Parenting in Cross-Cultural Catch-up Mode, Part 2 – Swahili
What’s the problem?
We are over 1.5 years into living in Kenya and my kids still don’t speak Swahili. How can this be? My kids attended a Kenyan school. They have been around plenty of Kenyan children and adults. Aren’t they just supposed to absorb whatever language is around them?
Video showcasing a few ways to introduce yourself, ~1 minute
How did this happen?
I thought maybe I could just blame this on the pandemic too, but no. The lack of MK language learning has always been a difficulty for families with kids here at Tenwek. So many of the MK’s who have spent their whole childhoods here in Kenya have never learned Swahili, or never had the opportunity until studying it in a classroom setting in international high schools. People in the states inevitably ask or assume MK’s know “the language” of where they have lived, and that can be a very uncomfortable conversation when the answer is “no”.
Even when we have been intentional to put our kids in situations where they are surrounded by Kenyan children, there is little language learning. Yes, Ransom went full-time to a Kenyan school with kids who speak Swahili to each other frequently. HOWEVER, almost all teaching in Kenyan schools is done in English, and every kid who attends is fluent in at least English and Swahili (and often a different “mother tongue” as well). Ransom’s teachers and friends are so accommodating that he has never needed to listen or speak in Swahili. So it is no wonder Ransom has not picked up the language during his school and play time.
Song counting 1 to 10, ~30 seconds
The truth is that there are many resources out there to teach adults Swahili, but very few good resources for children. Tutors are trained and available to help an adult work through highly structured curriculae that trains adults in functional Swahili. But there is a significant lack of resources that would capture the attention, imagination, and learning styles of an American child, inspiring them to learn Swahili.
What are we doing about it?
This year, I teamed up with one of the other missionary parents to try and make a change in how we approach Swahili with our kids. Starting in early September, our kids will start attending a 45 minute Swahili class twice a week taught by us in a “Swahili only” classroom space. The mission is to have our kids ready at the end of the year to function in a “play” setting with other Swahili speakers. This means skipping a good 60% of the things that adults are initially taught.
A humorous, more complex skit introducing concepts like “Why” and “Because”, ~4 minutes
How are we going to pull off a Swahili-only classroom when our kids don’t speak a lick of it? To be honest, we don’t quite know. But here are the things we are going to try:
Exposing them to words and concepts before class via Youtube videos.
Starting POLE POLE – SLOWLY SLOWLY, not expecting quick progress as we begin, but slowly building up as we go.
Being as tangible/kinesthetic as possible. Start with the stuff that can be said, motioned, and felt.
Preparing scripts for the teachers to follow whenever possible, sticking to a simple, repeated vocabulary.
My biggest project in preparing for this class has been to write, act, record, edit, and post videos with skits and songs (both original and existing) featuring basic Swahili concepts. It has taken up much of my head space and effort for the past 2-3 months. But it has also been a ton of fun to do. I’ve tried to include as many dumb jokes and as much silly acting as possible to keep the kids engaged.
People vocab! And introducing “is” and “isn’t” ~1.5 minutes
It is my hope and prayer that these videos will serve as a tool for kids to learn and retain phrases and concepts, and that watching curated playlists of these videos will serve as a kind of “homework” that the kids will look forward to every week.
How is it going?
We are still in the planning stages, so we still don’t know how it will go. The class starts at the beginning of September. Sadly, my kids will only have a chance to attend this class up to beginning of November when we start transitioning back to the states for our 6 month “Home Assignment”. Hopefully the class will be enough of a success that we can repeat it next year.
I have had a blast putting these videos together. The whole process has helped me review some parts of Swahili that I haven’t been able to practice. By the beginning of the class, there should be 20 videos or more up and running on the youtube channel. Some are linked throughout the post, but you can find the rest of them linked here: Tenwek Swahili Class Youtube Channel
Skit - Unaenda wapi? Where are you going? <3 minutes
Would you pray for us?
We would appreciate your prayers in this class:
Guidance for teachers as we further prepare, and as the rubber meets the road with this class.
That our MK’s would discover a passion for learning Swahili, and that it would further spark a passion for cross-cultural relationships.
That this class would open doors to more connections between our kids and our Kenyan neighbors.
That our Kenyan neighbors and their families would see the fruit of our efforts and feel loved as a result.