It bothers me that most of us cannot boast that our kids can speak our indigenous languages. We will end up losing our cultures if this trend is not halted. Can people suggest why this is so and how we can stop it?

There are a few things I noticed in mixed couples around me (where most of the times, the dad is nigerian and mom from another country) :

- The dad talks to the children in english (even when it's just the language used by the couple to communicate and not the mom's native language) ;
- The dad starts talking to the kids in native language only when they start speaking already (english or other language), which is too late as the baby develops ability to speak a language before saying his first words ;
- Other nigerians with same native language address the kid in english (because he's a mixed kid??), hence the baby won't know that the native language can actually be used to really communicate with other people and will just pick a few words of it


I noticed that before having my first baby and therefore have been very clear with my husband about that : he wouldn' be able to blame me if his kids were to not speak his native language as I cannot teach them myself. He's always been speaking to his baby in his native language and we've asked our nigerian friends and family to do the same (some speak english to their kids but native language to ours ). My baby started saying her first words, and they are equally in english/her dad's language/my language. She understands it all, even when other people talk to her, and of course I'm very proud about it

Miss_Ife:

There are a few things I noticed in mixed couples around me (where most of the times, the dad is nigerian and mom from another country) :

- The dad talks to the children in english (even when it's just the language used by the couple to communicate and not the mom's native language) ;
- The dad starts talking to the kids in native language only when they start speaking already (english or other language), which is too late as the baby develops ability to speak a language before saying his first words ;
- Other nigerians with same native language address the kid in english (because he's a mixed kid??), hence the baby won't know that the native language can actually be used to really communicate with other people and will just pick a few words of it


I noticed that before having my first baby and therefore have been very clear with my husband about that : he wouldn' be able to blame me if his kids were to not speak his native language as I cannot teach them myself. He's always been speaking to his baby in his native language and we've asked our nigerian friends and family to do the same (some speak english to their kids but native language to ours ). My baby started saying her first words, and they are equally in english/her dad's language/my language. She understands it all, even when other people talk to her, and of course I'm very proud about it

Hey Miss Ife , am so so proud of you too. Kudos to you and your hubby for this approach. I came across a similar thread in another forum and couldnt find any real solution. Yours take the cake I must say. I bet all the other parents in that forum would love to hear this.

Please share this here:
http://www.nigerianparentsforum.com/index.php/board,5.0.html

smartmom:

Hey Miss Ife , am so so proud of you too. Kudos to you and your hubby for this approach. I came across a similar thread in another forum and couldnt find any real solution. Yours take the cake I must say. I bet all the other parents in that forum would love to hear this.

Please share this here:
http://www.nigerianparentsforum.com/index.php/board,5.0.html

Went to your link smartmom and found it really educative and funny too. I dare say the issue is a very serious one and parents need to address it urgently too.