Tri-Lingual Reading Class

4 thoughts on “Tri-Lingual Reading Class”

1. Grant Boulanger

   February 16, 2012 at 7:22 am

   Ben, this is very cool. And in your environment I can see how it would:
   *increase attention to the French
   *send a strong message that you honor and respect the culture and language of the dominant (but minority) group in your presence
   *send a strong message that you honor and respect learning languages other than French
   *encourage non-spanish speakers to respect and engage with Spanish speakers on a level other than the existing social paradigm, whatever that may be

   I think this is very cool. Maybe not soemthing you would do each time, but very special indeed. I’m a little envious, actually.

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   1. Chris

      February 16, 2012 at 9:50 am

      Plus Ben probably learns some Spanish while doing this as he is getting CI in Spanish!

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2. Ben Slavic

   February 16, 2012 at 9:49 am

   Yes, it has taken me a long time to show them that my interest in Spanish is genuine. For months, their mistrust level was off the chart and they were vary wary of me for some time. One kid just yesterday looked at me and said, “I don’t know – I’m white.” But I tell them that they are so lucky to live in two cultures and how empty it must be to only have one to live in. I tell them that languages in job applications will become critical in the next twenty years and that they are already far ahead of the other monolingual applicants, especially if they build in some French after spending three or four years with me. I explain that the job decision between the applicant who has a straight A average from Harvard and the tri-lingual kid with the C average from Colorado State University or Adams State goes in many cases to the tri-lingual kid. I try to give them hope. I see in their faces that they are listening. I see hope in their faces. Therefore, I am doing what I set out to do – reach kids. And not the privileged ones, who will make it in life anyway. The ones without hope.

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3. jen

   February 16, 2012 at 10:10 am

   I love this! It’s so important to honor someone’s mother tongue. I mean that on every level. The language you spoke with your mother is deeply embedded, and to ignore or dismiss it is at the root of most of the conflicts in the world. I think it is our work to be curious and to connect as much as possible with each other’s mother tongues. No matter how many or few languages we actually speak, I think it is more about our intention. More connecting is always good. The post that Kate wrote about names attests to this. We just can’t assume anything!

   A good friend of mine came to visit my classes on Monday. He is a hip 20-something guy who has been living in Batey Libertad, a marginalized community of Haitians, Dominicans, and Dominicans of Haitian descent. He has been part of this community for 6 years and has been part of a group of locals who have created a women’s leadership institute. When he shared stories with the kids he exuded such obvious love for everyone that the kids were completely sucked in to everything he said. Well, plus it didn’t hurt that he is “cute” and had everyone up dancing konpa and bachata! One thing that really stuck with kids was that he emphasized passionately “…even if you don’t speak much Spanish or Kreyol, people will light up when you try. People are so happy that you want to connect with them and it means so much to them. It’s not about being fluent.”

   So yes, tapping into this connection is powerful beyond measure! I can’t wait to hear more about this 🙂

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