It's been a while since the last time I have been writing about Isabelle's language improvement here. For a very long time, I wasn't able to tell if one of the languages she speaks is dominant or so called her mother tongue. As she was born in London, and her dad is English she speaks English and because I am Czech and really wanted her to speak it too, she does. As I have mentioned, I couldn't tell for a long time if she thinks in English or Czech, but I can tell see more and more as she is getting older and her speech develops, that she thinks in English, as sometimes she translates it into Czech the way she would say it in English, which can sound really funny.
When she speaks Czech she has no accent, and if she doesn't know the word in Czech she uses the English word and sometimes adds a funny Czech ending to it...which sounds really funny. It always helps when we have my mum over here or someone else from the Czech Republic, as she needs to speak more and more in Czech, and usually after long summer holidays her Czech is perfect, without any mistakes.
For the past week we have had my 15 year old niece here, who studies English at school, and is also trying to practise it here. It is sometimes really funny to listen to both of them. Isabelle has improved again just after a week of her cousin's presence and we will soon be off to the Czech republic for long summer holidays. When we are over there, I always try to speak to her in English, just to remind her, but maybe I wouldn't have to do so as she is 4 years now and masters both languages.
Everybody admires how quickly she switches when talking to her dad in English than talking to her cousin in Czech and back to me in English if I speak in English to her or in Czech if I speak in Czech to her. Children are like little sponges, they learn so quickly. I would love if she studied more languages in the future and will definitely encourage her in doing so.
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