Special, isn't it? My kids went to the International School. Same power, I still admire it. Observant, none judgemental. Outside School they learned to swear in every language.🤣
Oh wow, I guess that is one byproduct of this beautiful situation! I think the observant and non-judgmental plus fluent in multilingual swearing is a specific and wonderful combination. 🤣
You are a good writer! I am drawn in by your descriptions and can see and feel the actions and emotions all aswirl in you, Sean and your children. Sounds like it’s going well!
Thank you Kathryn - so glad it pulled you in. It's going well enough that I can write about it without the white knuckles now, which feels like progress. 😄
Apart from learning French in a breeze, they learned an invaluable gift. Reading people through their body language will serve them all their lives. Wonderful.
Love that - learning in a breeze. Though I might liken it more to a raging storm than a breeze 😂 But yes, the body language reading is the part that genuinely surprised me. I didn't plan for that at all. Thank you, Anne!
Children are incredible in these situations. I once taught a 4 yr old from Thailand in my UK nursery class. He had no English at all. He watched, grabbed my hand and communicated through sign and gesture for things that he wanted as he gradually gained some English words. 7 years later when he left the school he spoke and wrote fluent English. Amazing! Thank you for sharing this beautiful insight of your children. 😊
I had a similar experience with a 10 year old Korean boy in my class. A year later the children voted him school Captain, and two years from his arrival he passed the competitive exam for secondary placement in the academic track (in English, of course.) Wonderful.
Two years from arrival to passing the competitive academic placement exam is remarkable! And the children voting him captain in the meantime says something too. Thank you for sharing this, Virginia.
Love this story! The hand-grabbing and gestural communication is exactly what I imagine my two looked like in week one. The seven-years-later fluency is the thing you can't see from the beginning and that's the whole difficulty of it. Thank you for this, Helen. It's reassuring to hear from someone who watched it happen. 😊
This whole adventure your family is on is amazing. This article on reading people made me think of how much I rely on my hearing and don't bother looking at people. I'm going to be more aware in the future.
The relying on hearing and forgetting to look is something I recognize in myself too - and watching my kids do the opposite has made me try harder. Thank you, Barbara - I hope the awareness helps!
Portugal is a wonderful choice and it sounds like you're already someone who knows how to land somewhere new. Thank you for reading and best of luck! 🌿
This is the superpower of children. My wife's granddaughter knew there was something wrong but was too young to know what but that didn't stop her from hugging her grandma and patting her on the back saying it will be alright, she was 4 years old. As you note in your article they pick up the vibes, the gestures the looks.
That four year old knowing something was wrong and responding to it before she had words for what it was - YES. That's exactly it. Thank you, Murray :)
What a gift that came out of a decision that terrified you at the time. Proof that the things we agonize over most sometimes become the very things that shape us in the most unexpected, beautiful ways. Loved this 🤍
The things that terrify us most sometimes just suddenly become the best thing - and you can't know which ones those will be until you're on the other side of them. Thank you for this, Olivia 💛
I was plopped into a Brazilian kindergarten at the age of 4. I learned it - I have no memory of struggle at all. No one sat with me to translate. I had no special group to be taught the basics. I just learned. But I do watch people as you describe your children. I can somewhat read lips when people are muted on zoom accidentally. I didn’t try to develop this skill. It just is what my brain automatically does. You have given your children an amazing gift!
Special, isn't it? My kids went to the International School. Same power, I still admire it. Observant, none judgemental. Outside School they learned to swear in every language.🤣
Oh wow, I guess that is one byproduct of this beautiful situation! I think the observant and non-judgmental plus fluent in multilingual swearing is a specific and wonderful combination. 🤣
You are a good writer! I am drawn in by your descriptions and can see and feel the actions and emotions all aswirl in you, Sean and your children. Sounds like it’s going well!
Thank you Kathryn - so glad it pulled you in. It's going well enough that I can write about it without the white knuckles now, which feels like progress. 😄
Apart from learning French in a breeze, they learned an invaluable gift. Reading people through their body language will serve them all their lives. Wonderful.
Love that - learning in a breeze. Though I might liken it more to a raging storm than a breeze 😂 But yes, the body language reading is the part that genuinely surprised me. I didn't plan for that at all. Thank you, Anne!
Children are incredible in these situations. I once taught a 4 yr old from Thailand in my UK nursery class. He had no English at all. He watched, grabbed my hand and communicated through sign and gesture for things that he wanted as he gradually gained some English words. 7 years later when he left the school he spoke and wrote fluent English. Amazing! Thank you for sharing this beautiful insight of your children. 😊
I had a similar experience with a 10 year old Korean boy in my class. A year later the children voted him school Captain, and two years from his arrival he passed the competitive exam for secondary placement in the academic track (in English, of course.) Wonderful.
Two years from arrival to passing the competitive academic placement exam is remarkable! And the children voting him captain in the meantime says something too. Thank you for sharing this, Virginia.
Love this story! The hand-grabbing and gestural communication is exactly what I imagine my two looked like in week one. The seven-years-later fluency is the thing you can't see from the beginning and that's the whole difficulty of it. Thank you for this, Helen. It's reassuring to hear from someone who watched it happen. 😊
This whole adventure your family is on is amazing. This article on reading people made me think of how much I rely on my hearing and don't bother looking at people. I'm going to be more aware in the future.
The relying on hearing and forgetting to look is something I recognize in myself too - and watching my kids do the opposite has made me try harder. Thank you, Barbara - I hope the awareness helps!
Excellent and lifelong skill to acquire.
Agreed, and completely transferable to every situation they'll ever be in. Thank you, Muhammad!
We are thinking of a move to Portugal. We lived in Costa Rica for 7 months. Loving. All of this. Keep it coming!
Portugal is a wonderful choice and it sounds like you're already someone who knows how to land somewhere new. Thank you for reading and best of luck! 🌿
Thank you! Well gosh, we try. Have you ever used astrocartography to help you choose places?
This is the superpower of children. My wife's granddaughter knew there was something wrong but was too young to know what but that didn't stop her from hugging her grandma and patting her on the back saying it will be alright, she was 4 years old. As you note in your article they pick up the vibes, the gestures the looks.
That four year old knowing something was wrong and responding to it before she had words for what it was - YES. That's exactly it. Thank you, Murray :)
Interesting! That skill will serve them well in life :)
Yes exactly. Watching them use it in real time is something else. Thank you, Sigrún!
What a gift that came out of a decision that terrified you at the time. Proof that the things we agonize over most sometimes become the very things that shape us in the most unexpected, beautiful ways. Loved this 🤍
The things that terrify us most sometimes just suddenly become the best thing - and you can't know which ones those will be until you're on the other side of them. Thank you for this, Olivia 💛
I was plopped into a Brazilian kindergarten at the age of 4. I learned it - I have no memory of struggle at all. No one sat with me to translate. I had no special group to be taught the basics. I just learned. But I do watch people as you describe your children. I can somewhat read lips when people are muted on zoom accidentally. I didn’t try to develop this skill. It just is what my brain automatically does. You have given your children an amazing gift!