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Newsletter
December 22, 2011 |
| Dear Multilingual Living Friends,
Tomorrow is going to be a wonderful day! My brother is flying in from California!
He’ll get to enjoy my husband’s homemade Christmas dinner (specialties are Rouladen and mousse au chocolat). He’ll get to play Lego PS3 games with my boys and Playmobil with my daughter. He’ll play guitar (he’s an amazing musician!) to entertain us and have hot chocolate with marshmallows in front of a roaring fire with us. He’ll even freak out a bit when we light the real candles on the Christmas tree. We’d do these things anyway during the holidays but having an additional family member here to share it with us is just so very special.
Not everyone enjoys spending time with their family during this time of year. It can be stressful and exhausting, to say the least. I will admit that my family has gone through its own trials and tribulations (as I mentioned in the last newsletter). In the post, 10 Things to AVOID Saying to Your International In-Laws This Holiday Season, I share some of the lessons I learned from difficult interactions on both sides of my family. It isn’t that we are not allowed to say anything. It is about learning to pick our battles and knowing when to let things be during the holiday season. Discuss what needs to be discussed after the holidays!
Thank You!
I would like to take this chance to thank everyone for their engagement with Multilingual Living this year. I read every single one of your comments with joy and enthusiasm (even if I can’t always find the time to respond). I love interacting with each of you directly on Facebook and Twitter and cherish the lessons I learn from each of you.
I would also like to thank Multilingual Living’s fantastic guest authors from 2011! They have written touching, humorous and meaningful posts without asking for any compensation. They do so out of the generosity of their hearts and their desire for dialog with all of us. Thank you everyone for making this year nothing short of amazing and worthwhile!May your final weeks of 2011 be joyful, peaceful and memorable!
Many Multilingual Holiday Wishes,
Corey Heller
Founder, Multilingual Living
www.multilingualliving.com
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Last Day for December Giveaway!
We have created four different ways to give away four copies of the fantastic book, A Parents’ and Teachers’ Guide to Bilingualism, by Colin Baker and published by Multilingual Matters. Find out more at the following post before the giveaway closes tomorrow:
For all of you on this email list, you have another way to win this fabulous book here (password: email):
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10 Things You Should NOT Say to Your In-Laws
Are you in an international marriage? Will you be spending the holidays with your in-laws? Make sure to read this post before saying anything this holiday season. You may not even realize which things could cause the most trouble!:
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Do All Children Learn Languages the Same?
Prof. Grosjean shares a lovely post about the different ways two boys learn French in an immersion situation in Switzerland. An excellent read!:
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Top December Post on Multilingual Living!
This post is STILL the most read post this month on Multilingual Living! It looks like we can all use a reminder of what works (and doesn’t work) when encouraging our bilingual children to speak our language. Which of these are you guilty of?
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Latest Forum Discussions…
Here are just a few of the latest discussions taking place on the Multilingual Living Forum:
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Holiday Gifts in French, Spanish and Chinese
We are delighted to announce that we have teamed up with Ana Lomba to help promote her wonderful Animated Storybooks in Spanish, French and Chinese.
If you do decide to purchase a subscription (it is only $7 a month!) you will also be helping to support Multilingual Living. These are wonderful for last minute holiday gifts!
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What!? Coke Invented Santa?
During my time in Europe, I was often told during the holidays that Santa, as we know him today, was actually an invention of Coca-Cola! Horrified to hear this, I did some research… learn what I found out:
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Latest Comments and Conversations…
Here are some of the latest comments that have appeared on the Multilingual Living website:
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Don’t They Speak Spanish in Spain?
So, you think they speak Spanish in Spain? Well, yes, they do. But also so much more! Find out what is going on in Spain through this fantastic post by Alice Lapuerta:
And then learn how to make this amazing dish that fits perfectly with Alice’s story of Spain and its linguistic joys and turmoils:
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Prof. Genesee Answers Your Top 5 Concerns
There is nothing more reassuring than experts taking the time to listen to our concerns and answer our questions. Prof. Fred Genesee has been doing this for Multilingual Living since we began!
Here is a fantastic article by Prof. Fred Genesee that we included in Multilingual Living Magazine a while back and are delighted to share with you on our website today:
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Bilingual Children Starting School? Watch Out!
If your children are going to be starting school soon, then you absolutely need to read this excerpt from Bilingual Siblings!
Most parents lament the day their children pass through the school doors because that is often the beginning of the end of their children’s bilingualism:
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What to Support Us? Get Our Back Issues!
Want to read articles from the top experts in the field of bilingualism while supporting Multilingual Living? Then get your hands on the back issues of Multilingual Living Magazine! You will find more than answers in these amazing issues!
Here are just a few of the experts wrote for Multilingual Living Magazine: Colin Baker, François Grosjean, Jean-Marc Dewaele, Fred Genesee, Madalena Cruz-Ferreira, Jasone Cenoz, Aneta Pavlenko, Suzanne Barron-Hauwaert, Xiao-lei Wang, Barbara Zurer, Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa, and many, many more!
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Come find us where we hang out:
Website: www.multilingualliving.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/multilingualliving
Twitter: www.twitter.com/MultiLingLiving
YouTube: www.youtube.com/multilingualliving
Are you reading this newsletter on the Multilingual Living website? Subscribe for FREE to the Multilingual Living email list and get your very own newsletter delivered directly to your inbox each week! |
