Eve, Miko, Tahira and Michele are all from different parts of the world, with children of different ages, yet each of these women have one thing in common: they only want the best for their kids, whom they love unconditionally! In the stories below, they share about the important role English has played in their parenting journeys.
Meet Miko
Miko is from Taiwan, but has lived in Brisbane, Australia for almost 10 years. She originally came to Australia for a working holiday, and didn’t plan to stay for more than a few months (let alone a decade!). What Miko didn’t know is that she would meet her husband-to-be in Australia! Fast forward ten years, and the couple now have two beautiful ‘littlies’ (young children) - a boy in primary school, and a girl in childcare.
Miko grew up speaking Mandarin, and was taught some English in high school, which was enough to get by in her first few years living in Australia. It wasn’t until she had kids, and her son started attending an English-speaking school, that Miko decided to ‘level up’ her English communications skills, which is when she joined our online community.
Miko explains that having kids was her biggest motivator to learn and practise her English, so she could better communicate with the teachers and other parents at her children’s school.
“I have to drop off and pick up my son, and take the kids to their friends’ birthday parties. So I needed to become more fluent and confident! Somehow, I had to find the courage and confidence to speak to the kids’ teachers and to the other parents, and this was really daunting at first!"
"I used to just make small talk about the weather, but I was constantly worrying about what I would talk about next.”
Miko quickly realised that what you learn in your English textbook is totally different to how people speak when living in an English-speaking country. She also knew that the only way to understand and improve her fluency was by practising! So, that’s exactly what Miko did - and continues to do - inside our global, women-only community!
Now, Miko is one of the most active members and conversation hosts in our online Mother’s Group, demonstrating the amazing progress Miko has made in her English journey.
“Last year, I had five different speaking partners because I wanted to practise so much, and I just love talking to ladies from around the world!” she says.
Learning and practising English has not only given Miko the confidence to express herself in the country she now calls home - it has also enabled her family and her children to connect more deeply with others. We are so proud of you, Miko!!!
Meet Tahira
A Pakistani who moved to Saudi Arabia, Tahira is a caring mother, motivated to learn English so she can provide for her four lovely children.
Learning English helped Tahira and her family navigate a very difficult season as a parent, as her youngest son was diagnosed with Autism.
As a mother, Tahira only wants the best for her son, and she knew that becoming more fluent in English would help her be the best mum she could be.
“All doctors here speak in English, and that’s why I wanted to learn English. When I went to the hospital, the doctors and nurses would talk to me in English. Back then, I was confused and had no idea what to do - I couldn’t give them answers in English, so I would have to ask my husband, and he would then explain everything to me. It is so difficult as a mother, because you know everything about your child and their health. But I couldn’t explain it to them properly, because I couldn’t speak English!”
Tahira was drawn to our community because she wanted to practise speaking English in a safe, supportive place where she felt comfortable to make mistakes. After a few months on the platform, Tahira started to build genuine friendships and noticed her fluency and communication skills improve.
“Before joining this community, I had no confidence. But now, I think (if anything), I am over-confident! Now, I go to the hospitals and can talk to the doctors easily.”
WOW! There is no underestimating the power of language, and how it can impact your life (and that of your family’s!).
Where Tahira previously needed others to speak on her behalf, she is now an empowered woman who can express herself confidently, and advocate for her child passionately. Now that is what we call the magic of learning English!
Meet Michele
Michele is a French woman living in Chile, who dreamt of being a confident English speaker for many years. She wanted to be able to communicate and build genuine relationships with her daughter’s new family in America.
Having tried private English lessons for years with very little improvement, Michele was looking for a different method to improve her English communication skills and fluency. It was while searching online in 2017 that Michele stumbled across Emma’s Youtube channel, and saw that Emma was launching an online community for women wanting to practise and improve their English.
“Before joining, I couldn’t speak fluently at all. I couldn’t express my ideas or understand to others very well at all. I had very low self esteem about my ability to speak English… But this community has helped me to improve my speaking and listening skills. I went to the USA recently and I could actually understand and communicate with people. People who knew me two years ago (when I wasn’t able to speak English) noticed a big difference when they saw me this time. I was very, very happy!”
Learning English has enabled Michele the greatest gift of all - to connect with her family and build real, genuine relationships. It’s been her dream all along, and now she is lucky enough to call it her reality!
Meet Eve
Learning English has not only helped Eve to be a better mother; it has also enabled her to help hundreds of other mothers and parents around the world!
Eve is a loving mum and a dedicated homeschool teacher to her daughters in France. She is known as our resident homeschooling expert inside our community, having homeschooled her girls for the past seven years. Besides being an expert on homeschool pedagogy, she dedicates her time to sharing tips with other parents all over the world, who are looking for advice on how to educate their children.
Since joining our community, Eve has been writing articles and sharing homeschooling tips in our Mother's Group.
Eve said, "This community offers me the chance to help other mums. It gives me the opportunity to be in contact with mums all over the world and share with them about parenting and teaching. And that’s totally incredible!"
Learning English also offered Eve the opportunity to be part of the global Wild + Free homeschooling community. Last year, she was invited to speak at their homeschooling conference in Europe, and having practised her English for months inside our community in the lead up to the event, Eve was very proud to report that she delivered the entire presentation in English!
Being able to communicate clearly in English helps Eve to connect with parents all over the world! We are very lucky to have such an amazing expert and dedicated mother in our community.
Of course, each of these women were already incredible mothers before they became confident English speakers. But by overcoming their fears of speaking English, they have demonstrated courage, determination and self-belief to their children, and to so many other women and mothers in our community.
The act of doing proves that it can be done!
In our community, we take every opportunity we get to thank and honour mums (and dads!), everywhere. In fact, almost 70% of the women in our online community are mothers, which is why we have a dedicated Mother’s Group, full of incredible, courageous, super-powered mums! Women of all ages and stages of life share advice, stories and the challenges of raising little (and big) humans.
It’s a safe space to ask questions, without any judgment, and we love the genuine conversations and connections that are built. There is always lots of laughter - and every so often, a few tears - as we support each other through the milestones, celebrations and crises that arise on the beautiful journey of parenting!
We’d love to hear from you! Has English helped you to be a better parent in some way? Tell us about it in the comments!
