Bella Devyatkina knows seven languages ​​at the age of four. Mother of Bella Devyatkina: "A child cannot be overloaded with what he does with pleasure" Polyglot girl Bella is amazing

And Bella's fame was brought by the TV show "Amazing People" on "Russia 1", and now the girl is already conquering foreign TV channels, on the programs of which she is a welcome guest. For the girl herself, all this looks quite natural. And only her mother knows how much work it cost her to make her daughter a real polyglot.

There are many languages ​​in the world...

- Julia, what determined the choice of such a name for your daughter?

Even before the birth of my daughter, I knew that I would teach her Russian and English, so I tried to choose a name that would sound organic in both Russian and English.

- Even before the birth of your daughter, did you intend to teach her to speak two languages?

– Yes, initially there were only two languages ​​in the plans – Russian and English, other languages ​​were added gradually.

At what age did you start teaching a girl languages? How did it happen?

- I began to speak with Bella in Russian and English from the very first days of my life. We alternated Russian and English days: one day we lived entirely in Russian, and the next - entirely in English. They were engaged in all the usual activities (feeding, walking, bathing, changing clothes), but in two languages.

– What was the reason for the decision to choose these languages ​​to study in the first place?

– In our time, every educated person should be fluent in English, in whatever area he works, so we started training with him. Since I speak some French, when my daughter was ten months old, the idea came up to try to add this language to our classes. My daughter received it with great enthusiasm. By the age of 2.5, Bella already spoke three languages ​​well and, most importantly, showed a genuine interest in learning them. Therefore, at 2 years 7 months, we decided to try Chinese - and again my daughter reacted with great interest. At 3 years we introduced Spanish, at 3 years 2 months - German, at 3 years 4 months - Arabic. My daughter greeted each new language with joy, as if she were a new friend.

It has been scientifically proven that early language learning has a positive effect on the development of intelligence in general. It is especially effective in this sense to study languages ​​from different language groups. That is why I tried to choose completely different languages. In our set of languages, only Spanish and French belong to the same language group

– What languages ​​do you speak yourself?

I myself speak English well, a little French and Spanish.

- How is the learning process going? How does a child perceive the same concepts that sound differently?

All learning takes place in the form of communication. We study English and Russian ourselves, and Bella practices the rest of the languages ​​with teachers who are native speakers. They come to our house to play with her, read books, draw together, take a walk, while communicating in their native language. For a child who has been used to bilingual speech since birth, it is not surprising that the same word sounds different in different languages, so Bella perceives the introduction of any new language very naturally.

As in the 18th century

Did you use any well-known methods in the learning process?

– In terms of learning languages, we used the so-called “tutor method”, which was popular in the 18th century in Russian noble families. The child was hired by tutors who spoke different languages, who communicated with him on a daily basis, as a result of which children of 4-5 years old were fluent in several languages. Usually in French, German and English.

In addition, I did some early reading with Bella using the Doman method. This technique involves learning from birth to read whole words. I would like to emphasize separately that early reading greatly contributes to language acquisition at an early age.

- When did you realize that Bella easily perceives different languages?

- It was already a year old that Bella perfectly perceives speech in Russian and English. She responded to requests and questions, showed objects. Mastering the languages ​​that we added at an older age went even faster. For example, Bella began to speak Spanish a couple of weeks after its introduction.

At what age did the girl start talking? What language were her first words?

Bella started talking at exactly 2 years old. She began to speak sentences simultaneously in three languages ​​- Russian, English and French.

– Has it ever happened that your daughter used words from different languages ​​at the same time in her speech? If so, did she realize her own mistakes?

- We have not yet encountered the problem of mixing languages. If Bella wants to say a sentence in a certain language, but cannot remember a certain word, then she simply asks how this word will sound in the language she needs.

– Some psychologists believe that bilingual children experience some problems in studying general school subjects in comparison with ordinary children. Have you noticed something similar in the case of Bella?

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Little Star

- Tell us, please, how did you get on television?

- I kept a diary of my daughter's development on a social network dedicated to early development. This is a network where interested parents share teaching methods for toddlers and post videos with the results of classes. The editors of the Amazing People program found videos in which Bella spoke in different languages ​​and invited us to take part in the project. Initially, I was skeptical about the invitation. It seemed to me that at 4 years old the child is too small to participate in a television project. However, as a result, we agreed and do not regret it.

