LET’S TALK
We’ll start the conversation with our latest news, views, thoughts, and the occasional rant. But we definitely want you to chime in. Just click on any “Let’s Talk” title and you’ll be able to comment.
The Surprising Truth About American Bilingualism: What the Data Tells Us
We Americans think we suck at languages. We particularly think we suck when compared with European countries, “where everybody speaks three or four languages.” Yet this […]
Welcoming Immigrants Through Workplace English
Mary Cardenas and Steve Leveen are huddled—as much as one can huddle on Zoom—over the short questionnaire that Mary wants to prepare for her small business. […]
Six More Spanish Words English Should Adopt
English is already well seasoned with Spanish. Not just place names like Colorado and Florida, and not just food words like tacos and enchiladas, but also […]
In Every Taíno Headdress, a Story
To a casual observer, the headdresses that Priscilla Colón and her husband, Ely, are wearing are in this photo are simply colorful and eye-catching. But what […]
How a Dad Used Language to Up His Empathy
When Robert Shaw’s daughter, Felicity, was five years old, he would occasionally reach for the Duolingo app rather than a picture book for bedtime reading.
He’d do […]
Learning More than a Language: Learning Respect for a Culture, Too
“That’s so weird.”
That was the reaction of a five-year-old boy in Brunswick, Maine, when Margaret Boyle, an associate professor of Romance languages at nearby Bowdoin College, […]
“Talking Leaves” The Cherokee Syllabary of Sequoyah
Editor’s note: Be sure to listen to our podcast on saving the Cherokee language—Episode 30 of America the Bilingual, “A New Generation of Cherokee Speakers […]
Jackie Kennedy’s Prowess as a Polygot
When President John F. Kennedy traveled to West Berlin on June 26, 1963, he wanted to assure the people there—who were literally walled off from the […]
Who’s That Heavenly Voice in Chapter 47?
She’s a singer, songwriter, TED Talker, Twitch Partner. She’s performed at Carnegie Hall, been featured in an Ariana Grande music video, and acted in several films.
She […]
First, know that she has one of those glorious English accents (or what all of us who are not English would call an accent), which makes her a natural for the audio book narration that she does. Although U.S. born, Caroline grew up in England and studied literature at the University of Warwick (fyi for American ears: that second “w” is silent).
