segunda-feira, 5 de fevereiro de 2018

Dutch 101 for au pairs


Are you going to be an au pair in the Netherlands (or in Belgium perhaps) for kids who don’t (or barely) speak English?
Then this post is for you!

You might be worried about dealing with the kids if you don’t understand them and they don’t understand you, right? Indeed that is a valid concern!

English is a widely spoken language in the Netherlands, however unless your kids have the parents speaking English to them, have had au pairs before who spoke English or are older (thus already learning it at school), chances are they don’t speak or understand English too well.

Although there are other ways of communicating and this normally is not a huge barrier, there are times that the language gap can become annoying and stressful – both for you and for the kids! Knowing some basics will help the routine run smoother and most likely help you establish a bond with your kids more easily. 

Even if you start a Dutch language course right away, chances are that what you are learning there won’t be helpful with the kids. That’s why I’ve compiled this list of words, expressions and short phrases more related to children’s world and your routine as an au pair. 

The list is extensive, so focus on what can apply most to your kids and daily life.


Ben jij klaar? Let’s go!

Words with an asterisk* are written the same way, although pronunciation might be different.

Pronouns: 
Ik – I   
Jij – You 
Zij – She 
Hij – He 
Wij – We 
Jullie – You (Plural)
Zijn – They

Questions: 
Wat – What
Waar – Where 
Waarom – Why 
Wie – Who 
Hoe – How 
Hoeveel – How Many
Wanneer – When 


Parts Of The House/Furniture:
Woonkamer – Living Room 
Slaapkamer – Bedroom 
Badkamer – Bathroom 
Keuken – Kitchen 
Spelkamer – Playroom 
Trap – Stairs 
Tuin – Garden/Yard 
Tafel – Table 
Zetel/bank – Couch 
Stoel – Chair 
Bed*
Kast – Wardrobe/Cupboard
Kolkast – Fridge 
Binnen – In(Side) 
Buiten – Outside 
Boven – Upstairs/Above 
Beneden – Downstairs/Below
Huis/Thuis – House/Home


Playtime: 
Speelgoed – Toys 
Pop(Tje) – Doll 
Speeltuin – Playground 
Schommel – Swing 
Glijbaan – Slide 
Trampoline*
Fiets – Bike  
Step – Scooter  
Voetbal – Football/Soccer 
Schmink – Make Up, Facial Painting 
Verf – Paint (Substantive)
Tekening – Drawing (Substantive)  
Papier – Paper 
Schaar – Scissors
(Kleur)Potlod – (Coloring)Pencil
 Klei – Play-Doh
Boek – Book  
Muziek/Liedje – Music/Song
Spelen – To Play 
Springen – To Jump
Gooien – To Throw 
Lezen – To Read
Kleuren – To Color
Zingen – To Sing
Dansen – To Dance


Colors: 
Blauw – Blue 
Groen – Green 
Geel – Yellow 
Zwart – Balck 
Wit – White 
Rose – Pink 
Rood – Red 
Oranje – Orange 
Paars – Purple 
Bruin – Brown 


Animals/Nature: 
Dier(En) – Animal(s)
Hond – dog 
Kat/Poes – cat  
Konijn – bunny  
Kikker – frog  
Giraffe*  
Olifant - elephant 
Slak – snail 
Slang - snake 
Vlinder – butterfly  
Koe – cow 
Paard – horse  
Vis – fish  
Voegel – bird  
Eend – duck 
Kuiken – chick
Kip – chicken  
Zon – sun  
Wolk – cloud  
Regen – rain  
Boom – tree  
Blad – leaf  


Body: 
Hoofd – head 
Haar – hair 
Buik – belly 
Neus – nose 
Mond – mouth 
Oog – eye 
Oor – ear 
Arm*
Hand* 
Vinger – finger  
Been – leg 
Voet – foot 
Teen – toe 
Knie – knee  
Rug – back 
Bil(Len) – butt 
Plaster – band aid 
Bloed – blood 
Ziek – sick 
Ik heb pijn aan mijn... I have pain on my.. 
Dat doet pijn – That hurts


Kleding/kleren – clothing/clothes 
Jurk – dress 
Broek – pants 
Rok – skirt 
Handschoenen – gloves 
Sjal – scarf 
Muts – (winter) hat 
Jas – jacket
Trui – sweater  
Schonen – shoes 
Larzen – boots 
Sokken – socks 
Onderbroek – underwear 
Luier – diapers 


"People": 
Moeder – mother 
Vader – father 
Zus – sister 
Broer – brother 
Opa – grandpa 
Oma – grandma 
Juf – teacher 
Vriend – friend 
Oppas – nanny 
Jongen – boy 
Meisje – girl 
Kinderen – children 


Foods/Drinks: 
Brood – bread 
Kaas – cheese 
Wortel – carrot 
Komkommer – cucumber 
Melk – milk 
Rijst – rice 
Kip – chicken 
Vis – fish 
Vlees – meat 
Spinazie – spinach 
Erwten – peas 
Water*
(Fruit)Sap – juice 
Thee – tea 
Taart – cake 
Snoepje – candy/sweets 
Toetje – dessert 
Groenten – vegetables 
Soep – soup 
Ei – egg 
Koekjes – cookies 
Appel – apple 
Banaan – banana 
Druiven – grapes 
Peer – pear 
Sinaasappel – orange  
Mandarijn – tangerine  
Aardbei – strawberry 
Blauwbes – blueberry 
Board – plate 
Beker – glass 
Lepel – spoon 
Vork – fork 
Mes – knife 
Snijden – to cut 
Stuk – piece 
(Zonder/Met) Schil – (with/without skin) 
Hap/Hapje – a bite, mouthful 
Lekker – tasty, yummy
Eten – to eat 
Drinken – to drink  


