Let me share a story with you.
Last weekend, we chanced upon
a drawing station at @nationalgallerysingapore.
Mr 8 wanted to write a new word
that he just learnt in 小三第六课
and practised in 习字本 yesterday
- “撞”.
I had no idea why he chose that word...
but he later told me "撞到墙壁“.
You see,
during Chinese New Year,
we hang the character “春” upside down.
“春” 倒过来
sounds like 春到 Spring is here.
His version is
“撞” 倒过来
sounds like 撞到
and he put it on the wall
so it's 撞到墙壁!
Do you get it? :P
This may be something very small,
and maybe not so funny.
But this means the world to me.
The boy who hated Mandarin,
now enjoys Chinese comics and books on his own,
holds a decent simple conversation in Mandarin,
and most recently, creates his own puns and jokes.
Bookmarking this moment to remember,
on this long and arduous bilingual journey.
I share this story to let you know
that nurturing bilinguals is tough work,
but there is hope,
and it'll be worth it in the end.
Let's continue sowing seeds.
Create a rich and prepared environment
for them to absorb and learn.
Observe them,
support them.
I'll be here to cheer you on.
And support you with awesome resources.
I'll continue to share our reflections,
to give you food for thought.
Our awesome community of
like-minded fellow parents and educators
is here to let you know you're not alone.
One day, when you least expect it,
your child may surprise you,
and it'll be worth it.
Till then,
let's press on!
Shout-out to many of my fellow bilingual parents and educators
who have inspired me so much
and added a lot of depth to our discussions!
I'm grateful for you!
You know who you are 💕
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