They share a global longing for a new start after the pandemic.
2020: Not a good year for language holidays, gap years abroad and international student exchange. |
| | Explaining humour. |
Explaining a joke usually kills it. Not so, if you're really keen to fully grasp a lingo and get stuck with something you just don't get. And it isn't just about jokes! Kids encounter all sorts of unfamiliar idioms and phrases, bewildering puns, local sayings and regional slang terms when they read a book, watch a film or listen to a song in another language.
We wanted them to use their time during lockdown well, so we declared it a challenge:
Every time you come across something you don't understand and can't find in the dictionary, ask your language partner - and, if need be, their parents or siblings - to put you in the picture. Every time you feel you don't get the joke or don't understand the pun: Ask!
And whatever makes you laugh in your own tongue: Share it!
We wanted them to use their time during lockdown well, so we declared it a challenge:
Every time you come across something you don't understand and can't find in the dictionary, ask your language partner - and, if need be, their parents or siblings - to put you in the picture. Every time you feel you don't get the joke or don't understand the pun: Ask!
And whatever makes you laugh in your own tongue: Share it!
| | The WWFF factor: |
Slapstick or black humour, simple comedy or highly political wit - not all laughter is equal.
In fact, the differences are amazing. Just take Mr. Bean. You either love him or you can't stand him. Mr. Bean polarizes. Back in the Sixties and Seventies, there was Luis de Funès. He made all generations roll with laughter, others turned off their TV sets the moment they saw his face. And hundreds of millions of avid Monty Python fans cannot understand how anyone would not find them hilarious. But their antics don't resonate with everyone either.
There is a strong bond in shared humour.
In fact, the differences are amazing. Just take Mr. Bean. You either love him or you can't stand him. Mr. Bean polarizes. Back in the Sixties and Seventies, there was Luis de Funès. He made all generations roll with laughter, others turned off their TV sets the moment they saw his face. And hundreds of millions of avid Monty Python fans cannot understand how anyone would not find them hilarious. But their antics don't resonate with everyone either.
There is a strong bond in shared humour.
| | If it's a good one, share it! |
Translating humour across a language barrier - it turns out to be a real favourite with all age groups. What better way to dive into a lingo than to make it your own! Kids love it, they love taking their parents on board too. So this is how we celebrate this year's European Day of Languages: We're having a good laugh together, we read between the lines, we check our comedy and satire in other languages!
Visit FAMILIAR LANGUAGES to see how Global Native kids grow up multilingual.
Find out more about the European Day of Languages here!
Find out here how to become a Global Native family and join the community!
Care to give it a go?
Try to translate some of these into another language ...
Gandhi walked barefoot most of the time, which produced an impressive set of calluses on his feet. He also ate very little, which made him rather frail and with his odd diet, he suffered from bad breath. This made him a super calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis.
What did the beaver say to the tree? "It's been nice gnawing you!"
Why can't a bicycle stand up on its own? Because it's two tired.
Why was six scared of seven? Because seven "ate" nine.
What’s the difference between a poorly dressed man on a unicycle and a well-dressed man on a bicycle? Attire.
What's the difference between a cat and a complex sentence?
A cat has claws at the end of its paws and a complex sentence has a pause at the end of its clause.
Try to translate some of these into another language ...
Gandhi walked barefoot most of the time, which produced an impressive set of calluses on his feet. He also ate very little, which made him rather frail and with his odd diet, he suffered from bad breath. This made him a super calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis.
What did the beaver say to the tree? "It's been nice gnawing you!"
Why can't a bicycle stand up on its own? Because it's two tired.
Why was six scared of seven? Because seven "ate" nine.
What’s the difference between a poorly dressed man on a unicycle and a well-dressed man on a bicycle? Attire.
What's the difference between a cat and a complex sentence?
A cat has claws at the end of its paws and a complex sentence has a pause at the end of its clause.
Why the crisis called for some urgent straight talk.
