Why Teach Your Kids Another Language?

February 21, is International Mother Language Day. This day promotes linguistic diversity, because languages are important to culture, and all cultures from around the world are important. It also promotes multilingualism as a way to make education accessible for all. Today, learn what your mother tongue is and why you should teach your kids another language.

What Is Your Mother Tongue? Your Native Language?

Your mother tongue is the first language you learned as a child. It’s usually your primary caregiver’s language, or the language that your family speaks. For example, you could live in Canada, but your primary caregiver (which is often mothers), speaks Spanish to you. If Spanish is the first language you learn, it’s your mother tongue. 

Native language, while similar, is the language spoken in the country you grew up in. Your native language and mother tongue are often the same, but they can be different. If you grew up in BC, your native language would be English. However, your mother tongue would be the language you first learned at home. 

Why Should You Teach Your Kids Another Language?

Teaching your kids another language has so many benefits. Try teaching them the language that their family speaks, or the language that you grew up speaking. 

Why teach your kids the language their family speaks? 

• It helps them understand their culture. Teaching them another language will likely expose them to your traditions, stories, and ways of thinking. Languages affect how we think, so another language can change their perspectives. 
• Your kids will be able to speak with family members, like grandparents. If your kids speak one language and their family speaks another, your kids will never truly connect with their family. 
• Languages open up job opportunities.
• For kids, understanding their cultural identity is a part of BC’s school curriculum (Positive Personal and Cultural Identity). In school, they build on this to learn how their culture shapes their actions, beliefs, and values.
• Knowing multiple languages and cultures contributes to multilingualism and multiculturalism. If the language isn’t as common, it helps preserve it and contributes to the world’s cultural diversity. 

Resources

• Burnaby Public Library Storytimes. Currently offered in Cantonese, Tigrinya, and Korean, but they do offer different languages.
• Visiting and calling family members who speak another language. This will expose your child to the new language.
• Reading books in your other language.

Learn more on our multilingual literacy page!