The Ugly Truth About the OPOL Method

The OPOL method is perhaps the most commonly recognized and proven language learning method. It can be highly effective when used correctly, but in this week's video, I will uncover two unpleasant truths about this approach that are seldom discussed.
______________________________
Download FREE guides with the most important points to consider when raising children in three or more languages:
⭐ www.multilingual.family/sign-up
______________________________
Newsletter sign-up:
⭐ www.multilingual.family/sign-up
______________________________
Get a one-on-one consultation with me:
⭐ www.multilingual.family/coach...
______________________________
Time Stamps:
00:00 - Introduction
00:15 - 1st Ugly Truth
00:45 - How We Do It
00:53 - OPOL Dad
01:30 - OPOL Mom
02:25 - OPOL Teacher
02:43 - OSOL Mom
02:58 - 2nd Ugly Truth
04:10 - Practical Advice: Tips
07:30 - Mixing Languages
______________________________
Take these mini-courses to get you to the next level:
How to Choose the Right Languages and Methods
👍 www.multilingual.family/choos...
How to Build a Solid Language Learning Strategy Step by Step
👍 www.multilingual.family/strat...
Best Practice - The 5 Power Traits
👍 www.multilingual.family/028c3...
What Resources to Use
👍 www.multilingual.family/1becf...
How to Prevent and Overcome Challenges
👍 www.multilingual.family/multi...
Language Activities & Games (0-3)
👍 www.multilingual.family/7def2...
_______________________________
Disclosure: This video doesn't contain any affiliate links.

[@establishedacademy]

Hi Andrea! I'm so happy I found your content. I'm going through difficult times and not sure what to do. I'm Portuguese, and my partner is German (we speak English to each other because we don't speak each other languages). We use the OPOL method, but because we live in Germany, his exposure to German is exceptionally high (daycare, daily life, dad, etc). I always speak to him in Portuguese, and he understands, but he never talks to me in Portuguese, and what is worst is that he avoids speaking to me because he knows I don't understand him. :( This is so painful. It's difficult to expose him more to Portuguese because no schools or nannies speak Portuguese in here, and we avoid screen time at all costs. I feel so lost... Any input would be helpful.

[@markusmichler9475]

I had been looking for advice and found advertisements for expensive courses…

[@MultilingualFamily]

This channel is full of free videos with great advice! And yes,

[@Mac_an_Mheiriceanaigh]

Ooh interesting new branding, Andrea!

[@MultilingualFamily]

hehe thanks, Mac, had a little extra time now that my parents-in-law were here...

[@betul94x]

Hi Andrea, I have just found your great channel. Thank you so much for all the valuable information you are sharing! I have 2 questions I’d love to ask you: my husband and I are currently living in the Netherlands. My husband is Indonesian and his native language is Indonesian. I was born and raised in the Netherlands and consider Dutch as my native language. I also have Turkish roots because both of my parents were born in Turkey. I can read and speak Turkish too but not as fluent as my Dutch - actually, my English is even better than my Turkish. My husband and I communicate in English. We are currently expecting our first baby, and would love our child to learn all 4 languages (Dutch, Turkish, Indonesian, English). It’s obvious from some of your videos that I have watched, that it’s best if my husband would consistently speak Indonesian to our child. Which language (Dutch or Turkish) would you advise me to speak to our child? To make the situation a bit more complex - we might move to Indonesia in the near future, so the exposure to Dutch and Turkish from ‘outside’ will be less. Which language would you advise me to speak to our child once we live in Indonesia? Thanks so much in advance!!

[@MultilingualFamily]

Thank you for your question. I'm inclined to say that you should use Dutch because it's your strongest language. You can introduce Turkish using the OSOL but I would use Dutch as your main language of communication with the OPOL method. Hope that helps. Stay tuned because I'm about to release access to my community where you will find guidance and support for your whole multilingual family's journey!

[@betul94x]

@@MultilingualFamily Thank you so much for your reply Andrea!!

[@user-vv4hg7me1q]

Did I detect swiss german in your spanish?

[@MultilingualFamily]

hehe that could be... after living so many years in Switzerland

[@Peru-fc3bi]

My daughter is 3. English is the community language and my wife speaks English. I speak Irish 99% of the time with my daughter. She understands everything I say but always answers in English. She uses the odd Irish noun or verb but that's it. Probably 95% English. I read to her every day, play with her every day talk to her as much as I can. She spends 35 hours in daycare all in English as we both work full-time. It is disheartening.

[@MultilingualFamily]

Hang in there. The beginning can be hard, most of all if after so much effort you still can't see the outcome. Rest assured that your child is learning tons and the most important thing right now is that you continue putting in the effort - it will pay off. In your situation, it's unrealistic to have the same expectations for Irish as English, because your daughter is getting so much more input in EN right now. Consider immersing her in an Irish-speaking-environment for a while, that can work wonders.

[@alondracabello8963]

Don’t give up! Me the language you use now with her is a plus she is understanding you! And maybe in the future she will pick it up easier! put tv in irish like videos

[@mpeniak]

Consistently yes, religiously no…you can speak 95% your language and at occasions other language…it can only help