Mother & BabyIrish only in the home

If you speak Irish at home then it’s likely you’ll speak Irish naturally with your child.  You can do the following to encourage your child to use Irish.

All parents have to do to obtain the support pack is to contact TnaG at teanga@tuismitheoiri.ie

Encourage family, friends and neighbours to speak Irish with the child.  Try to meet up with other families who are also raising the kids with Irish.

Speaking both Irish and English at home

If you speak Irish and English at home the first step is to decide together if you want your child to speak Irish.  Choosing and making a decision at an early point will make it easier later on. If one parent doesn’t speak Irish the following situations might arise:

You can do the following to encourage your child’s use of Irish.

Encourage family friends and neighbours to speak Irish to your child.  This would also be an opportunity for the non-Irish speaking parent to learn a little Irish at the same time as the child – the parent could learn from listening to the other parent singing or reading a book and might even consider taking a class.

Can speak Irish but usually speak English

Maybe you are two parents who can speak Irish but are used to speaking English with each other.  Having a child is a wonderful opportunity to change the language behaviour within the family and raise your child with Irish or bilingually. Bear in mind that as it stands at the moment your child’s education will be through the medium of Irish if educated west of Annascaul

English only or another language

If you want to help your child to learn Irish at home, it will be an enormous advantage when he or she starts school.

Consider taking an Irish class and practice what you learn with your child. Check out what classes would suit you on www.oidhreacht.ie

If you read some simple books and learn a few simple rhymes and songs your child will grow accustomed to hearing Irish and you will grow more comfortable with the language.

A home visit would also be of benefit.