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From the Editor's Desk...
September-October 2006
Welcome to the school year!
As I write this, the publication date for this issue is still many weeks off. Since we will be in Europe when publication takes place, it was essential that the magazine come together early. Thank you everyone for stepping up and putting together a GREAT issue with such a short lead time!
Since this issue will come out with the advent of the school year, we wanted to make sure to include relevant articles about education, literacy, learning and preparing for the coming school year.
A child starting at a new school can be extremely nervewracking for the entire family. Starting at a new school as a bilingual is even moreso. Suzanne Barron-Hauwaert is experiencing preparations for a new school year and shares her poignant tips with us.
If you are like most parents raising bilingual children, you have probably considered a bilingual immersion school at some point along the way. Oliver Kim knows what he is talking about when he shares “a day in the life” LISA, an immersion school in Linz, Austria! His insights are extremely helpful and provide us with a unique view into what things are like from a teacher’s perspective.
It is our great delight and honor to have the talented author, Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa on board! If you have ever heard or read about how others are raising bilingual children and thought to yourself, “Hmm, that just doesn’t seem to work for us.” then you need to read Tracy’s essay. She provides essential insight into what we can and can’t influence and how best to come up with our own plan of action that meets each of our childrens’ needs.
One of the highlights this past month has been the opportunity to come into contact with one of the most influential individuals in the field of bilingualism, François Grosjean, Professor of Psycholinguistics and Director of the Language and Speech Processing Laboratory, Neuchâtel University, Neuchâtel, Switzerland. We all have François Grosjean, a bilingual himself, to thank for teaching the world that a bilingual should not be seen as the sum of two monolinguals in one body (something many still assume). Instead a bilingual must be viewed holistically and with a view toward his or her unique linguistic mix. You will not want to miss this fabulous interview which François Grosjean sent us together with contemporary photos to include with the interview!
It is our luck to have been given permission to reprint an extremely useful research article titled, First Language Acquisition! The three researchers guide us through the stages of language learning and give us a blueprint for understanding the mind of our bilingual child.
As always, we have put together a tremendous list of tips, suggestions, recommendations and advice! Becky shares her excellent recommendations that are sure to delight even the most discerning bilingual child! Harriet answers two very relevant questions about daycare choices and in-law concerns. Alice and Colleen provide reviews of two books to aid parents in their path of raising multilingual children. You won’t want to miss our lising of “Websights Worth Visiting” and our “Ages and Stages” this month reviews the unique issues that confront bilingual children at school - be it preparing your toddler for the world of education or understanding the identity issues your teen is going through with respect to peers.
To keep us connected with the world around us, we have an inspiring account from the founder of Bilingual Families Perth, Irma Lachmund and a delightful “How We Met” Spotlight of how a woman from Zimbabwe and a man from the Pacific Northwest in the US came together! And don’t miss the insightful tip of Milind Pandit, a adult raised multilingually!
BRAND NEW this month: Global Recipes and a Games and Fun section! Don’t miss out on either!
I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you from the bottom of my heart for subscribing! We still have a distance to go if we are to keep this magazine alive but you are making it all possible! Please continue spreading the word! And keep your emails coming!
Corey Heller
Editor/Publisher
corey@biculturalfamily.org
We look forward to Multilingual Living Magazine becoming an integral part of your life as your trusted, intelligent resource for living a multilingual and multicultural life. Our goal is to empower YOU to make decisions that work for you and your family, to inspire you to embrace the unique circumstances of your life and to help you and your family flourish in your multilingual living.
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