Thoughts on learning to speak

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Buondì.

Bug’s learning to speak, which for a language teacher (and learner) is fascinating to observe.

Of course, he’s been learning to communicate ever since he was a pup, beginning with howls of varying pitches and intensities, facial expressions showing pain and happiness, gurgling, and so on.

A fundament of speaking is listening, and understanding what others are trying to communicate to you: what’s the matter, want a biscuit, are you trying to piss me off, and so on.

We hear, we respond, though perhaps initially without actual words or grammar. A nod or a smile might do it, gestures too.

Bug’s little friend Venus, our local goddess of love, is half Bug’s size, blonde and “ha un caratterino”, as Italians say. Which doesn’t at all mean the same as “is a little character” in English, rather more like “is a demanding little monster”.

Anyway, Venus, who’s a few months older than Bug, while never having much to say to me, appears to come out with whole sentences when complaining to her parents.

Bug pushed me over, I want what he’s got, surely it’s time to suckle by now, and so on – impressive-sounding chains of words, arranged in what seem to be sentences, in a range of whiny intonations.

Bug can’t say ‘Venus’, though he knows who she is and will run across the park to hug her and cause her to fall to the ground, annoyed. He does know the names of his other friends, and refers to himself, quite charmingly, as ‘bimbo’ (baby boy).

Lately he’s been saying “E’ mio!” a lot, which technically means “It’s mine” but is mostly used to communicate “I want that”, so in reference to passing motorcycles, treats on supermarket shelves, and, of course, toys belonging to his peers.

He uses parts of words a lot, the most common strings of vowels and consonants being variations on ‘ato’, as in the final syllables of ‘gelato’ (icecream, I want one). “Altro’ is common too (give me another of those immediately, oh look another tractor!)

We’ve had a guest staying, who this morning was struggling down the stairs in the dark with his heavy suitcase as Stefi and I were seated in the kitchen trying to get Bug to put pieces of toast in his mouth.

“Oh, who’s that coming down the stairs?” Stefi asked Bug, distracting him so as to shove in a buttery lump.

A deep voice from the dark replied “Babbo Natale!” (Santa Claus), at which point Bug spat out his toast and told us “Tale!”

I was proud. Bug knows what’s going on. He knows what he wants. And he knows – to a greater or lesser extent – how to communicate that, even if for now it’s mostly only in single words or fractions of them. Give him a couple of months and I bet he’ll be doing sentences, like Venus.

Language learners, in my humble but informed opinion, tend to get this arse over tit.

They focus first on the mechanics of speaking (conjugating irregular verbs, fretting about prepositions, accent) while largely ignoring listening comprehension, so training themselves to be able to ask for directions in an unknown city – this annecdote dates to before Google Maps, obviously – and yet be unable to understand a word of any reply they might receive.

Yesterday I was hailed by one of the senior staff in our local supermarket, who must have been having an idle moment as she asked after Bug (in the park, knocking down other animals) then wanted to know what our kids were up to these days.

At a certain point she changed the subject to her own adult daughter, who she told me had been following the advice I had – via her mother – given her, and was very pleased.

Italians used to ask me for advice on learning English all the time, though these days much less so, as most of them are old and so can’t be bothered, or just use smartphones to translate stuff.

Aemilia had consulted me – on her daughter’s behalf – on various previous occasions, so I was unsure which particular tip had worked.

“She now has conversations online with a nice elderly lady in England” Aemilia informed me, “and says it’s really useful!”

Ah yes. The daughter had wanted to spend some of her mom’s money on an English course, as she doubtless had on previous occasions with little discernable result, so wanted to know which was the best English school in the city.

I probably responded that the world is full of people keen to earn extra cash, or just needing company, so looking online for someone to talk to in English would doubtless be cheaper, more flexible, and probably more effective than taking a formal course.

Find someone to chat to, make it a regular thing, and she’ll be more confident, I would have said.

And indeed, problem solved.

Aemilila’s daughter, Venus, and Bug are all at different stages on their ‘learning-to-speak’ journeys.

But what they have in common, unlike many students of foreign languages, is that they are all actually on the journey, and making progress.

Learning to speak, and learning to understand what others say, is simply a matter of putting yourself in communicative situations and engaging, as far as you’re able.

At first you’ll be limited, of course, (“Ato! Bimbo!” E’ Mio!” “O no!”) so perhaps frustrated.

With time, less so.

Eventually, barely at all.

But if you’re just sitting in front of a book, memorizing stuff, you’ve yet to begin.

Alla prossima settimana!

P.S.

And here’s the inevitable reminder to read/listen to Tuesday’s bulletin of news from EasyItalianNews.com.

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