Lauren is a non-native Spanish speaker, language teacher, and bilingual homeschooling mom.
Who is Lauren?
Non-Native Speaker
I learned Spanish as a way to connect with my heritage.
Limited Language Support
I'm the only person in my extended family who speaks Spanish to my kids.
Limited Opportunity
I'm accustomed to rural living with limited community resources for Spanish exposure.
It's easy to think that you can only raise bilingual children if:
Well, I'm here to tell you that's not always the case!
Hi! I'm Lauren. I am a language teacher by training with a degree in Education and Spanish. After college I became certified in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) and taught adults from around the world.
When I became a mom, I pursued my life-long dream of raising bilingual children. This journey has included starting the first-ever bilingual preschool in my rural area, hosting a weekly Spanish Playgroup in my home, and homeschooling my children in two languages.
From time to time, I speak at homeschool conferences on raising bilingual children and homeschooling in two languages.
It's my passion to make raising bilingual children a reality for more families like mine!
How does she raise bilingual kids?
If you're curious about how to raise bilingual kids in general, you can start with this blog post.
If you're curious about what it looks like for me - a non-native speaker - to homeschool my kids in two languages, you can read this post.
If you're curious what the most intimidating thing about starting this journey was read this post.
And now for the story behind my passion...
I am the great-granddaughter of Mexican Immigrants.
My Nana
My great-grandmother, my Nana, came to this country in her teens. I knew her well as she lived to be 102.
Her face radiated stories I couldn’t understand, and as a young child I vowed I would learn her language.
My Nani
My grandmother spoke only Spanish when she began Kindergarten in the 1930s. Neither her teacher nor the other children were kind to a quiet, introverted Spanish speaker.
She swore to herself then that her children would never know the humiliation she experienced her first years of school.
My Mama
My mother was her first child. Spanish came easily and was the language of the home until my mother turned four. With Kindergarten was just one year away, my Nani made a decision to switch the home language to English.
Spanish quickly became the language of the older generation.
Me
When I was born, Spanish was all around me but at an arms-length distance. I wanted to learn Spanish so bad. I remember as a 5 year old threatening to never speak to my grandparents again if they didn’t talk to me in Spanish!
My day came in 8th grade when my school offered Spanish. I will never forget the first time I heard my Nana's stories for myself!
This journey has made me passionate about encouraging families to raise bilingual children.
Want to get started today?
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