutes to set up, and then there were too many kids for them all to see it clearly.

We also didn't realize how long it would all take. We were aiming for 20-25 minutes, but it was more like 40 by the end, and that's with dropping one of the stories I had planned on reading! The first book took ten minutes, which now we know is too long. We had also hoped to play a game, but even if we had had time, it would have been impossible with so many children.

So what went well, then? The parents and some of the kids joined in on the songs. Some of the kids paid attention to the books, too. And I felt like the reading and the rhymes that I led worked. (My extemporaneous speaking, on the other hand, not so smooth--blame the nerves.)

Picking a theme for the storytime also turned out to be a good idea. Given the recent change in season and temperature, we chose "autumn and forests" as our theme. We did a few songs and rhymes, like "123 je vais dans les bois" and "Dans sa maison un grand cerf" (which has gestures to accompany it), plus two of Delphine's stories whose titles I don't remember because I was focusing on keeping Griffin (and my nerves) quiet, and also a nonfiction book about how a cherry tree changes from season to season. It served as a springboard to talking about what happens in the different seasons--the kids answered my questions and offered examples. That was cool. (Especially when I showed the picture of the cherry tree at the end of the summer and asked who or what had eaten all the cherries--according to the book, it was "les oiseaux," the birds, but according to Griffin, who answered with confidence, it was "Papa"!)

We also decided on two songs that we would include in each session: "Dans la foret lointaine" for the opening (because it concerns a "coucou," a cuckoo, which is also a way to say "hi" in French) and "Ainsi font font font les petites marionnettes" because it concludes with the line "et puis s'en vont" ("and then go away"). We want the attendees to know that they can expect each meeting to begin and end in a familiar way--that helps them transition from their daily day to this special French hour.

So with the conclusion of our first French storytime, Griffin and I have now transitioned into another regular activity in French, which will be si bon for the both of us!

visit the Carnival on Bilingualism!

It's here--this month's round-up of bloggers talking about raising their kids with more than one language! Enjoy everybody's stories and ideas.

art and drama around the maison!

The latest installment in my series for Multilingual Living about French language learning activities is posted; this one is about art projects and theatre games you can do with their kids to encourage them to speak French and practice home-themed vocabulary.

The next article is on literacy activities, and I'm also planning to give an annotated bibliography of kids' books (and poems, stories, fables, etc.) in French that focus on "home" as a central theme. If you can suggest any titles, please add them here in the comments! Thanks.

panel discussion, workshop, or presentation? help!

Please help me plan a conference session! I'll be attending the Colorado Congress of Foreign Language Teachers conference in February and would like to propose a session about raising children bilingually or teaching toddlers a second language. Typically the attendees are middle, high school, and university instructors, with a handful of K-5 teachers, but there's always a National Network for Early Language Learning swapshop too.

However, I suspect that among the language teacher attendees there are bound to be parents raising their children with more than one language (or considering it), and that's the audience I want to tap into. Here are my ideas so far:

• A panel discussion with several other parents to talk about what works for us and why
• An unstructured discussion with whomever shows up
• A presentation of the research about raising children bilingually
• A "case study" presentation about what I've done with Carl and Griffin
• A presentation of French language learning activities for child (similar to the articles I'm writing for Multilingual Living)
• A presentation about organizing storytimes for young children in other languages
• A workshop about organizing storytimes for young children in the other languages

Please help! Which of the above (or combination thereof) would make a good hour-long conference session? What would you present about if it were you? What would be most useful if you were a parent or teacher attending this conference?

Profile: French in Mississippi with Tracy's family

Meet Tracy, who shares an inspiring story of how her dedicated efforts to raise her daughter bilingually have resulted in a toddler whose stronger language is French, even in the deep South, even with a parent who is a non-native speaker!

Introduce us to your family--
• Parents'/caretakers'/adults' names, occupations, nationality—Parents are Steve, an American writer and English professor, and Tracy, a SAHM and freelance writer/editor with dual U.S.-Canadian citizenship.
• Kids' names, ages, interests—Colette, who will be three in December, loves painting, swimming, animals and anything train-related.
• Where you currently live—Jackson, Mississippi
• Other countries you've lived, if applicable—Canada (Quebec)
• Anything else relevant? I (Tracy) lived in Montreal for a decade then worked at the French Embassy in Washington, DC, for four years.

What languages are spoken by the adults in your household and at what level of proficiency?
English (both native speakers) and French (Tracy only—I will only claim near fluency, as my experience raising Colette to be bilingual has really taught me how much French I still have left to learn!)

