The “Need” To Speak The Language: A Lifelong Quest

  The door to our 100 year old kitchen swings open. My 4 year old rushes through straight to the living room. “Mama, where is my dolly?” she asks in perfect English while dumping the whole content of the toy chest on the floor. “What did you say, lil’ bunny?” I sweetly ask in Russian while chopping cabbage for borscht. “My dolly, the one with pink dress?” she continues without any effort … [Read more...]

Helene Demetriades Shares Her Experience With Raising Her Toddler Son To Be Bilingual In French and Greek | Bilingual Kids Rock Podcast

Raising bilingual children can come about in the most unexpected ways. Today’s podcast focuses on the experience of Helene Demetriades, a French expat and illustrator residing in Cyprus with her husband and 15-month old son Nicholas. They have been raising their toddler son to be bilingual in French and Greek. Incidentally Helene is responsible for the cute illustrations you find on this blog. … [Read more...]

Anna McGuigauri Shares Her Experience With French Immersion Kindergarten

Immersion schools. Do they really work in teaching children a second language? Today’s podcast guest, Anna McGuigari shares her daughter’s experience with French immersion kindergarten. Anna currently resides in Canada with her daughter and husband. She speaks Russian, English and a bit of French. More than hearing about Anna and her daughter’s experience, this post will hopefully inform … [Read more...]

Benefits of Bilingualism | Better Listening Skills

Bilingualism affects the development of cortical regions of the brain, particularly during early childhood. That process can create strength in other skills beyond language use, including listening comprehension. One result of lifetime bilingualism that scientists have discovered is a heightened ability to process sound, not just spoken words. Bilingual children and adolescents are likely to develop … [Read more...]

UKRAINIAN EASTER TRADITIONS

One of the sweetest memories I have about my childhood in Ukraine is celebrating Easter. We did not have any candies, egg hunt or huge baskets with oversized bunnies or filled with present. But it still was very exciting holiday because Ukrainian Easter celebrations are a beautiful melding of traditional Christian practices, folklore, and ancient pagan symbolism. Some traditions will be familiar to … [Read more...]

The Funny Part Of Being Bilingual

Some Free French Fries? This story did not happen to my family members, but I heard it happening many times to non experienced travelers from Slavic countries, including Ukraine and Russia. Little bit of linguistic explanation. French Fries in McDonalds in that part of the world is called ???????? ???, which in the exact translation to English is Potatoes Free. And the word free has nothing to do with … [Read more...]