Chelsea

Given that workplace compensation for bilingualism is becoming more and more scarce in the U.S., I am grateful that I can reap the benefits of my Spanish skills as a self-employed tutor. While I do not get paid more per hour for being bilingual, I often book Spanish-speaking clients, whose business I would otherwise lose due to an inability to communicate. In Orlando (where I live) and all over Florida, there is a particularly great need for ways to bridgeRead More ...

As a devout gym rat, I am closely acquainted with the process of building and losing muscles, tweaking strength, hitting plateaus. For me, Spanish is like a muscle. If I use it at a time of day when I’m energized and have adequate fuel, or when I have the motivation of fellow exercisers, I can speak at a good pace and never get tired or tripped up. If I am forced to use that muscle unexpectedly, though, or am simplyRead More ...

Editor’s note: With today’s post, we begin this year’s Bicultural Holiday Traditions on SpanglishBaby. This season we decided to ask our treasured contributors to share their holiday traditions with all of us! We don’t get tired of saying it: We absolutely love our contributors for the uniqueness and diversity they bring to SpanglishBaby and we’re truly grateful they’re a part of our family ¡Qué lo disfruten! I was torn about what to write for this holiday post, as I amRead More ...

Thus far, I have written a lot about my struggles and successes in speaking Spanish with Isaiah, but very little about his use of and exposure to English. While there are distinctions in his life between the people with whom he speaks each language, he has a peculiar mix of input methods because he has two houses with two distinctive language setups. Last year, when Isaiah and I moved in with my mother, he began getting daily exposure to English,Read More ...

I am not sure how to explain my son’s latest language development phase, except to say that he now knows he speaks two languages. He has always responded to two and spoken two, but only in the past few weeks has he started naming Spanish and English as separate entities. I am fascinated by his sudden realization, because this is yet another example of something kids pick up yet are never explicitly taught – a reminder that we are bornRead More ...