- How did the girl perceive herself in the status of a TV star? Did you get lost under the cameras? Did you feel at ease with everything?

Bella really enjoyed performing on stage. She was delighted with the audience and applause. Everyone who worked with us on the project noticed that Bella transforms on stage and seems to reach a different energy level.

- What did you feel yourself, watching the performances of your daughter? Were you very worried?

- I was very worried during the first performance of Bella. Then I did not know how she would react to a large number of viewers and cameras. She was afraid that she might get scared, cry, refuse to speak. But everything went better than you could imagine.

- How does the girl feel about her current popularity?

- Due to her age, Bella is not aware of her popularity. We try in every possible way to protect her from the status of a star, a genius, a child prodigy and other things.

- In your opinion, this fallen fame will not have a negative impact on the girl psychologically?

- For our part, we do not distinguish Bella from other children. She does not realize that she is unique or different from others in some way. Bella attends various group classes, and the children in the groups perceive her as an ordinary child. So far, we have not encountered any problems due to popularity.

- Did you and your daughter participate in other TV shows?

– We ourselves do not show any initiative in terms of further promotion on television, but we regularly receive offers from television channels from different countries. And we agree to participate in the most interesting, from our point of view, projects. So far, Bella has taken part in the Chinese talent show Fantastic Baby, the Italian show Little Big Show, and the German show Little Big Stars. Participation in such shows is a great opportunity to practice foreign languages ​​in real situations, communicate with peers from other countries and experience great performances on the big stage.

Mermaid or fairy?

- Is Bella now equally fluent in seven languages, or are there any favorites?

– At this stage, knowledge of all languages ​​is approximately at the same level. However, from time to time one or another language begins to go ahead or, conversely, lag behind. We are trying to regulate the situation by making certain changes to the class schedule.

– Do you plan to learn new languages?

Bella recently started learning Italian on her own initiative. I do not rule out that we will learn some more languages, but only if the daughter herself shows such a desire.

How does Bella communicate with her peers? Not too imaginative?

Bella is a very sociable girl. She herself easily makes contact and gets to know other children, and she can do this in several languages. Bella can't imagine or show off yet.

- What is your daughter interested in?

Bella loves to draw, sing and dance.

What does she want to be when she grows up?

- If you ask Bella such a question, she will say that she wants to be a mermaid or a fairy. She has not yet appeared any global goal.

- And what do you see for your daughter's application of talents and strengths in the future?

– I think, no matter what my daughter does in life, languages ​​will help her in any area. Languages ​​open up borders, make any information more accessible, and allow the exchange of experience with specialists from other countries.

- Does Bella have a motto for life now? If not, how would you phrase it?

Bella is a very persistent and wayward girl. I think her motto could look something like this: "If I want something, then I will achieve it!".

– What is the main advice you could give to parents who dream of raising their children to be polyglots?

– If you want your child to become fluent in several languages, organize classes for him so that languages ​​fit naturally into his life. You can learn languages ​​in different ways, it is not necessary to sit at a desk for this. You can combine learning languages ​​with other interesting activities. For example, Bella cooks with French and Arabic teachers, learns to skate with a German speaker, learns quads (four-wheel rollers) with a Spanish coach. Make your language classes fun and varied, and the results will surprise you! We talk about how languages ​​fit into our everyday life on our instagram @yulia9kina and on our youtube channel.

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The four-year-old Muscovite captivated viewers, users of YouTube and the social network Facebook. In the TV show "Amazing People" she showed the ability to speak seven languages.

Read the full version of the conversation with Yulia Devyatkina below and listen to the audio recording.

A. MITNOVITSKAYA: Bella Devyatkina, seven languages, four years. Julia Devyatkina, Bella's mother is in touch with us now. Hello Julia!

M. SHAKHNAZAROV: Good morning!

Y. DEVYATKINA: Good morning!

A.M.: Now explain to us how you did it.

Yu.D.: Initially, there was an idea to teach the child English so that she would speak Russian and English at the native level. Therefore, from birth, I began to speak two languages ​​with her.

A.M.: And how is it done? I was always interested in that. Word by word, sentence by sentence, day by day. How is it done - two languages ​​at the same time?

Yu.D.: No, the main idea is that the languages ​​don't mix. That is, we alternated languages ​​- a Russian day, an English day, and so on. From morning to evening, one day we live in Russian, the next day in English.

A.M.: Wasn't she confused? A child is a living organism, whatever one may say.

