Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I teach K and most students who speak another language pick English up very quickly and do fine. Kindergarten is very language based and should allow lots of opportunities for peer socialization. Young children learn other languages much more quickly than older children or adults. He should be just fine. In the meantime, lots of play dates would be good, story time and puppet shows at the library, Sunday School or something similar, etc.
Since there are many parents and educators in this forum, I wanted to ask your opinion. My son is 4 and he was born overseas while I worked for the US State Department. I have been back in the US for the last 2 years and because of personal reasons, I haven't been able to send him to preschool. This year I am hoping to send him at least for couple of hours a day before he starts kindergarden next year. Currently, he doesn't speak any English (he speaks my native language). He understands some but can't speak, read or write. Is he very far behind of other 4 year olds?? Will he have problem catching up ? While reading this forum I was surprised by some of the things kindergarden students are suppose to know like writing. I am worried sick because he has been very isolated up until now and he won't fit in. Should I start home schooling him in English? Thanks.
He is 4. His life expectancy is about 85+ years. He has thus far enjoyed homecare with family members and hired help. As long as he is a happy boy exploring his surroundings, you need not worry about your kid being "left behind."
well lets see if he is 4 and has been here several years he should already be speaking fluent english. this means he is being kept away from other children.
why?
in france, at 4, he would already be speaking fluent french, by sheer association with other kids, w zero formal schooling regardless of his mother tongue..
whatsup? btw your profile is blank.
Last edited by Huckleberry3911948; 02-12-2010 at 01:04 AM..
I'm not a teacher, but I am a tax payer. I don't think you should expect a school to teach your son what you should have already taught him. He very well may learn quickly, but you need to get with the program and start using English at home and give him every bit of help you can. I don't think it is going to be easy to find a school who can communicate in Turkish, and I think it is unreasonable to expect to find such a school. Schools are not meant to take the place of parents, but many times that is what we expect schools to do.
I'm not a teacher, but I am a tax payer. I don't think you should expect a school to teach your son what you should have already taught him.
Sorry, that's not how education law in our country works. The entire point of NCLB is that we educate all children regardless of ability or background. We do so because it is in the interest of the state to have an educated populace.
Also, parents are not educators. It's harder than you might think to teach early literacy skills. Some kids will just learn naturally while many others will need special instruction before they "get it".
I'm not a teacher, but I am a tax payer. I don't think you should expect a school to teach your son what you should have already taught him. He very well may learn quickly, but you need to get with the program and start using English at home and give him every bit of help you can. I don't think it is going to be easy to find a school who can communicate in Turkish, and I think it is unreasonable to expect to find such a school. Schools are not meant to take the place of parents, but many times that is what we expect schools to do.
Please, this is a bit over the top. I highly doubt a 4 yo is going to need a Turkish interpreter in kindergarten and I don't think the OP is expecting one. The child probably already understands enough English to follow instructions when used with social cues and hand gestures. He may just not be comfortable speaking English at this point, so people think he doesn't know English.
Clearly, OP is an involved and caring parent who does not want her child to fall behind. It sounds like she's just trying to get a better idea of what's expected in kindergarten so she(not the school system) can try to bring her child to that level. I think she just got nervous because of people on the board saying how kids in kindergarten are expected to write these long sentences and read chapter books and what not, which for most kindergarteners, is not the case.
The OP's situation is very different from ESL students that come in to the school system at say 3rd or 4th grade with hardly any support from home. That could be taxing on the school system and catching up can be quite difficult.
Just speak to your kid in English, get English movies for him to watch, and get him meeting other kids who speak English. Once he seems to be picking it up, you can speak a mix of English and Turkish at home. He'll pick it up quicker than you would think.
I have taught ESL (English as a second language) 1st & 2nd graders for over 20 years. They pick up English like little sponges. Many transfer their literacy skills in the first language fairly quickly to the English language.
You had every right to utilize your native language with your son. How exciting that your child will become bilingual.
That is indeed the job of us as teachers and of our public schools.
First of all, I want to thank everyone who had helpful and constructive advice for me. As far as the nasty comments from "nite ryder" go, you know what? not only I am a US citizen and a tax payer myself, I also probably did more for this country while working overseas than most people on this board will ever do. So yes, I expect the school to teach my child, that's why the school system exists. Please keep your thinly disguised hatefulness to yourself.
Huckleberry, I am not keeping him away from other kids. We live in a suburban section of NJ and don't have any families with young kids around. I came back to this economic mess we are currently in and have been working in temporary projects trying to make ends meet (I am an attorney) while looking for a permanent job. I have just stabilized my life and we are in the process of buying a house. Once we move, I think he will have more contact with other kids. I don't speak English at home because I want him to speak multi languages and I have no intention of apologizing to anyone for that. When I try to teach him English, he gets bored easily but I think he understands more than he speaks.
Bongo, I was 14 when I came to this country and I will forever be grateful to my ESL teacher. I don't think I would have make it to college and than to law school without her.
Last edited by ladyvictoria; 02-15-2010 at 07:25 PM..
Hi there - You might want to seek out a language immersion school for your son. I live in a small town in Oregon (Eugene) and even we have three of these schools - one French, one Japanese, and one Spanish. They are wonderful programs and help native English speakers learn a foreign language and help children like your son learn English. They also generally follow a path towards the IHS high school program which is excellent if you have one in your area.
There are also language immersion camps which might benefit your son as well.
If you do not have an immersion program in your area, you might want to find a Montessori or Waldorf program. They often embrace other cultures and languages and could be a very positive start for your son in becoming fluent in English.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
