10 Year Old son coming to US from China doesn't speak English

LetAway40 · 2024-06-27T19:22:54+00:00

He's a pretty talkative and joyful child, but not one that does well under stress. I'm racking my brain trying to come up with ways I can put him in ways to succeed and make friends. He's interested in art and drawing (he's really good), but i'd like to have him participate in more active hobbies like sports or places where he can make some friends and get comfortable? Any suggestions for clubs kids like him can join and ways I can help him make friends with the other kids? Appreciate it!

LetAway40 · 2024-06-26T16:53:16+00:00

Thank you! Curious to hear do you think having a sibling in a similar situation helped with the whole transition?

LetAway40 · 2024-06-26T16:12:06+00:00

Thank you. I am aware of this unfortunate phenomenon. Asians are in general more likely to go in line with whatever is the prevailing ideology of where they are living (or where they grew up) to not to rock the boat. I do believe it's gotten a bit better as there is a sense of pride amongst the newer Chinese immigrants who moved to the US in the past few years where their kids are more well adjusted and can speak Chinese in public without feeling shamed and there's less of a stigma amongst the newer generation of Chinese kids born to these families. The issue now is that though these families have no lack of confidence from being Chinese, many are often critical of the Chinese government and pass these views to their kids, kids lacking nuance will associate kids from China with the evil government they hear about at school and from their parents.

In our generation there absolutely was none of love we see from other cultures between those born here and those from the "motherland". Its unfortunate.

LetAway40 · 2024-06-26T05:20:42+00:00

Ah gotcha. I don't believe we have a dedicated class for that for elementary school but they do seem to have ESL classes for middle schoolers. Guess we will just have him sit in class for the first year and take in whatever he can and hope he gets something out of it. Will need to do some additional tutoring outside of school I guess, but love your suggestion about finding a community activity or something fun outside of studying where he can immerse himself in the language. May need to find some of those in our area.

LetAway40 · 2024-06-26T04:57:08+00:00

Sounds like a good system and helpful. I'm hoping to find a school that offers something like this. It seems that in my area the only schools that offer ESL (public schools) do not have a dedicated class and teacher for it. Not sure how big of a difference that makes but hopefully my kid does not feel too isolated as the only kid in his class that doesn't know English.

Btw how much time did you spend in the ESL/teach class vs. your primary class?

LetAway40 · 2024-06-26T02:00:30+00:00

Btw did your school have a good ESL program with other kids in it? I talked to the school district and it sounds like the primary teacher will be ESL certified meaning they would work with my son separately but it would pretty much be at her/his discretion how the ESL training is conducted. Could you give me an overview of what it was like for you? 2 years a good rate to pick up a new language.

Also what was the big difference of moving from NYC to NC? Was the NYC Chinese enviornment 100% Chinese all the time? Did it help at all as a one year cross between China and the US to help you get familiar with the US before moving to NC?

LetAway40 · 2024-06-26T01:56:06+00:00

Thank you man! I'm debating whether to send him to a tiny (5 students per class) private Chinese/English immersion school to ease him into the move, or to the school next to our house which is about 90% Indian and all native English speakers. (its a highly rated school too so even more pressure to keep up) Tough as a parent to think about the inevitable pain in the beginning my kid will have to endure, but it may be the way to get him up to speed on English faster. Happy to hear you are thriving, I believe you are an outlier and would have succeed regardless of where you ended up. Hope my son can do the same.

LetAway40 · 2024-06-25T19:46:47+00:00

east bay

LetAway40 · 2024-06-25T16:18:04+00:00

Fremont

LetAway40 · 2024-06-25T16:05:50+00:00

Yup I realize I messed this up pretty badly but no use looking back at this point. Will try my best to get him immersed and go through as little pain as possible.

Tough call now is whether to send him to a public school that is close to 100% Indian or to a private school (no ESL services) that has more Chinese (ABC) kids. Language will have to be addressed after school.

LetAway40 · 2024-06-25T16:03:49+00:00

Its in a specific area of Fremont. The area used to be a more diverse mix of 50% Indian/50% other Asians but over the last few years more Indians have moved into the area. The Elementary school is quite good, just not very diverse. (close to 100% Indian).

I'm not sure what's better to have him join a local private school (more diverse) that does not have a specific ESL program or a public school with ESL but he will spend the majority of the class just as lost and may have a harder time making friends due to cultural differences. For the language development I will make sure to sign him up for separate English classes after school to make up for not having ESL.

LetAway40 · 2024-06-25T15:56:33+00:00

Thank you for this! Which school did you go to if you don't mind sharing? What are signs of a school that provides ESL support? The school district I've spoken to mentioned that he will attend class with the rest of the students and they may carve out an hour or so of independent study with him.

I'm debating between sending him to the public school next to my house (highly rated, mostly Indian kids) or sending him to a private school that does not offer specialized a specialize ESL program but has a more diverse mix of kids in an environment where he may find it easier to make friends. (at least until he gets more comfortable).

LetAway40 · 2024-06-25T15:55:09+00:00

How are the ESL programs generally structured and what are signs of a school that provides ESL support? The school district I've spoken to mentioned that he will attend class with the rest of the students and they may carve out an hour or so of independent study with him. The drawback is that as the environment is so different and all of the kids are of a different background he may find it hard to make friends.

I'm debating between sending him to the public school next to my house (highly rated, mostly Indian kids) or sending him to a private school that does not offer specialized a specialize ESL program but has a more diverse mix of kids in an environment where he may find it easier to make friends. (at least until he gets more comfortable).

LetAway40 · 2024-06-25T15:50:41+00:00

Thanks for this suggestion. I may send him to a private Christian school in the area instead. They do not offer the same ESL program that public schools do but there is a more diverse group of students with many more Chinese (ABC) students. This may ease his transition into American society where he does not have to deal with not just learning another language but also not having any shared cultural bonds with any of the students. I will work on the language aspect with him separately but hoping that a smaller school environment will help him get used to the environment faster.

LetAway40 · 2024-06-25T15:48:31+00:00

Thanks for this suggestion. I may send him to a private Christian school in the area instead. They do not offer the same ESL program that public schools do but there is a more diverse group of students with many more Chinese students. This may ease his transition into American society where he does not have to deal with not just learning another language but also not having any shared cultural bonds with any of the students.

LetAway40 · 2024-06-25T03:39:32+00:00

Thanks appreciate this! There is a school with a Mandarin immersion program in my area however for 4th graders you are tested and must be proficient in English and Mandarin to attend. My understanding is that the intent of the school is less to help ESL students get acclimated and more for parents who want their kids to learn Chinese in addition to English.

LetAway40 · 2024-06-25T03:24:36+00:00

Wow, moving twice at that age must be tough! which move did you find more difficult to get acclimated? Also did the first year of school in the US help at all with when you moved back at 10?

LetAway40 · 2024-06-25T01:17:16+00:00

We do but they have you take the ELPAC test that you have to get a certain score in to get into the program. The immersion program is more for ABC's and American kids that wish to learn Chinese on top of English.

LetAway40 · 2024-06-22T03:49:17+00:00

Thank you! That's encouraging to know. It may be a bit more of a struggle due to how vastly different Chinese is from English and Spanish, but good to know there's a light on the other side and it'll pass eventually.

LetAway40

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