bilingualism

Raising a bilingual child can undoubtedly be a lot of work, but it can also be extremely amusing. Just check out the conversation I had with Vanessa yesterday: — “Bueno conocerte,” she said as she shook my hand playfully. — “¿Qué que?” I asked her as I shook her hand back. — “Bueno conocerte,” she repeated emphatically. — “¿Qué significa eso?” I quizzed her. — “Nice to meet you,” she responded confidently, surprised that I would ask such a thing.Read More ...

Lately, I have taken frequent note of the hypocrisy surrounding Spanish speaking in America. While many monolingual (English-speaking) Americans feign support for Latino culture, they back up when it comes too close. The message I hear is: Go ahead and teach your kids Spanish, but speak English around me because I don’t want it to take over my world. This is why many parents enroll their children in Spanish classes or expose them to Spanish baby books but fall shortRead More ...

The story of my mom is not that of a single mom who sacrificed everything to make sure I had a better life. Or of an immigrant mom who came to this country not knowing a word of English and raised three successful professionals by working two jobs. Neither is it the story of a mom who slaved in the kitchen to ensure we had the most comforting home-cooked meals to cure all our ailments. No, the story of myRead More ...

There are so many wonderful reasons why I love being a mom to a bilingual and bicultural child. And beyond the long-term benefits that it will have for my son as he navigates through life, I keep coming back to a nostalgic feeling of keeping a connection between my son and my home country of Venezuela. I was born in Caracas and we moved to the Unites States in 1980 when I was just 6-years-old. According to my mother, IRead More ...

As someone who was raised by a single mother, Mother’s Day has an extra special significance to me.  Not only because we celebrated it twice in my home. Dominican’s Mother’s Day is on the last Sunday of the month. To me Mother’s Day signifies something bigger — the daily struggles, endurance, determination and influence of a woman who came to this country for a better life. My mother promised to make certain my brother and I had a better life than the one she had growingRead More ...