Welcome to Multilingual Montessori, a podcast where we discuss multilingualism, multiculturalism, and raising children from a Montessori perspective. Hosted by AMI Montessori guide and TESOL instructor Gabrielle Kotkov, with special guest co-host Jenna Embrey.
Follow instagram.com/multilingual.montessori and visit multilingualmontessori.org for more!
69. Is it ever culturally appropriative to learn another language?
Is it ever culturally appropriative to learn another language? In this episode, Gabrielle and Jenna explore a question that comes up for many multilingual families and language learners: Do you need a personal or cultural connection to a language in order to learn it? We discuss why people choose to learn languages, why some languages are seen as more valuable or useful than others, and how speaking someone’s language can open a window into their culture and way of seeing the world.
We also talk about heritage languages, endangered languages, and language revitalization, and why we hope concerns about cultural appropriation never discourage parents from exploring a new language with their children. Plus, we discuss the self-consciousness that can come with speaking in another language and trying to imitate an unfamiliar accent.
Along the way, Jenna shares stories from a month in Germany with her daughter, and Gabrielle shares what it’s been like to return to the Montessori classroom this fall!
Have a question you'd like us to answer on the podcast? Submit it here! (https://forms.gle/DyBaoh4ED3GoMr8X6)
Things we mention in the episode:
Gabrielle's Parenting Multilingual Children Workshop (https://multilingualmontessori.org/parenting-multilingual-children-workshop/)
How to Kill a Language by Sophia Smith Galer (https://amzn.to/4wXMFe8)
Every Family Has Its Own Private Language. What Does That Tell Us About Ourselves? (https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/03/magazine/family-private-language-vocabulary-familect.html?unlocked_article_code=1.KVE.JTLb.3qaBAA4tTUui&smid=url-share) (NY Times)
It Was a Tough February for New York's Fanciest 5-Year-Olds (https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/private-school-admissions-kindergarten-nursery-school-feeders.html)
Follow Multilingual Montessori: (https://multilingualmontessori.org/)
Website (https://multilingualmontessori.org/) (https://www.instagram.com/multilingual.montessori/)
Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/multilingual.montessori/)
(https://www.instagram.com/multilingual.montessori/)Consultations (https://multilingualmontessori.org/consultations/) (https://www.patreon.com/multilingualmontessori)
Support the Podcast (https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/multilingual-montessori/support)
3 Sept 2026
68. Do similar languages confuse children?
In this episode of the Multilingual Montessori Podcast, Gabrielle and Jenna answer a question from a parent raising her son with Portuguese while he attends a Spanish-language preschool. She’s concerned that the similarities between Portuguese and Spanish, along with her own occasional mistakes in Portuguese, might lead to confusion or affect her son’s Portuguese language development.
We talk about mutually intelligible languages, cognates, and language transfer, and why learning similar languages can actually be an advantage for multilingual children. We also discuss how parents can help children notice the differences between languages and develop metalinguistic awareness without worrying about language confusion.
Plus, we share practical strategies for increasing minority-language input when local resources are limited. We also discuss the complementarity principle and why multilingual children don’t need to know the same words or have identical vocabularies in all of their languages!
Along the way, we share some of our own multilingual adventures, including Gabrielle’s experience volunteering at the FIFA World Cup in New York and what Jenna has learned from having her phone in German for the past four years. We also discuss the language-related books we’re reading, endangered languages, and how television can actually support children’s foreign-language vocabulary acquisition!
Have a question you'd like us to answer on the podcast? Submit it here! (https://forms.gle/DyBaoh4ED3GoMr8X6)
Things we mention in the episode:
Gabrielle's Parenting Multilingual Children Workshop (https://multilingualmontessori.org/parenting-multilingual-children-workshop/)
How to Kill a Language by Sophia Smith Galer (https://amzn.to/4wXMFe8)
Why Save a Language (Sophia Smith Galer interview on WNYC) (https://wnyc.org/browse/shows/episode/simplecast/e3423e33-6fe4-4fe3-be68-4dcb974b69ac)
Language City by Ross Perlin (https://amzn.to/4zNRU2r)
The Language Archive by Julia Cho (https://amzn.to/4y8188c)
In the United States, Every World Cup Team Is a Home Team (NY Times) (https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/06/30/us/world-cup-fans.html?unlocked_article_code=1.91A.Y5WZ.BGSHKoMzllGH&smid=url-share)
German study about children's language acquisition through watching television (https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783112227282/html)
Follow Multilingual Montessori: (https://multilingualmontessori.org/)
Website (https://multilingualmontessori.org/) (https://www.instagram.com/multilingual.montessori/)
Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/multilingual.montessori/)
(https://www.instagram.com/multilingual.montessori/)Consultations (https://multilingualmontessori.org/consultations/) (https://www.patreon.com/multilingualmontessori)
Support the Podcast (https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/multilingual-montessori/support)
6 Aug 2026
67. How Do I Keep a Minority Language Playgroup in the Minority Language?
In this episode of the Multilingual Montessori Podcast, Jenna has a recap of her trip to Ireland! We discuss the revitalization efforts that have been made in the last few decades to bring the Irish language back to a place of prominence in Ireland, and Jenna even shares a phrase in Irish that she learned.
Gabrielle is also thrilled to share that her new workshop, Parenting Multilingual Children, is now available! Check it out here. (https://multilingualmontessori.org/parenting-multilingual-children-workshop/)
This month, we’re answering a question from a US-based parent who wants to start a Spanish language playgroup with families in her area, but is concerned that the children will speak to each other in English, especially those who know each other from school. Tune in to hear our advice to her!
Have a question you'd like us to answer on the podcast? Submit it here! (https://forms.gle/DyBaoh4ED3GoMr8X6)
Things we mention in the episode:
Gabrielle's Parenting Multilingual Children Workshop (https://multilingualmontessori.org/parenting-multilingual-children-workshop/)
Follow Multilingual Montessori: (https://multilingualmontessori.org/)
Website (https://multilingualmontessori.org/) (https://www.instagram.com/multilingual.montessori/)
Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/multilingual.montessori/)
(https://www.instagram.com/multilingual.montessori/)Consultations (https://multilingualmontessori.org/consultations/) (https://www.patreon.com/multilingualmontessori)
Support the Podcast (https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/multilingual-montessori/support)
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