I'm curious to hear about people's experiences with their toddlers (2-3 years old) and learning Italian as a second language. My daughter is in Asilo Nido (4 hours a day, 5 days a week) and has been there for 6 months. She seems to be understanding most Italian but isn't speaking much of it yet. We speak English at home as we are also in the process of learning Italian... though we do speak it with her conversationally. What have you see/experienced?

Hi Sara! Children do notoriously well when learning another language. I wouldn't worry about your piccolina; she'll be doing fine in no time! It's actually beneficial for them to know more than one language... it gives various parts of the brain a really good workout!

Hi Sara. Antonia is pretty much fluent after her first year in school, but she is 4, so maybe that makes a difference, I don't know. Your daughter won't lose it over the summer though and will probably take a massive leap again before Christmas.

My daughter is 7 (just finished 1st grade) and we've been here 6 months almost. She goes to an International Montessori school where they speak English in the classrooms but she has 1 hour per day of Italian and I send her to an extra hour after school per week. I honestly think she learns more on the playground where the native Italian girls speak Italian with her so she's farther ahead than her brother (9, just finished 3rd grade). I wouldn't worry too much, but maybe try and schedule play dates with some of the Italian classmates if you think she's up for that. If she understands at her age, she's doing great. Keep in mind how long she heard only English (since birth) before she started actually speaking English. Same situation, I think, although might take longer since you speak both languages at home. (Good for you, by the way. We're (hubby & I) farther behind than both of the kids!)

Learning a foreign language as a toddler puts your child at a great advantage. First, a 2-3 year old is like a sponge and has no social inhibitions about trying out new words and phrases. A child's common language is play, and other children of that age won't poke fun of a beginner speaker. Most importantly a toddler isn't expected to produce actual school work, so there is less pressure to learn the language perfectly as first. My son is almost 10 and is entering the 5th grade. He will have exams (in Italian) at the end of the this school year for middle school and the pressure is really on for him to improve his Italian, especially with reading a writing. Good luck, your child will do brilliantly!

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Originally posted by Sara:
I'm curious to hear about people's experiences with their toddlers (2-3 years old) and learning Italian as a second language. My daughter is in Asilo Nido (4 hours a day, 5 days a week) and has been there for 6 months. She seems to be understanding most Italian but isn't speaking much of it yet. We speak English at home as we are also in the process of learning Italian... though we do speak it with her conversationally. What have you see/experienced?

You say your daughter doesn't seem to speak much Italian - have you asked if she has little chats with her school pals or tells the teachers that she is thirsty or needs the toilet etc?

No offence - but speaking Italian at home might be confusing her if she hasn't yet worked out that some people have only one language and some people have two. And I personally would be wary of speaking Italian to her unless what you are saying is absolutely correct. It won't work if she hears "palla" at school and you say "pala" for example. And I'm not saying this to offend anybody but I know a 17 old here who still pronounces a couple of words wrong - learnt from his mother (who still does too) and it is now such an ingrained things that nobody has been able to correct it.
I only spoke English at home knowing that my kids would get all the Italian they needed from outside. They are now older and know the difference and know that if they ask for water or acqua they will still get it at home .... but they also know to only ask my Mum for water and the teachers for acqua.

I was bombarded with advice and ignored most of it but the only bit of advice i really believed in was not to confine English only to inside the home as this cold make kids think that you don't speak English outside ........a secret thing that you only do at home - or because you are ashamed etc - kids thinking and all that...

of course this came with a lot of local yokels saying things like "we're in italy - speak Italian" but I got round this by sayig things like ---- "but I am speaking to you in Italian - must I also translate that I have just told the kids they are not having another ice-cream today ?" or things like " isn't it better they learn English now rather than struggle with it at school later on?" And once i got so annoyed with an arrogant father that i had never seen at the school before - on his high horse telling me off and telling me what to do, I actually said " I get what you are saying - so in effect - if you moved to Englaand - America or Australia or even Timbuctoo you would not speak your own language to your kids or let them learn Italian from you !!!!"

I've never seen an Italian shut up and walk away so damn quickly !!!!

Some people in my village grunted at me - some agreed and a surprising few even told me they wished they'd had more opportunities with languages when they younger.


At the end of the day I really think your own character can make a difference ...... I never let myself feel pressurised to conform and did what i always felt was best..... and my kids are now bilingual and all the village folk (half of whom can't even speak Italian themselves but only dialect) don't even blink anymore if they hear us chattering away in English down the street or if in one of the shops I say ,

" Un etto di cotto per favore - Chloe don't touch that please e anche 4 pezzi di pane"

I don't have a kid yet but from what everyone tells me Lorna is right. Keep speaking only English with your child - don't confuse her by speaking Italian with her. Before you know it she'll speak perfect Italian from school - and English will be the language that needs reinforcing!

