Learning a foreign language: the earlier the better?

SharkMinnow (Canada)

As an English teacher I have been teaching my son English ever since he was born. While he speaks Chinese with Lao Lao, Lao Ye, and pretty much everyone outside, he can only speak English to Papa and Mama (even though Mama is Chinese). Every day I come home from work I teach him a new word or we read a story in English in bed. Now that he is almost four, he is pretty much completely bilingual and can speak both English and Chinese as fluently as any toddler could. His actual fluency in Chinese may be better, but his English vocabulary is incredible and he can talk to us with no problem whenever he wants something or to tell us about his day. In a few years, we will introduce him to his third language (probably French, since I'm Canadian).

So, for all you Chinese parents out there, get your kids learning English as young as possible and make it a part of their lives! Don't wait until it's too late!

Two foreign teachers in an English class at a suburban school in Guilin, Guangxi province, on August 3, 2011.[Photo/IC]