By Jeannie van Zyl 

We often see this in Australia – a family that was planning on raising their children Afrikaans and English but ends up only communicating in English with each other. It is very common. And usually everyone is fine with it. Until the hard day when some children blame their parents because they feel a part of their heritage have been taken away from them ….

Or until the happy day when someone asks grandma/granddad/dad/mom to help them to touch up their Afrikaans as a teenager or adult. 

Firstly – this is not criticism. As newcomers in a country such as Australia or New Zealand, many parents are overwhelmed by the reality of a family journey that places far more pressure on them and their time than they expected. It is lonely, there is often no support from grandparents or other extended family, and the responsibilities of being in charge of a home, cleaning, driving around and simply surviving, makes something like keeping one’s language and culture alive to be less of a priority. Combined with children who are trying to fit into their new community, who are themselves overwhelmed by busy schedules, or who are simply being somewhat rebellious towards Afrikaans for whatever reason … one does what has to be done to survive.

But let’s say your teenage child or grandchild, or even a friend or boyfriend suddenly says, “I want to learn Afrikaans!” What do you do? Where do you start?

I have a few suggestions and ideas from my own experience. Between 2015 and 2022 I taught four people to master Afrikaans as adults – a missionary friend from America, a friend from Serbia, the teenage daughter of friends from England, and my own boyfriend (who is now my husband).

It is definitely possible! It is in fact often easier to accompany a dedicated adult on the learning journey, than it is to teach a toddler struggling to focus. In this article I will discuss the advantages, as well as a few practical strategies I discovered with my “students”.

Advantage 1 – They can (probably) already read and write!

This is especially an advantage with people whose other (first) language follows the same alphabet as ours. Due to the fact that Afrikaans is highly phonetic (things are said and written quite consistently), it is not all that difficult to learn how to read and spell. 

You therefore do not need to start with “The cat sits on the mat” type of books. On the contrary, with my Serbian friend Mila, I started reading parts from Liewe Heksie se Blommelandverhale to her every week and illustrated things like vocabulary, pronunciation, and sentence structure with these stories.

Advantage 2 – They have access to technology!

There are so many resources available to assist with learning a new language!

My Australian husband, Kieran, learned how to speak, write and read Afrikaans fluently within two to four years. It happened mainly through daily conversations, Netwerk24 articles (I sometimes compiled comprehension tests for him), by typing emails or text messages, and by watching ShowMax. (He initially watched Afrikaans programmes with English subtitles, but after some time it was no longer necessary.)

I followed some Chinese lessons on YouTube and complemented it by doing training conversations with a neighbour.

A South African friend of mine in Montreal, Canada, learned French via an online tutor. You can find qualified tutors on www.iTalki.com – yes, even Afrikaans tutors! – and book private lessons on their platform. You can choose your preferred language, goals, and current proficiency. Based on those inputs, you can browse through a list of suitable teachers and book an introductory lesson. 

Advantage 3 – They should have established learning skills and self-discipline

This is probably the greatest advantage – if they really WANT to, they will go through the trouble. You only need to facilitate. Help them to get a few books or resources and make yourself available for conversation or training sessions. Make a weekly appointment and set goals. 

It is real fun! It is a nice challenge for everyone, and an opportunity to learn together and sharpen our knowledge of our language. I had to research the rules behind a few questions relating to syntax – it is interesting that there are things we just do instinctively as a mother tongue speaker!

And while it is true that children are like sponges when it comes to learning a new language, it does not mean that adults will never be able to do it. Try it! And let us know how it goes!

This article was originally published by Boekwurm.