The mother tongue is the basic language of the mother and the father of the child, precisely that of the mother predominantly. In today’s fast paced world, children are moving away from the mother tongue and catching up with other languages that they widely hear and witness by other members at home. It is very important that the parents emphasize the need for mother tongue. For this, the parents need to spend more time with the child and converse in the mother tongue more often.
Children who are fluent in their mother tongue are faster in cognitive and intellectual development. Research shows that children seem to obtain very high educational success when their medium of education is the same as their mother tongue. Language keeps cultures alive. It is a very important source to keep culture of a particular community alive. The essence of a language is usually lost when translating a language in to another. Mother tongue binds us to our roots and culture. Mother tongue preserves the culture of a community.
It is easy to learn other languages when a child is perfect in his/her mother tongue. The grasping capacities tend to be double fold in such children. The pride of mastering one’s mother tongue builds confidence in a person. Mother tongue lays a great positive influence in the development of a child. It is one of an effective tool of learning.
For a child, any language that is taught to him first is the mother language usually, unless the parents start with a foreign language themselves. The mother language plays a very important role in the learning of a new language. If the child is perfect in his mother tongue he tends to grasp new languages easily. They are more successful in academics and enjoy the privilege of self-identity and self-worth.
There is no specific way or method to teach a child his mother tongue. A child learns the mother tongue as a daily routine provided the parents spend quality time with the child. It’s an automatic process and the only easy way too. The parents need to make sure the child is told about their culture and values from time after time. Simple things find way in to tiny brains easily. Children tend to learn what they see in daily life. It is the same with the learning of a language as well. When the child sees the parents talk in a particular language he learns the same effortlessly. There is no formula by which a parent can teach the child a language. For other languages like any regional language or English, the child learns it at school and when interacting with others as he grows up.