What languages are you exposing your child to, and how?
Steve speaks to Colette in English and I speak to her in French. We own many French books, CDs and DVDs, and we have a babysitter who speaks French (as her second language). I have also managed to hire native French-speakers to hang out with us occasionally (I wish I could do that more, but francophones are a rare commodity in this part of the country).

Why do you want your child to know more than one language?
I believe speaking more than one language allows a person to feel comfortable in more places and connect with more people. I believe that bilingualism promotes open-mindedness and intellectual curiosity, two qualities I value highly. I worked so hard to learn French; I love the idea that I can give my daughter the gift of learning the language with ease.

And then there are all the cognitive benefits! There’s a really interesting article about the latest research findings here.

How well does your child understand and speak the different languages?
French is Colette’s default language at this point, and she is considerably stronger in French than in English (although her English isn’t bad). Until recently, she thought everyone spoke French (except maybe her dad), but she has started to address people in English. Her comprehension is excellent in both languages. What astounds me most is that she seems to have developed a fundamental understanding of French grammar that still eludes me sometimes.

How have you been able to expose your child to the cultures where French is spoken?
Only through books, CDs and DVDs at this point. We’re hoping to enroll Colette in a weeklong immersion camp in New Orleans next year and to travel to France with her the following year.

What resources and activities have been most useful to you?
Books, of course, are invaluable.

DVDs are fantastic, since they allow Colette to hear conversational French spoken by native speakers (we use VLC to play Region 2 DVDs). She’s a big fan of a cartoon donkey named Trotro. The CDs of a children’s singer named Alain Schneider are fun, clever and great for expanding her vocabulary (mine too, for that matter). One song, for example, might contain a dozen synonyms for the verb “walk.” I also subscribed Colette to a magazine called “Popi,” which she really likes. She’s thrilled to receive something in the mail every month, and the pamphlet for parents that comes with each issue helps me pick up parenting vocabulary. It’s expensive, but worth the cost. Two books readily available in the U.S. are among Colette’s favorites and have been since she was tiny—Usborne’s First 100 and First 1,000 Words in French. Generally, however, I tend to avoid French-as-a-second-language books in favor of books aimed at native speakers.

Another great free resource is Radio Oustiti, an online radio station that plays good music, airs stories, and offers activities (we just heard a short piece on arctic animals and were able to download a pdf of the animals mentioned). Colette already calls out "Ouistiti!" when I put it on.

In terms of my own French, wordreference.com—especially the forums that allow you to get feedback from native speakers—is a lifesaver.

What do you think parents, caretakers, teachers, and/or researchers need to know about teaching a second language to children?
Immersion is best. Don’t lapse into English—be it for your own comfort or someone else’s.

What challenges have you faced as you raise your child with more than one language?
My greatest challenge is the lack of a French-speaking community and related resources where we live. It is extremely expensive to order books from France or even Canada. I’ve had some luck buying books on eBay, but the selection is limited. I have searched high and low for another French-speaking child, with no luck. Because I have been unable to find a French-speaking community here, I worry that Colette’s French will rapidly fade into the background once she starts preschool next year. I have heard time and again that children start to reject the minority language at a certain point; hopefully this child will be different.

My other big challenge is my own imperfect French; it can be frustrating when you’re trying to explain something to your child and you keep second-guessing yourself about word gender or placement.


Please tell us a little about being a non-native speaker of the language you use with your child.
I always have both a French dictionary and a French-English dictionary close at hand, and my purses and pockets are filled with scraps of paper covered with words and grammar questions to look up. As I said above, wordreference.com is invaluable. If Colette brings me an English-language book, I read it to her in English; my early attempts to translate as I went were too pathetic. And besides, it’s a real joy to share books like The Cat in the Hat with her in my native language.

Do you have any advice for us?
I have been fortunate in that everyone in both my and my husband’s family has been extremely supportive, even though none of them speak French. Early on, I would switch into English in front of other people because I felt it was rude to say things to Colette that they couldn’t understand. Now I don’t worry about that. My approach is to be up front with people about what I’m doing and then just go about my bilingual business. I’ve found that most people are really impressed when they hear a two-year-old speak a language they don’t understand! If you come up against any naysayers, send them the link to the article mentioned above.

Answer your own question now--what did I not ask about that you would like to comment on?
If anyone knows any French speakers within a reasonable driving distance of Mississippi, please send them my way!

Sarah here--so much of this resonated with me that I'm getting dizzy with all the nodding, from the cost of buying French children's books to the amazing helpfulness of the native speakers on the Wordreference.com forums to her advice not to to worry about what the monolinguals think when they overhear you speaking another language to your kid. Tracy and Colette are proof that you can raise your child bilingually wherever you live, whatever your native language happens to be! Tracy, thank you so much for answering our questions and letting me profile your family here.

you're invited to the carnival!

