I guess the best place would be to start at the beginning. My wife and I met while I was stationed overseas. She lived in the Philippines while I was still in Japan. We got pregnant after marriage and she wanted to have her family with her when she gave birth so the baby was born in the Philippines. She was living with her family in one place as typical for filipinos so the baby had constant attention, especially from her mom. Due to some difficulties with immigration and missing paperwork, it wasnt until this year that we were able to bring the child home with us. He is now 4. I was able to visit quite a few times while he was in the Philippines. My wife's immigration was already completed so she had been working here in the US with me to save money to send home for her family. In any event, our son understood he needed to come home with his parents so we brought him back here and hes now been here with us for 3 days. It was a big change for me especially since Ive not had any time with him really so Im learning to be a dad for the first time. The other issue is that he speaks mostly Tagalog which is native language over there. He speaks a little English but I worry about what will happen when preschool times comes, which is right around the corner. Ive never trained anyone to speak, Im not sure if flash cards will work or how Im supposed to go about this? I dont want him falling behind because hes not a native English speaker. So far hes been pretty good. He plays and Ive had a day or two where mommy can sleep and Ill take him to the park with me. He doesnt ask for her and as long as I keep him entertained, seems fine. Oh yeah, with this all in mind, I shouldnt be expecting much sleep during these years correct? I just want to be sure I know what to expect. Seems like hes super active really late into the night. People have told me I should sleep as much as I can when he sleeps. Seems like hell wake up for 8 hours, take a nap and then up for another 8 hours. Its been hard cuz my wife and I are kind of on different schedules that way. She stays up with him at night for the last 4 hours or so because she can get him to sleep by coddling him. Doesnt do that with me so I usually crash a few hours before her. Then when he wakes up, Ill send her to the bedroom so that she can sleep and I try and take him out of the house somewhere to play so he can use up some energy. Its tough in WA, the weather is always so bad its hard to find places outside to take him...ideas? I guess Im just wondering if this is all normal, if the sleep thing will be something the wife and I will have to make the best of while hes this age and also if anyone is filipino reading this, if you have any suggestions for teaching him English now that hes here? He likes watching backyardigans on tv and whatnot, and knows some songs totally in English but still talks to my wife and I in Tagalog. Again, Im just worried about school and him learning a new language and how best to teach him. If anybody lives in WA area and knows of any resources I could consult about Filipino schools that teach English or something similar, that would be great. I just want the best for him and to get a good dad. As good a dad as my wife is a mother. I feel like shes having to hold up so much right now and I just want to do everthing I can to make this doable for her too. Hope I didnt write too much. I appreciate any inputs or advice, this is scary starting off. Thanks

http://maxpages.com/defender/JedPensar

I wouldn't be posting a link of a topic like this if it didn't require full explanation for one to understand. To me, I never liked hearing or even speaking Tagalog compared to other regional native Phil. languages. They just sounded more natural to me than the so-called national language. And no offense, but I do find listening to Tagalog irritating to my ears seeing how it's not perplexing to use, it doesn't sound beautiful, and not to mention it sounds like baby language with so many pronounciations that have A's in it. It really sucks to me that it's the only "native" tongue taught at schools. I fully agree with this article. When I went back there, I did felt like there was a loss of diverse identity - which lead me to also assume that the original age-old cultures were missing, literally. Like what the article states, making them dance in front of TV definitely doesn't preserve differing identities whatsoever.
It reminds me of when my family vacationed in Davao; I kept asking what those words they used mean, then my dad said something like, "I don't want you to learn Visaya." I asked why and he said, "Because it's a low class language. It sounds ugly. I want you to maintain your English."

Which of course, pissed me off; if you knew my dad, he had a prideful sense of showing off my sister and I our English to others back there - and I don't like the feeling of being somewhat used just for their entertainments. I'd be glad if schools did allow other Filipino dialects to be taught in schools and even beyond of that. I know I'll find having one similar language to make us all homogenous very boring and unappealing. Wouldn't you?

1. You are the best thing thats ever happened to me.
2. I am the happiest I have ever been... ever.
3. Your breathtaking.
4. You make me smile.
5. We're better together.
6. I missed you.

I'm trying to get these together for my step-mother. My dad is Philippino and she wants to learn these. Sadly I speak very little tagalog.

So please help me. =]

Thanks.