For 11 years we've been just fine without advertising. Just word of mouth and slow, solid growth. No press, no social media. Then: Corona and the lockdown. No school, no freedom, no playing with friends any more for kids everywhere. And all of a sudden word got around:
These young Global Natives don't feel isolated at home! They talk to their friends abroad every day just like they always did. And they don‘t panic for fear of their language holidays or student exchange plans being ruined. Because they know they don't have to organise and book months ahead, they can "play it by ear". They have the connections.
That's how we experienced an avalanche of requests to join us - for all the wrong reasons!
There were applicants who wanted us to speed up our diligent verification process, who didn't care much for what we stand for and who merely wanted a cheap and quick way to solve their problem: Their long-planned, expensive plans were very likely going to be cancelled. They simply wanted to take advantage of a system that works by fair give-and-take, by genuine mutuality.
On came the emergency brakes! Advantage-takers are not welcome here.
Never before did we turn away so many applicants.
Until the lockdown, it had been good enough to rely on informal rules. But now we've laid down the rules in writing as part of the application process, making it clearer than ever before what membership means and what it doesn't. With the beginning of June we've declared our goals, values and due diligence process in plain language and set them where they belong: Right where an application to join can be filed.
| The result: A second wave of applications. This time for all the right reasons! Because now it is perfectly clear what give-and-take means to us. It takes a village to raise a child. |  |
Learn here what the community stands for!
We talk to folks hundreds and even thousands of miles away. They are our famillage: They're kindred spirits, bringing new perspectives and fresh ideas into our lives. Their kids and our kids teach each other languages. During lockdown many of us have reached out for new connections in the vicinity and found kindred spirits within our neighbourhoods.
How about Global Native families in your town, your county? Want to talk, meet, share specific ideas and plans? The wish to get together with fellow Global Natives locally has grown exponentially during lockdown. And who are the champions of local Global Native talks? The German-speaking world, the Dutch and the Scandinavians!
Why now and why with such intensity? Because there is a tremendous longing for a new start and for new thinking after the crisis. So we seek out kindred spirits with our own language, culture and environment to hear their perspective. Teaming up offers a strategy to draw a new road map together. Around the corner and around the world!
Why now and why with such intensity? Because there is a tremendous longing for a new start and for new thinking after the crisis. So we seek out kindred spirits with our own language, culture and environment to hear their perspective. Teaming up offers a strategy to draw a new road map together. Around the corner and around the world!
Teenage hostility. Listening really helps.
Seven long and pretty tough weeks lie behind us by now.
The Liberating Lockdown Talks have created a new and powerful understanding for many families. However, they didn't work out equally well for everyone. Some may not have given it their best try, others may have found the circumstances weren't right. We've looked at the feedback and found one of the toughest challenges parents face is: Teenage hostility.
Our blog post from late March resonated strongly with tens of thousands of parents!
The Liberating Lockdown Talks have created a new and powerful understanding for many families. However, they didn't work out equally well for everyone. Some may not have given it their best try, others may have found the circumstances weren't right. We've looked at the feedback and found one of the toughest challenges parents face is: Teenage hostility.
Our blog post from late March resonated strongly with tens of thousands of parents!
troubled angry hostile aggressive irritable moody defiant ...
How can mums and dads cope with irritable and angry teens when they're hard pushed to deal with daily life themselves? Feedback shows that the majority did manage, here's how:
Tit for tat. I listen to you, you listen to me.
1.) Parents listened to their kids first.
2.) They stuck to the rules:
No interruptions, no criticism, no derogatory remarks,
no well-meant advice, no jokes, no negative consequences.
See the blog post here:
www.globalnatives.org/the-global-natives-blog/the-liberating-lockdown-talks-an-experiment-part-three
www.globalnatives.org/the-global-natives-blog/the-liberating-lockdown-talks-an-experiment-part-three
Communication culture is soooooo underrated!
This is the theory:
You can eliminate 9 out of ten communication problems by hearing people out. By listening.
