Can it be done??
For those of you who don't follow my other blog La Mama Loca I'll recap our family situation here.
We adopted 5 children after fostering them for several years. Our daughter Goofy Girl was exposed to alcohol while in the womb. We have at this time chosen not to have her formally diagnosed, but she presents all the signs of a child on the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum. She looks perfectly normal on the outside, but on the inside, there are times there are 'holes' in her learning and understanding.
We have struggled with her learning to read/write in English and I'm always wondering how much we should teach her in Spanish. One one hand, I think she would find learning to read and write so much easier in Spanish. However, I know we live in a primarily English world, even here in PR, and our return to the States is likely.
I know she can speak both languages...she understands so much Spanish and definitely knows how to use it to fit her needs at the time, especially when it comes to Abuela and her love to feed her!
After much debate and prayer, we decided that we will do our best to teach her to read and write in Spanish...how much she picks up and uses will be debatable and English will be the one we push harder. However, I never want to limit her abilities because of what *I* think she is capable of!
So it may be a challenge and I may want to scream, but I think it will be worth the effort!
I think it's possible. Just like anything else, the ways in which she learns and the pace will be different than the typical kid, but definitely worth trying.
ReplyDeleteNot that it matters...but I think you made the right decision to try both with her. ;)