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Bíonn mórán daoine ag rá “ag bualadh mé” nó rud éigin mar sin.
foghlaimeoirí a deir sin, dar liom.
Aontaim leat.
Buíochas.
The grammar seems sound. Can’t speak for what you’d hear on the streets. (Or in the alleys.)
Tá an ceart agat. Bíonn mórán daoine ag rá “ag bualadh mé” nó rud éigin mar sin.
It doesn’t matter if she doesn’t have access to native speakers.Theoretically she can create her own dialect of Irish.
That’s a really interesting point. We put a lot of effort into copying how people on TG4 and the radio sound, but I suppose it’s inevitable we’ll do our own thing in the end.
The nearest city with a decent Irish language scene is Portland, Oregon. I’m definitely planning on making regular family trips up there for Irish weekends, once the children are a little older. We’ll see what influence that has, what kind of speakers are there.
I recently did a blog post about my daughter’s bilingualism and documenting the words she uses. I meant to post it here and kept forgetting to: http://www.occomix.com/blog/2014/01/my-daughters-bilingualism-at-20-months/
GRMA a cargin14. Media is vital- we have invested in a lot of books, music, nursery rhymes and videos. The internet is a great resource, of course. From what I have read about the topic, it seems reading aloud together is second only to speaking. So we read a good bit daily with her in Irish. We read in English much less. She loves her books so that helps. My future plans include getting her immersed in the language, (we can take a trip to Portland, Oregon for that) and spending a lot ón books lol. God has blessed us with another child on the way, this time a son. If we raise him the same way, it will be a big help- one more person she can converse with in Irish daily.
Statements like this:
“I don’t agree that being conversational without access to natives is that difficult.”
sound a bit foolish when preceded by statements like this:
“I wouldn’t know because I’ve made several trips to Ireland and been immersed in Irish. I also started learning when I was a child”You don’t know, so why you think you have any grounds to agree or disagree with that statement is beyond me.
I was referring to language learning in general- I’ve reached a conversational level in a couple languages without natives, and I’ve personally known others who have. Conversational isn’t setting the bar too high, imo. But then again, those languages had a lot more in common with English than Irish does, so I have to admit that you’re right. My statement, in the context of discussing the Irish language does sound a bit foolish.
That’s cool. I am usually very skeptical of especially Americans’ spoken/listening ability especially. As a foreigner, learning to read and write Irish is difficult enough, but being conversational in it without access to natives is a whole other challenge that most do not succeed in.
I guess that would be difficult. I wouldn’t know because I’ve made several trips to Ireland and been immersed in Irish. I also started learning when I was a child, so it makes it easier to wrap my mind around. I don’t agree that being conversational without access to natives is that difficult. Simply the more you use the target language and suspend your native language, the faster and better you progress. Irish isn’t the only language I’ve learned, and I progress largely by practicing with natives, though of course they’re harder to find with Irish.
She’s a toddler. I have enough more than enough Irish for her – when I don’t know what a word is in Irish, I look it up. So my vocabulary has grown quickly. I study every day, often for hours. I can usually understand anything I read in Irish, and am rarely at a loss for words at this point. My goal is to pass a C1 exam in a few months.
I recently documented all the words she uses, and she’s above average for her age. And Irish is by far dominant.
You are doing a wonderful job and even if you are using different pronunciations of Irish or even wrong grammar, it doesn’t matter — you are keeping the language alive which is more than most are doing.
It’s always best to be learning from native speakers, but if those are not available, so what?
I wouldn’t be discouragedGood luck
GRMA. I appreciate your support. I’m sure we do make mistakes, but that can be remedied by immersing her with natives later. Through her mother she has family near a Gaeltacht, so arranging such a trip isn’t too difficult. Worst case scenario is she doesn’t sound native, or speaks a pidgin, but can later improve it.
I’m not trying to be cheeky here, but I am slightly curious how old your daughter is. Your profile says your proficiency in Irish is “intermediate”. It doesn’t seem one could get very far raising a child exclusively in a language one has only an intermediate ability in.
She’s a toddler. I have enough more than enough Irish for her – when I don’t know what a word is in Irish, I look it up. So my vocabulary has grown quickly. I study every day, often for hours. I can usually understand anything I read in Irish, and am rarely at a loss for words at this point. My goal is to pass a C1 exam in a few months.
I recently documented all the words she uses, and she’s above average for her age. And Irish is by far dominant.
I second the books suggestion. Overall I would say to not approach the language as just in a subject a class but mostly to speak it conversationally.
Tá mo ghreannán zombaithe thuas anois http://www.occomix.com/blog/2013/09/na-zombaithe-an-chead/
Go raibh maith agaibh arís.