Based on this, we invited families to give it go. A crisis is a good time to try new ideas!
We knew, in lockdown mode with their children, they would have a hard time.
Adrian Tomine, New Yorker
Four weeks later, there's been overwhelming feedback. We hit a nerve.
And this is the real clue to success: Listening makes communication much more efficient.
Because people are impatient. Almost everyone is.
So we all tend to interrupt when we either don't like what we hear or when we think we know what's coming. The results are misunderstandings and misinterpretations, tensions and discontent, unhappy kids and unhappy parents, disconnected relations.
And, true enough, listening attentively does take a fair bit of training and good will.
But it actually saves a lot of time.
The feeling of being heard and understood creates a completely new atmosphere.
Please browse through the following blog posts and see the story of the Belgian triplet girls. No other age group needs being listened to more than the 12- to 16-year-olds. It's like medicine for the pains of growing up.
And this is the real clue to success: Listening makes communication much more efficient.
Because people are impatient. Almost everyone is.
So we all tend to interrupt when we either don't like what we hear or when we think we know what's coming. The results are misunderstandings and misinterpretations, tensions and discontent, unhappy kids and unhappy parents, disconnected relations.
And, true enough, listening attentively does take a fair bit of training and good will.
But it actually saves a lot of time.
The feeling of being heard and understood creates a completely new atmosphere.
Please browse through the following blog posts and see the story of the Belgian triplet girls. No other age group needs being listened to more than the 12- to 16-year-olds. It's like medicine for the pains of growing up.
"I hear you. And I get you."
"Why do dementia patients repeat the same sentences over and over again?"
That was a key question in a seminar on caring for the elderly. When Michael Wu, our think-tank boss, heard this question a few years ago, he paid very close attention. Because the answer was "People with Alzheimer's disease will repeat a statement for as long as they feel they haven't been heard and understood."
"What an eye-opener!"
Of course! Michael thought about the many times he had witnessed such patients. We hear them (hopfully!), but we don't show it, certainly not enough for them to register that we did. But isn't our own daily life exactly the same? Do we listen and do we show it?
"I hear you and I get you" - that doesn't work particularly well in most family lives either. This seminar planted the seed for the Lockdown Talks. We need to cultivate our communication! We have to train - our children and ourselves! - how to listen, how to focus, how to show that we've heard and understood.
In addition to the social and the psychological aspects, there is a pragmatic side to it too: Taking the step from parallel monologues to genuine dialogues actually saves a tremendous amount of time and energy. It prevents misunderstandings and "friction loss" from the start.
"I hear you and I get you" - that doesn't work particularly well in most family lives either. This seminar planted the seed for the Lockdown Talks. We need to cultivate our communication! We have to train - our children and ourselves! - how to listen, how to focus, how to show that we've heard and understood.
In addition to the social and the psychological aspects, there is a pragmatic side to it too: Taking the step from parallel monologues to genuine dialogues actually saves a tremendous amount of time and energy. It prevents misunderstandings and "friction loss" from the start.
From parallel monologues to genuine dialogues!
So: Listening is not merely the waiting time until it is my turn.
How can we expect executives in boardrooms to know something they never learned in their childhood? How can we hope to feel understood if we are not ready to hear others out? Meanwhile, over 30.000 Global Native families have told us they are actively participating in our lockdown experiment. The tenor of their feedback: There's no looking back!
How can we expect executives in boardrooms to know something they never learned in their childhood? How can we hope to feel understood if we are not ready to hear others out? Meanwhile, over 30.000 Global Native families have told us they are actively participating in our lockdown experiment. The tenor of their feedback: There's no looking back!
"And I thought I knew my kids well ..."
Listen to your children. Invite your children to listen to you. Talk to a partner family online, together.
Lockdown saves 90 minutes daily commuting time. Let's use this time to cultivate good conversation!
They used to be really cute ...
"Apparently, there are some 14 year old girls out there who are nice, cooperative and quite sensible. So I'm told. Well, ours are not. Puberty has turned them into part-time monsters!"