Yu.D.: We have elements of mixing, but they are minimal, that is, in fact, she did not mix, as I think, due to the fact that I followed the time separation very clearly.

I did not allow during our conversation in English to wedged in Russian into the conversation

Y. Devyatkina

M.Sh.: I knew kids who studied at a language school with three languages: English, Latvian and Russian. And in the end, they came out as complete ignoramuses.

A.M.: Does that mean you didn't learn a single one?

M.Sh.: On the contrary, everything was just right with the languages. But it was a time when language was considered a second profession. They said that they think in Latvian, they answer in English, then we switch to Russian, there was a mess.

Yu.D.: We communicate in such an environment of families where people are all interested in early development and where the priority is the education of the child. And also children are brought up in a multilingual environment. We communicate and share results. And people who have experience in this, noted that the child has obvious language abilities and it makes sense for us to connect more languages, while age allows it. Because it is well known that up to 3-5 years the child is maximally able to absorb the language at the native level. After five years, this ability in a person disappears.

M.Sh.: I knew a man who is absolutely fluent in eight.

A.M.: And it was at seven.

Yu.D.: Yes, it was at seven, and we do not plan to add more.

A.M.: And why?

Yu.D.: It takes time.

To practice each language regularly, you need at least three times a week

Y. Devyatkina

Therefore, doing classes in each language three times a week is a fairly large time resource.

A.M.: So you decided to leave all seven? Because that's already quite a lot. She will walk after school and study each language for an hour. When will she do the rest?

Yu.D.: As for the school, the question is still open. We would like it to be a school where teaching is conducted in one of these languages, so that she learns in one of these languages ​​at school. Accordingly, I deal with Russian and English with her myself, and we will continue to support other languages, but, probably, already in a less intensive mode.

A.M.: What language are you willing to give up if you have a choice?

Yu.D.: Possibly from Spanish. Though I hope I don't have to.

A.M.: Why from him?

Yu.D.: The fact is that Spanish is the same language group as French. For her, it was very easy initially, because it is similar to French. But we still leave it in some form.

A.M.: Yulia Devyatkina, mother of little Bella.

Read the full version of the conversation with Yulia Devyatkina above and listen to the audio recording.

Amazing people - who are they? The main characters of the project of the TV channel "Russia" amaze the imagination. They are capable of anything: their talent is beyond the bounds of the possible. The unique abilities of the participants in the show will make the viewer believe that there is no limit to the human mind.

Someone thinks in the mind faster than any computer. Someone can tell by eye the speed of all the cars on the highway. Someone is able to memorize the contents of hundreds of books in one view, solve a Rubik's cube with his eyes closed, break a glass on the table with the power of his voice, recognize the outlines of any state on the planet ...

Phenomenal personalities who have shown miracles of memory and intuition will demonstrate their gift.

Thousands of people responded to the invitation to take part in the show. Large-scale casting lasted more than three months. In order to catch phenomenal people from a sea of ​​capable people, the selection committee traveled to 40 cities in Russia, the CIS countries and neighboring countries.

Based on the results of a thorough selection, 48 people were selected to participate in the show.

An open uncompromising competition awaits them: the show "Amazing People" is not just a demonstration of talents, this is a battle of the X-men!

This is a competition in which only one participant will be the winner.

"The most amazing of the amazing" will be chosen by the audience in the studio, and the star guests of the show will help them in this: the famous dancer, choreographer and participant in the "Dancing with the Stars" project Evgeny Papunaishvili, the absolute world boxing champion among professionals Natalya Ragozina and the actress, journalist, TV presenter Olga Shelest.

Star guests have the right to intervene once in the course of the audience voting and give one of the participants a chance to go to the final of the show.

An expert can also influence the choice of finalists: Professor Vasily Klyucharev from the Center for Neuroeconomics and Cognitive Research takes part in the show.

Contest Rules

Eight contestants take part in each edition. Each participant will have to pass a test in which he will be able to show the uniqueness of his abilities.

All performances are evaluated by the audience in the studio, they choose one participant who goes to the final.

In the final, the best of the best will compete for the title of winner and the main prize of the "Amazing People" project.