A message from the ever-amazing Corey over at Multilingual Living:

Dear Fellow Bloggers,

I'm hosting the next Blogging Carnival on Bilingualism at Multilingual Living. If you would like to participate, please send me the following by Tuesday, October 26th:

1. Choose one of your posts (a fairly recent one) about bilingualism, multilingualism, multiculturalism, language learning, language teaching, or raising children with more than one language.

2. Or write a new post inspired by the above topics!

3. Email me the following: (1) Your name, (2) the exact URL of the post you are submitting, (3) the name and URL of your blog itself (e.g. Multilingual Living, www.multilingualliving.com).

4. If I haven't "met" you before in cyberspace (or real life), I'd really appreciate it if you could send me a little background information, such as a brief description of your blog or a blurb about your family. This will help me figure out how to introduce you, your blog and your post when I write my post synthesizing everyone's submissions.

5. Deadline: please submit by Tuesday, October 26th.

If you have any questions, just send me an email: corey@multilingualliving.com

I can't wait to read all of your posts!

Warmly,
Corey

Learning French Around the Maison, Part I

Here they are, songs and nursery rhymes in French about houses and homes! This article is part of my regular column about teaching your children French for Multilingual Living.

Il était une fois--ce vendredi après-midi, en fait!

"Il était une fois" is the name of the new story hour that a French maman and I are premiering this week at the Lafayette Public Library! You heard me bemoan the uninspiring, uninteractive storytime we attended last month at another library, the one that turned out to be inspirational in that another mom and I decided that we could do a better storytime than that one (read all about it here).

So here's how it will work:

It will take place every other Friday afternoon at 4:00 (until the holidays, at which point we'll make a decision if it's worth continuing next year and beyond), beginning this coming Friday (October 15). We are planning 20-25 minutes of material per session.

Delphine and I will lead the first one and ask for parent volunteers for future sessions. (But we're also prepared to do the first few ourselves.)

We have set up a format that we'll ask all volunteers to follow:

• Opening song ("Dans la forêt lointaine, " since it repeats the word "coucou," which also means "hi!")


• Books, songs, rhymes, and fingerplays all on one theme decided in advance (this week: forests and autumn)


• A game or dance


• Closing song ("Ainsi font, font, font les petites marionnettes," as it includes the line "et puis s'en vont"--then they go away)

Everyone is welcome! We'll also have handouts with the lyrics so families can practice at home if they don't know the songs and rhymes already. I'm soooo excited to have something in French right here where I live, and of course I'm also nervous about singing in public and presenting stories in French in front of native speakers. But it's a good nervous.

I'll let you know how it goes!

English translation of title: Once upon a time--this Friday afternoon, in fact!

Krashen and the Kid

When I was working on my MA in Teaching English as a Second Language at CSU, one of my professors talked about Stephen Krashen. All. The. Time. And for good reason—he changed the way we looked at language teaching, helping the field move from the model of “Here’s a paragraph. Now translate it” to trying to recreate in the classroom how we learn our first language (lots of passive intake before we can make coherent sentences on our own). (Read an overview of his major theories here.)

My professor, Doug Flahive, who boasted of being on a first-name basis with Krashen, liked to tell us about how this language researcher guru started out as an award-winning weight-lifter and how he would wear tank tops even on airplanes. Thus I have always had this unusual image in my mind of a brilliant man testing the Monitor Hypothesis and conducting research on comprehensible input from the weight room. Ten years later, I finally get to meet him (and he’s dressed respectably)!

Krashen has always championed reading as the best way to learn one’s second language, so I shouldn’t have been surprised to see him at a library conference (Colorado Association of Libraries). During his keynote speech, he shared with the CAL attendees summaries of some current research about the benefits of free voluntary reading, both in English (first language) classes and ESL/EFL classes. In a nutshell, according to him, reading is the very best thing we can encourage students to do. Specifically, reading good old-fashioned books from public, school, classroom, and home libraries, as opposed to fancy computerized reading games for kids.

Krashen also took some time to excoriate standardized testing, pointing out that we could get nearly identical results for much less money by testing very small sample groups every couple of years (it would be considered public service for the students, much like jury duty), which would then allow us to spend huge amounts of money on books instead of testing. He also debunked eight or ten spurious studies and articles claiming that activities like playing chess and reading to birds can improve students’ reading.