Stephan and his wife run a farm in Flanders, Belgium. When they married 22 years ago they didn't know it would take them a lot of patience and a fair bit of medical assistance to become parents. So when Petronella finally gave birth to healthy triplet girls in early 2006, they were the happiest couple on earth.
Nowadays they comfort each other every evening before going to bed with a reassuring "They'll grow out of it!"
Hopefully they will. The three girls are giving their parents a really hard time.
Stephan's family has been part of the Global Natives community since the girls turned twelve. Both their partner families in Florida and in the Camargue have triplets too. But these girls - although quite typically adolescent too - certainly aren't as hostile towards their parents and their siblings.
"I just don't know how to cope anymore! We are desperate."
Or at least, that was the situation until mid March.
"Every time Petronella and I sought to discuss a conflict peacefully we failed miserably over these last 18 months. If an idea came from us it was bound to be rejected. Then we read the proposal for The Liberating Lockdown Talks. We read it a couple of days after the announcement came that schools in Belgium were going to be closed for some time. This had filled us with absolute terror! So Petronella rang the girls' class teacher and asked for his help. And he saved us."
The class teacher decided that this was a fantastic exercise for the entire class during the impending lockdown and that he would ask all students' families to take part in the experiment. He wrote to all parents and students, laid down the rules and requested that students should keep an online diary of the conversations they held. So Stephan and Petronella "had to do" what they had wanted to do and the girls were quite happy with it.
With the talks, the tide started to turn.
"As of today, we've held eight talks, each lasting considerably longer than an hour. With three teenagers having a lot to say for themselves and the rest of the family being forced to listen attentively, they might as well have lasted all day!
The girls got into the swing of it straight away whereas Nell and I had to come to terms with being targeted so heavily at first. It wasn't until the fourth day that it dawned on us that probably none of us had been able to conclude an opinion or a statement. Not for many years, you know! There were always interruptions, criticism, comments etc. and it was impossible to come to a conclusion with an argument. Either a sibling or a parent would always butt in and that clearly caused an ever growing amount of frustration to build up.
The rules of the game created an outlet for that.
Professionals would surely call it mental hygiene, I'm sure. Since we have all acknowledged it, life in the family has changed drastically! Nell and I have learned the most astounding things from and about our girls over the last few days, it has moved us to tears. Now, and only now, are they starting to ask us what we think in return. The week running up to Easter is something we really look forward to now."
Stephan and his wife run a farm in Flanders, Belgium. When they married 22 years ago they didn't know it would take them a lot of patience and a fair bit of medical assistance to become parents. So when Petronella finally gave birth to healthy triplet girls in early 2006, they were the happiest couple on earth.
Nowadays they comfort each other every evening before going to bed with a reassuring "They'll grow out of it!"
Hopefully they will. The three girls are giving their parents a really hard time.
Stephan's family has been part of the Global Natives community since the girls turned twelve. Both their partner families in Florida and in the Camargue have triplets too. But these girls - although quite typically adolescent too - certainly aren't as hostile towards their parents and their siblings.
"I just don't know how to cope anymore! We are desperate."
Or at least, that was the situation until mid March.
"Every time Petronella and I sought to discuss a conflict peacefully we failed miserably over these last 18 months. If an idea came from us it was bound to be rejected. Then we read the proposal for The Liberating Lockdown Talks. We read it a couple of days after the announcement came that schools in Belgium were going to be closed for some time. This had filled us with absolute terror! So Petronella rang the girls' class teacher and asked for his help. And he saved us."
The class teacher decided that this was a fantastic exercise for the entire class during the impending lockdown and that he would ask all students' families to take part in the experiment. He wrote to all parents and students, laid down the rules and requested that students should keep an online diary of the conversations they held. So Stephan and Petronella "had to do" what they had wanted to do and the girls were quite happy with it.
With the talks, the tide started to turn.
