164. Bilingual Parenting ft. Sunny Horstmann

But Where Are You Really From?: An Asian-American Struggle

We've often grappled with reconciling our identities as Asian-Americans, straddling two or more cultures between our family's motherland and the western environment in which we actually grew up. For many of us who did not grow up in Asia, when the time comes to think about trying to pass on that culture - and especially the language - to our children or future children, that task can seem incredibly daunting.

In this episode, we chat with guest Sunny Horstmann about how she set up the structure and environment to raise her two kids in a bilingual (Mandarin Chinese/English) environment and the village she's created to help other parents struggling to wade through these murky waters. We talk about the importance of having a support system, fighting the idea that your Mandarin needs to be perfect to get started, how we may unknowingly bring biases from our own language learning experiences into how we teach our children, and much more.

Do you have aspirations to create (or continue!) a bilingual environment for your family? What has your experience been like? Let us know in the comments below or on our social media!

Follow Sunny on Instagram at @spotofsunshinechinese, on her website at spotofsunshine.com, and join the waitlist for the next time her membership opens up for her bilingual parenting community.

Follow us on Instagram at @whereareyoufrompod and on TikTok at @butwhereareyoureallyfrom

*Podcasters' Note: for those watching the video, sorry for the freezing up. Sunny's wifi had some issues - ah, the joys of remote recording and crossing international lines! :D

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Use promo code "whereareyoufrom10" for 10% off the Real You Mandarin online course co-founded by Angela, designed specifically for ABCs & ABTs. Preview a free lesson and check out the full syllabus at www.realyoumandarin.com--