First of all I'm an 14 year old girl, so here it goes while I was studying social study here in japan my teacher is trying to pissed me by saying that my country is so low and how disgusting we are i'm not japanese anyway I'm a pilipino and my japanese teacher said that they are so amazing thatn us I already knew that he don't have to repeat that all over again everyday! I was blushing in front of my japanese classmates the reason why filipino is being bulied here is that because of the filipina women who work in strips club here in japan and my teacher said I'll be one of them when I grew up?! seriously I want to punch him in the face I even made a fuck sign to him but I was hiding it covering it with my finger and when I came home all I found is bill problems and all of the things that my father should since my dad doesn't know how to speak japanese I handle all the things in here I always interpret whenever we go out and there is just many things I handle I CLEAN THE HOUSE,I STUDY,BEING BULIED AT SCHOOL,AND INTERPRET HIM,CALCULATE ALL THE BILLS Sometimes and sometimes me and my dad fight at small things gosh my dad when we fight small things he tries to get it bigger which is annoying....sometimes I really feel exhausted and tired of it and sometimes I just want to end my life to finish all of this problems I don't even have friends at school my bestfriends are in the philippines and I miss them so much:( I can't be friends with japanese girls they are so fake! and wants sex all the time well I can't do that I'm catholic I tried to be friends with them somehow but just doesn't work! is it normal for a 14 year old to feel this way? or experience this? sometimes I'm so jealous of people having many friends then I'm jealous everytime I log in to facebook and see my friends in philippines go to field trips!

I've always been fascinated by the cultures of our archipelago. My dad is from Mindanao, speaking the Mindanao dialect of Bisaya, and my mom is from Palawan, speaking Cuyunin. I'm also a student of political science, mainly interested in Philippine politics, and I find the imposition of Tagalog as the national Filipino language absurd. This is not to say that I think Bisaya ought to be the national language; I just feel that the national tongue ought to know how to speak all or at least most of the languages spoken in the territory concerned.

I love languages and learn them really quickly. It'd be great if you guys can refer me to a tutor (preferably not expensive) or at least to books I can study

Thanks!

I'm trying hack my dad's laptop but it has a password and it has a hint but its in tagalog. Is dagatdaungan a word? or did my dad write something backwards so that its nagnuadtagad?

How would you say the following,

"I'm half filipina"
"My mom is filipina, my dad is black."
"She speaks(or My mom speaks) Tagalog and Visayan."
"She is from Cebu City"
"I can only understand some tagalog, I'm still learning" (Or something equivalent to this)

Salamat kaibigan :]

1. What grade are you in?
2. What school do you go to?
3. How old are you?
4. This is mine.
5. Do you want a smoothie?
6. You have a beautiful daughter.
7. Let's have a Bible study at your house.
8. Dark blue.
9. I need some polish remover.
10. Is he crazy?
11. Ok, we need to clean our house first though.
12. Dad's got alot of money.
13. I love reading this book.
14. Who's sitting here?
15. I don't know.
16. You speak tagalog?
17. He's making me angry.
18. Nothing.
19. I only know a little tagalog.
20. I feel so awkward around friends.
21. It could be possible.
22. What's your number?
23. My number is ___-____
24. Where do you want to go?
25. I need to work for Dad.

Well that's all I want to know. Oh yeah... I forgot... What does '' Saan tayo kakain'' mean again? It has something to do with food or something? If you know.. TELL ME! Ok, love ya ppl!

I recently moved from the USA to the Philippines. I am currently 14 years old and attending 2nd year public high school. Though I attend a 1st year Filipino class as well as having a tutor. How long and difficult will it be to learn the language here?
So after I'm done learning Tagalog, how long will it take for me to learn a regional language such as Ilocano (my mom's decent) or Hilagayon (my dad's decent?

I'm half pinoy half white. I live with my mom who is white. Whenever I visit my filipino family they speak in tagalog and I barely understand. I don't get to see my dad often so he can't really teach me.

I am a half filipina. My dad is from Pakistan and my mom is obviously from the Philippines. I know how to talk in Urdu ( language in Pakistan )a little, but not really Tagalog, only maybe hi's and how are you's.
So is there a thing that will make me faster to learn Tagalog besides... Rossetta Stone

She's told me its hard for her to speak in "Tugalog" but she can sing in Tagalog fluently......I don't get it? We talk to her in Tagalog, we watch Wowowee and MMK together so she can understand the language. Any tips to get her to start talking to us in "Tugalog"?
franz: she's only 4. at home, english is her primary language; her dad is white. when she goes to her lola's house, tagalog is the spoken language there. there's not a single child in her preschool who could speak tagalog-they're all non-filipinos.
hurjay_3: walang ibang bata sa bahay kundi sya lang. kaya hanggang tv na lang kme. nagustuhan nya yung kokey kahit corny.
joeyboy: you're right!
i love all of your insights! thank you!

Well, I'm half Filipino (on my mom's side, of course) and my dad is an American. And every time her and one of her sisters or one of her Filipino friends talk on the phone, she talks so loud! And while we're at Wal mart, she talks so loud in her native language, people keep staring at her in the store. I just wonder why Filipinos talk so loud on the phone.