"As of today, we've held eight talks, each lasting considerably longer than an hour. With three teenagers having a lot to say for themselves and the rest of the family being forced to listen attentively, they might as well have lasted all day!
The girls got into the swing of it straight away whereas Nell and I had to come to terms with being targeted so heavily at first. It wasn't until the fourth day that it dawned on us that probably none of us had been able to conclude an opinion or a statement. Not for many years, you know! There were always interruptions, criticism, comments etc. and it was impossible to come to a conclusion with an argument. Either a sibling or a parent would always butt in and that clearly caused an ever growing amount of frustration to build up.
The rules of the game created an outlet for that.
Professionals would surely call it mental hygiene, I'm sure. Since we have all acknowledged it, life in the family has changed drastically! Nell and I have learned the most astounding things from and about our girls over the last few days, it has moved us to tears. Now, and only now, are they starting to ask us what we think in return. The week running up to Easter is something we really look forward to now."
"New influencers"
Listen to your children. Invite your children to listen to you. Talk to a partner family online, together.
Lockdown saves 90 minutes daily commuting time. Let's use this time to cultivate good conversation!
|
Saturday, March 21.
Maria is a mother in an SOS Children's Village in the south of Spain. It's more than a full time job. |
|
In 2005, 5.500 Children's Village mothers worldwide were awarded the Women's World Award.
Maria abhors online influencers, she hates the impression they make on her adolescent foster children, the superficiality of their talk and their self-marketing strategies. Maria has seen too much of life, she says, not to be appalled by people who try their hardest to make teenagers want to have stuff they can't afford in order to pursue a beauty model they will never meet. She believes that nobody should ever value impeccable make-up higher than sincerity, helpfulness, determination, grit and character.
But Maria knows there is no point in preaching. Kids need role models.
So she decided to let her entire family - six teenagers from difficult family backgrounds - take part in The Liberating Lockdown Talks experiment. Her idea: She would present the kids with amazing personalities they had never heard of before who were miles away from standard beauty ideals and truly astounding in what they did or achieved. Maria knew lots of people like that.
Then the kids could take turns in presenting people they considered cool. They would discuss their merits and keep a journal, recording what they thought about each other's choices and the arguments for or against them.
Maria started with Big Mama Thornton. Now that's six new fans added to her list.
But Maria knows there is no point in preaching. Kids need role models.
So she decided to let her entire family - six teenagers from difficult family backgrounds - take part in The Liberating Lockdown Talks experiment. Her idea: She would present the kids with amazing personalities they had never heard of before who were miles away from standard beauty ideals and truly astounding in what they did or achieved. Maria knew lots of people like that.
Then the kids could take turns in presenting people they considered cool. They would discuss their merits and keep a journal, recording what they thought about each other's choices and the arguments for or against them.
Maria started with Big Mama Thornton. Now that's six new fans added to her list.
"Leverage"
Listen to your children. Invite your children to listen to you. Talk to a partner family online, together.
Lockdown saves 90 minutes daily commuting time. Let's use this time to cultivate good conversation!
It's 3 pm and time for Facetime. Felix talks to his mate Benjy in Nottingham. Over the last two years the two lads have held daily chats about what they currently learn at school.
| On today's agenda: Leverage physics. In German: Hebelwirkung. By the end of the talk Felix knows he can now explain it in German and in English. He tells his dad Robert about it, it is their much beloved daily tradition. |  Credit: click on image. Wikimedia Commons. |
Around 7.30 in the evening, they're all set for their very first 30 minute family-to-family talk - a video conference between two living rooms. They've decided to make leverage the topic of their conversation. Robert thinks it's a great idea to explain and discuss leverage in numerous other contexts. In politics, in business, in negotiations, in finance - leverage matters. Robert and his wife Sabine both work in financial management, both are news-junkies and follow international affairs with avid interest. They can think of many examples of leverage, and they can tell some amazing stories to illustrate them. It turns out that Benjy's parents, a teacher and a nurse, also have quite a lot to say about it. Leverage has its place in medicine and in education too!