From his talk, two studies stand out most in my mind. In one, a group of adult Korean women learning English were given Sweet Valley High books to read to fun. (Anyone else remember those? Elizabeth was the nice, bookish one, which her twin Jessica was the feisty troublemaker? Yes, I’ll admit I read those in 6th grade.) The series was too hard for the students, so the teacher tried them on the Sweet Valley Twins series for 4th graders, then the Sweet Valley Kids series for 2nd graders (where, presumably, Elizabeth spends her time coloring inside the lines while Jessica jumps in mud puddles). The Korean women loved the books, read through the easiest series, then the middle one, and by a year later were reading the ones at the 6th grade level with ease. Their English grammar and vocabulary had improved immensely—and they hadn’t been taking English classes during this period. Wow!

Krashen and other researchers have also looked at whether the number of books a child has access to at home is a predictor in how well they will do in school, and indeed, it is, a strong one. He cited a study which found the average number of books for children and teens in the an average Beverly Hills home—250—and also the average number in the nearby inner city—point five. As in, one book in every two houses. Wow. Yikes.

After he concluded his speech, I went up to him and introduced myself. Here’s how it went:

Sarah: I’m a former student of Doug Flahive and am so thrilled to meet you after having studied your research! Now I’m the coordinator of a Reading Buddies program, which we think is very successful, but every time I apply for funding, the grantors want quantitative proof that Reading Buddies works, and I don’t have the means to conduct studies to document that.

Krashen: You don’t have to! Let me do that for you. That’s what I do. I do the research so that people like you can run Reading Buddies. I can’t run a Reading Buddies program, but I can tell other people why it’s a good thing. Here’s what you need to do: read my book (The Power of Reading), sign up for my newsletter [on his website], and get my Twitter feed.

Sarah: Okey-dokey. I’m not on Twitter, though.

Krashen: You need to be. I share important stuff, not what I had for breakfast.

Sarah: Okay.

Krashen: You go run Reading Buddies, and let me do the research for you, kid.

Sarah, to herself: Did this long-admired scholar just call me “kid”?!

So I went home and now I’m getting started on doing everything he told me to! There’s hope for Reading Buddies if Dr. Stephen Krashen, 1977 bench-press champion of Venice Beach, California, is rooting for us, right?!

sad songs, a big basement, and a challenging conference

I'm back from CALCON and ready to write! I've been absent from this blog for a couple of weeks because of Two Very Big Projects and One Smaller But Still Time-Consuming Task:

1. Researching and writing the next installment in my series for Multilingual Living, "Learning French In and Around the Maison," which, as it focuses on music, sent me scrambling to Griffin's CD collection, YouTube, and the vast expanses of the Internet to find songs about homes and houses. I discovered a surprising number of children's songs and nursery rhymes about appalling situations in one's home: bugs, rodents, fire, famine, and willful destruction of property. Stay tuned--the article should be published on Tuesday, barring any natural disasters.

2. Emptying out our 900-square-foot basement so that our contractor and his workers can transform one large, cold, concrete room used previously only for storage and ping-pong into a space that will--in December!--house a guest room, my home office, a bathroom, and a space that I can use for French classes for kids one day.

And if we can figure out the logistics, we'll have bookcases that slide to the side between my office and the playroom area, which will really open it up for those French classes (and make it very easy to, say, grab my stuffed Eiffel Tower and books and French games from my office when I want to show them to the kiddos).

3. Planning a three-hour workshop about Reading Buddies to present at the Colorado Association of Libraries conference. I called it "The Complete Works of Reading Buddies, Abridged: How to Create (or Expand!) a Reading Buddies Program at Your Library or School," and my goal was to give the attendees lots of ideas plus the materials they would need to start up their own program.

This involved a suitcase full of props, a briefcase full of handouts, my very first PowerPoint presentation created all by myself (I've been very resistant to that program so far), and five teen Reading Buddy volunteers for the panel discussion. Whew. After getting all that ready, I was pooped.

(Curious? You can access some of my handouts and materials online.)

What was really exciting about the CAL Conference, though, turned out to be meeting the keynote speaker afterwards: Dr. Stephen Krashen, a language-teaching researcher whose work I studied throughout grad school! I'll write about what exactly he was doing at a librarians' conference, what we talked about, and what he called me in my next post.

Oh, all right. I won't leave you hanging on the edge of your seat (who knows when I'll make time to write here again): he called me "kid." Kid! This language guru called me "kid"! And me 36 years old this year. Sheesh!

lookee here!

Online Colleges and Universities

A hearty merci beaucoup to Jean from Online Colleges and Universities, who recently notified me that Bringing up Baby Bilingual has been selected as one of their ten favorite blogs about learning French! Visit the other nine winners here--I know I will, because some of them are new to me and others are ones I've admired for a long time, like Foreign Language Fun and Jennie en France.

And those of you teaching or learning English might want to take a look at the many resources in their top Learn English blogs!