Re what Lorna said about kids pronouncing things incorrectly if they have foreign parents. My Swedish dad speaks excellent English but his pronounciation is not the best. He spoke English exclusively with me when I was a kid and I always got certain words mixed up. For example "restarang" rather than "restaurant" and "coo" rather than "cow". Little things but it took me a while to work out that this was just dad's Swedish accent coming through and this was not correct English. No big deal but it probably would have been much better if dad had spoken Swedish with me rather than English- a) I would have learnt Swedish and b) I would not have mispronounced certain words.

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" Un etto di cotto per favore - Chloe don't touch that please e anche 4 pezzi di pane"

That's great! I agree that English should be spoken everywhere, not just inside the home.

But one question to those who have successfully raised bilingual children or those who were raised in a bilingual family, if I speak in English with my Italian husband and I intend on speaking English only with my daughter, which language should my husband speak to her in? He speaks English very well, but he has a little European-sounding accent (not the heavy-Italian accent).

I think it would be weird if he speaks in English to me and then mid-sentence switches to Italian to speak with her and then I say something to her in English...I am getting confused just imagining it. I feel like my correct pronunciation would balance out any incorrect pronunciation she may hear from her Dad. Any thoughts?

My daughter just turned 2 (yesterday!) and has been going to asilo nido for almost a year. Before that she was mainly exposed to me and my husband speaking english. People were complaining that she would not speak properly in italian . Once she started asilo, within a week she had her first italian words (sp?chucio = dummy/ pacifier and ciao). Now she speaks MAINLY in italian, in full sentences and only used english when she doesn't know the italian words. She is great at singing english songs, however!!

I always speak in english with her, no matter where we are and who else is around. Also get many simialr comments to the poster above but i just don't care. Now she is starting to respond to my corrections to her english (eg my bag not me bag) and using more english when i speak to her in english.

My husband (italian) also speaks to her in english, but that is because we speak english at home, he has said speaking english to her feels 'natural' even if he does have an accent. That is his personal choice, and i think it is great having 'english' as our home language.

Now i feel any english exposure she can get is a bonus, i make sure the TV is in english (not that she watches much) , that i read lots of english books to her, speaking on the phone/ internet to relatives and meeting up with other expat kids whenever possible. Trips to english speaking countries also makes her use english more. SO i don't worry about my husbands accent as my accent is different to his, to other expats, to the TV (lots of different accents but never the same as mine) etc etc.

Our situation is a bit different since my son's Italian is still quite rusty, but we always speak English EXCEPT when we are with other people that only speak Italian. It seems rude to be in a group of people (that you know, not just some random group), or buying bread, etc.. and speaking a language no one else can understand. My son will learn Italian from everyone else, so English is our language. In the grade scheme of things I think he'll end up at Uni in the US or UK, so keeping that English at a high level and keeping up with advanced literature is very important!

Interesting topic. I raised my kids insisting that they speak English with me in the house. This, along with trips to the U.S. every summer, helped maintain their English skills. They learned Italian in school, and actually speak to each other in Italian.
From what I understand the going rule is one parent, one language, meaning the parent's mother tongue. This is a problem common to translators where parents often have different mother tongues and may live in a country where a third langauge is spoken. There is an interesting forum on this topic on a translators' website here under community, forums and multilingual families where those of you in mixed language marriages/relationships with children may find some good tips.
What I would stress is English, my kids are now grown but I am sure that if I had not insisted on English with me they would have lost their ability to speak English like natives. The English they take in school will smooth out any spelling issues - Italian kids do not have to memorize how to spell words, they are spelled as they are pronounced, English as we all know is another animal.

My husband and I don't have any children but have a 3.5 year old niece. I've spoken English with her from day one. If we're with the rest of the family, who for the most part is able to also speak English with the exceptions of my sister-in-law and mother-in-law. So all my niece hears from me is English. She understands, but will only respond in Italian but on occasion a word may come out in English. Don't know if it is just a "phase" that she responds in Italian, but then again she doesn't have constant daily exposure to English.

I love hearing everyone's experiences... and can relate to many of you. I certainly feel less pressured to speak Italian in the house. More and more she is speaking Italian words and phrases. Per the advice, I'll rest assured that she's picking it up and not uncomfortable in school. Today, she said; "Mama, o dio". Clearly she's picking something up!