Hygiene: 
Tanden Poetsen – to brush 
Tandpasta – toothpaste  
Douche – shower 
Bad – bath/bathtube 
Handdoek – towel 
(Tanden/Haar) Borstel – (tooth/hair) brush  
Wassen – to wash
Drogen – to dry 


Moods: 
Blij – happy 
Moe – tired 
Bang – afraid, scared 
Boos – angry 
Verdrietig – sad 


Verbs: 
Eten – to eat 
Slapen – to sleep 
Kijken – to watch/to look
Plassen – to pee
Moeten – must 
Willen – to want
Doen – to do
Zijn – to be 
Gaan – to go 
Maken – to make
Zegen – to say 
Opruimen – to organize 
Huilen – to cry 
Roepen – to scream 
Zitten – to sit 
Kommen – to come 
Pakken – to grab/take
Stopen – to stop
Luisteren – to listen 


Other:
Klaar – ready, done
Genoeg – enough 
Goed Zo – good job
Leuk – nice 
Mooi – beautiful, pretty
Met – with 
Maar – but 
Nog – more 
Een Beetje – a bit 
Echt – really 
Naar – to 
Straks – later 
Misschien - maybe
Vuil/Vies – dirty 
Nat – wet 
Honger – hunger
Rustig – calm down, 
Wacht – wait 
Op – finished 
Pas Op – careful, watch out 
Niet Doen – don’t do that


Some phrases/expressions: 
http://www.acapela-group.com/ put the phrases on the “text to speech” tool and get accurate pronunciation 

Luisteren naar mijn – listen to me
Waar ben jij? Kom hier – Where are you? Come here!
Wat zeg je? – What do you say? (when you want the kid to reply please/thank you/sorry etc)
Ik begrijp je niet – I don’t understand you
Ik hou van.. – I love…
Ik vind... leuk – I think… is nice
Alsjeblieft/alstublieft – Please and there you go
Dag/doei/tot straks/tot zo – Bye, goodbye, see you later, see you
Knuffel(tje) – hug (can also be teddy bear)
kus(je) – kiss 
Mag ik...? May I..?
Nee, dat mag niet/ja, dat mag – No, you may not. Yes, you may.
Wat doe jij? – What are doing?
Wat wil jij…? What do you want…? 
Het is tijd voor… school/eten/slapen – It’s time for…
Ben jij klaar? - Are you finished/done?, Are you ready?

J sounds like e/i 
G/ch sounds like you're choking haha


Further tips: 
First of all, no panic! Yes, you’ll go through a rough adaptation phase. But soon enough you and the kids will be understanding each other better. Most au pair go through this and we’re all here to tell the story. I myself didn’t do a Dutch course during my year in the Netherlands and learned a lot just from hearing the parents talking to the kids and also from the kids themselves. Soon enough, the kids also learned English from me and all was smooth.

Luckily, English can be very similar to Dutch. So if you learn some key words and add them in a phrase in English, that will already be very helpful! 

Even if you don’t completely understand what the child is saying, try always to interact with them. They want to feel someone is paying attention! Look for facial expressions, body language to determine if the “story” they are telling is happy, sad, funny etc so you can react accordingly with a “cool”, “awwn”, “leuk”, “wow”, “niet leuk”, “echt?”.

If they want something from you and you really cannot understand, try to distract them with something else. It will work mostly with younger children. With older will be more difficult. Last case, you can try to call the parents (really last case.. otherwise the kid can ask for it all the time!).

It’s very important the parents’ involvement especially in the initial adaptation period, to help create the bond and clear misunderstandings between au pair and children. They must explain to the kids that you don’t speak Dutch, that they have to show you what they want (make a bit of a mimics and guessing game!). Also, always check how the day was. Sometimes, my kids would complain that I “ignored” them (their wishes) when in reality I just didn’t understand what they wanted! Therefore, the parents should always do this follow up to ensure the kids know the au pair is not doing this on purpose. If you feel this is not happening and it can be disturbing your relationship with the kids, sit down to talk to the parents to find the best strategy of how to implement this “communication circle”.

Have google translator app on your phone and download the Dutch (+plus your language of choice) packages so you can use it even if you are offline. 

If you have the chance to take a Dutch course, do it! I know most girls come to the Netherlands wanting to improve their English, and think Dutch is “useless”. Oh, how I regret not taking a Dutch course while in the Netherlands! Now I live in Belgium, where Dutch is also one of the official languages, and I have to learn it anyway. Learning new things is never a waste of time!  


In the beginning, Dutch can seem very harsh. It will grow on you, though! I promise! At some point probably you’ll be using some Dutch words such as leuk, mooi, lekker even when you’re speaking English hahah 
For me, nowadays Dutch sounds natural and comforting! Allow yourself to know the language, it is the country’s official language after all, thus part of the cultural exchange component! 

For those who are still in home country, what are your expectations towards Dutch language? What scares you most?

For those already in the Netherlands, how has your experience been? What are the key words/expressions you think any new comer must learn ASAP?

Do share!

Veel plezier and succes!

Um comentário: