Cock-a-doodle-doo! Why children like multiculturalism, even when it comes to languages.
We don’t like to do things by halves. That is why we offer our children not only nature experiences and contact with animals. We are also a
bilingual kindergarten
and teach the children the English language in addition to the German language.
For this we apply the child-oriented
Immersion principle
which is about “immersion” in another language. That is, the second language, English, is simply lived in everyday life, through role-playing, everyday communication, reading aloud, and other activities. Just as children learn language. How we probably all would have liked to learn foreign languages in the past instead of struggling with grammar and learning vocabulary. It is important that one person, who must necessarily be a native speaker, always speaks the same language!
What is the goal of bilingual education in kindergarten?
Of course, English is the global language today. However, our aim with bilingual education is not for the children to climb the career ladder quickly later on. They should experience that there are other languages, such as English, but also other languages spoken by children and teachers in our multicultural environment with an intercultural team. Besides, the children learn that the roosters in England or America do not wake people up in the morning with cock-a-doodle-doo, but with Cock-a-doodle-doo!
Languages made easy: Multi- and blingual environment for children
By the way, children cope very well with the fact that the people around them do not all have the same mother tongue. In many countries around the world, children do not speak the official language of the country in their homes, which they use to communicate in kindergarten and school. In Germany, too, there are many families whose children grow up bilingual as a matter of course without any problems and without any disadvantages. Based on neurological research, we now know that it is easier for them to learn another language later on because the synapses network differently.
Here’s to a happy cock-a-doodle-doo!
Photos by Nurpalah Dee and Islander Images via unsplash.com
