finnish tuition for a child

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peroxisome
Posts: 23
Joined: Sun Oct 21, 2012 10:18 pm

finnish tuition for a child

Post by peroxisome » Thu Feb 11, 2016 11:10 pm

hi there

my kids are learning finnish at paivakoti, but we don't speak finnish at home, and so they are having difficulty learning Finnish. My daughter has been at paivakoti since one year old, but at 5 years old, she is still struggling.

Does anyone have experience of getting language lessons in finnish for kids, or know of people who offer tuition in finnish for kids ?

maybe also it is a phase that will pass ?

advice welcome
david



finnish tuition for a child

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rinso
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Joined: Fri Aug 25, 2006 7:22 pm

Re: finnish tuition for a child

Post by rinso » Fri Feb 12, 2016 6:24 am

When they get into ala aste they'll pick up the language quickly.

leisl
Posts: 422
Joined: Mon Nov 23, 2015 3:26 pm

Re: finnish tuition for a child

Post by leisl » Fri Feb 12, 2016 8:34 am

The best option is via speaking to their peers. This is why they jump ahead massively when they begin school. But she is already spending her days with her peers. No amount of formal Finnish lessons will come close to the amount she should be learning by immersion right now.

Is it actually causing any problems for your child? Is she misunderstanding the carers at päiväkoti? How do you know the Finnish is struggling - who has told you this? Are the carers perhaps "helping" by using English with her? Ask them to stop. If the daughter understands Finnish well but speaks to them in the "wrong" language, people should simply say: suomeksi.

If you or your partner is a fluent Finnish speaker, they should try to use Finnish with your children at home. Your partner can still use another language with you and you can use your native language with your child. Some families successfully use three languages (mother speaks one language with the kids, father speaks another, and the parents speak a third to each other). At this age your kid should not find that a problem.

If I am honest I would have expected her to chatter along like a native within a year of starting päiväkoti, so something else is interfering with that. If you can't find a reason in the things above, talk to the staff about whether they believe she should be assessed professionally.

Rip
Posts: 5582
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 12:08 pm

Re: finnish tuition for a child

Post by Rip » Fri Feb 12, 2016 9:10 am

I'd be interested too to know if the OP has discussed the matter with the päiväkoti staff. Do they think there is problem, do they know OP thinks there is a problem? Are there other English speaking kids in the day care group (could be a problem)?

peroxisome
Posts: 23
Joined: Sun Oct 21, 2012 10:18 pm

Re: finnish tuition for a child

Post by peroxisome » Fri Feb 12, 2016 10:23 am

Very grateful for the responses.

We don't (can't) speak Finnish at home- our daughter is trilingual with English strongest.

As far as I know, there are only a couple of English speaking kids in other classes and she doesn't speak to them a lot, if at all.
The staff are definitely Finnish speakers, and we have even asked that they speak only Finnish to her. The paivakoti staff know there is a problem, since they told us on multiple occasions. We have just been to a speech therapist and they have confirmed that my daughter's Finnish is about a year behind her peers. Her English is much stronger.

It is a bit of a surprise that her Finnish isn't doing well after four years in an entirely Finnish school

I don't know if anyone else had similar experiences?
David

Rip
Posts: 5582
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 12:08 pm

Re: finnish tuition for a child

Post by Rip » Fri Feb 12, 2016 11:15 am

I would have thought being one year late at that age is neither that uncommon or worrisome for a multilingual child's second language. I think that is the message we have been getting from our day care (I have spoken Finnish to my kids but they did spend most of their time when younger with their mother who didn't, and I thought it showed (negatively) occasionally).

leisl
Posts: 422
Joined: Mon Nov 23, 2015 3:26 pm

Re: finnish tuition for a child

Post by leisl » Fri Feb 12, 2016 11:26 am

Ok... game changer. Three languages... it is absolutely normal for one of them to be weaker than the other two. It's normal for multi or bilingual kids to show an initial language delay (even in two languages) and also normal for these kids to catch up.

Surely the speech therapist would have offered advice if intervention is needed. When the staff say there is a problem, do they mean merely that they have noticed that she is behind? Or is it actually causing a problem?

I'm not you, but if your kid doesn't care and päiväkoti aren't seeing it as a day to day actual problem, I think I'd be inclined to leave it alone (assuming the other two languages are perfectly adequate). If there's an actual cognitive or language expression problem I would have expected that you'd see this in her English.

I have massive skepticism for formal language instruction for a 5yo being more beneficial than using it in practice via play.

peroxisome
Posts: 23
Joined: Sun Oct 21, 2012 10:18 pm

Re: finnish tuition for a child

Post by peroxisome » Sat Feb 13, 2016 3:47 pm

Thank you for your comments- it's very helpful.
Our daughter has Greek and English at home, the parental languages. Video and TV is in English so that gets emphasised.

I guess that the concern is her Finnish at school. I think she struggles to speak with other kids, and even a little bit with understanding complex speech from the teachers. If she drops behind too far, she will be excluded and that makes it a spiral. I'm not quite so clear about what the school is doing to support her Finnish.

Nonetheless, your comments about kids cAtching up quickly are very reassuring. We know her English skills are good- and that's remarkable if she gets no English at school. Well that's my impression as a monolingual English speaker... So I am greatly cheered by your comments

Thanks
David


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