I’ve often been asked if I was able to talk Swiss, as I’ve lived there for a long time. Even if this kind of comment seems funny to those who live in or close to Switzerland, it is quite a common assumption among people coming from other continents, that Swiss talk Swiss, like Swedish […]
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Some thoughts about fluency in language
What does it mean to be “fluent” in a language? What is fluency? There are many different definitions of fluency, so for example it can be “the property of a person or of a system that delivers information quickly and with expertise”, or “the smoothness or flow with which sounds, syllables, words and phrases are […]
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Can adults acquire a language the same way as children?
Have you ever wondered why most of the language lessons for adults are based on learning grammar? Couldn’t adults learn (or acquire) a language in a more natural way, like children? When adults learn a new language, they usually try to find their way through a myriad of grammar rules and patterns because most of […]
Continue readingCan monolingual parents raise bilingual children?
The answer is “yes”, but… Many parents wonder if they can succeed in raising their children bilingually. Most of the studies of the ’60-’80 about bilingualism were about monolingual parents who wanted their children to become bilingual. Some parents would share the same home language and the community language would be L2, in […]
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Body parts – Körperteile – parti del corpo – parties du corps – lichaamsdeelen
Do you know the names of the body parts in all the languages you speak? I recently noticed that people who claim being bilingual (or multilingual) often have gaps in their vocabulary due to the lack or use of specific terms in their daily life. Apparently, we memorize and improve specific vocabulary only if we […]
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