Interesting Facts

• Casting editors watched more than 500 hours of video with the performance of potential participants.
• The fastest mental mathematicians of our country and the world take part in the project.
• The age of the youngest participant of the project is 3.5 years.
• One of the participants flew to Moscow to shoot, despite the fact that she was confined to a wheelchair from the age of 18, pregnant in her fifth month and terrified of air travel.
• The participant of the test on the skating track, especially for the competition, took the skates that bring good luck from his father, the multiple world champion Sergey Klevchenya.
• The producers of the project found 24 pairs of twins who will be present in the studio at the same time.

Leading - TV presenter and producer Alexander Gurevich

Project page

Bella Devyatkina is the youngest participant in the show "Amazing People" literally when the video of the program got on YouTube. The four-year-old girl is fluent in seven languages ​​- Russian, English, French, Chinese, Spanish, German and Arabic. Bella has recently started learning more Italian. Bella is taught English by her mother (an English teacher). Bella teaches other languages ​​with teachers from different countries.

Yulia Devyatkina, the mother of Russia's most famous polyglot child, told Maternity about how to achieve such a result, what methods parents used in teaching Bella and whether the girl has time for games.

Julia, before Bella was born, did you decide that you would study languages ​​with her? Or did you start exercising from birth, noticed interest and continued?

Yes, fortunately, about the possibilities artificial bilingualism I found out long before Bella was born. Back in my student years, I met a mother who raised her bilingual son on her own, and then I decided that when I have a child, I will definitely teach him English from birth. When Bella was born, from the very first days I began to speak two languages ​​with her. Initially, there were no thoughts about seven languages, of course. But noticing the child's interest and excellent progress in understanding languages, I decided to add French at 10 months. Successes by 2.5 years were so obvious that in 2 years 7 months. we decided to add Chinese as well. After a few months, Bella became fluent in Chinese. Further, in the period from 3 years to 3.4 years, we introduced 3 more languages: Spanish, German, Arabic.

Elena Say:"What's happened " artificial bilingualism"? With "natural" bilingualism, everything is clear. A child is born into a family of parents who speak different languages, and from childhood absorbs two languages ​​at the same time. As a rule, each parent communicates one-on-one with the child in their native language, and the language of the country in which the family lives is chosen at the common table. And this language, one way or another, as a rule, begins to dominate over time.

But it turns out that there is also artificial bilingualism! This is the study of a foreign language from birth with a teacher - a native speaker. It is believed that up to 8 years any foreign language can be mastered without sitting at a desk, textbooks and lessons in the classical sense - simply by immersing the child in the environment.

This I can confirm from my personal experience. 1.5 years ago we moved to Germany. My daughter was 3 at the time. She only learned to speak Russian and ended up in a German kindergarten. Nobody deals with German separately under special conditions. She just spends 5 days a week 7 hours a day in a German garden - playing with German children and chatting with German caregivers. Now, a year later, I can say that she speaks German fluently and without mistakes. For me, it’s just a miracle!”

I saw a video like Bella, at 1 year and 3 months old. “reads” cards with words - tummy, ear, eyes, hello, swing, eat - and points to this part of the body or shows a written action. That is, the child does not yet know how to speak, but ... already knows how to read? Please tell us about this system of learning with cards - did you show her cards with words from what age? How often? Were the word cards only in Russian?

No, I have no such concerns. I think that a child should not be overloaded with what he does with pleasure.

How do you relax with your family? Do you have your own family traditions, rituals - like Sunday dinner or watching good children's films on Sundays?

We do not have such traditions, but we, like any other family, love to go to a cafe, an amusement park or just for a walk together.

It seems to me that learning so many foreign languages ​​at the same time requires huge resources on the part of parents - both material, and moral, and temporal. This is the organization of all these lessons, logistics, scheduling, etc. Are you, as a mother, not tired of this? What is your global, ultimate goal? What future do you see for Bella?

Indeed, the organization of such classes requires a certain amount of time from parents. I do not get tired of it, because it is interesting to me, I am passionate about the process. My goal is for my daughter to be interested in growing up, and for her to carry her interest in knowing this world through her whole life. After all, when nothing around is interesting, life loses its meaning. I don't have any specific plans for Bella's future. I just want it to be comprehensively developed and have interests in various fields. It seems to me that a person who is interested in a lot is a happy person who is able to enjoy life even in old age.

- Does Bella herself understand that she is different from other children? Are you aware of your uniqueness?

As a family, we don't emphasize that Bella is different from her peers, so she doesn't know about it. We also ask people we know to avoid the words “star”, “wunderkind”, “genius”, etc.

Photo - from the personal archive of Yulia Devyatkina