2026/07/05 16:09
🇯🇵 Japanese version available here: 日本語ページへ
Over two weekend, Mom & Dad Japan hosted our Multicultural Families Workshop, bringing together families from a wide range of backgrounds to learn, share and connect.
Japanese families, international families, and parents raising children across languages and cultures came together to explore what it means to raise multilingual children in Japan.
DAY1｜Understanding Multilingual Development
In our first session, we welcomed Dr. Misato Morita from Kyoto University of Foreign Studies(KUFS), who shared evidence-based insights into multilingual language development.
Parents explore questions such as:
- Is it ok if my child mixes languages?
- Which language should we use at home?
- Why is it important to continue speaking our home language?
One message especially resonated with participants:
“keep speaking your own mother tongue.”
The session provided practical, research-based guidance while reassuring parents that every multilingual family has its own unique journey.
DAY2｜Real Stories From Multilingual Young Adults
Our second session began with a review of the key ideas from Dr. Morita’s lecture.
We then welcomed two university students from KUFS, both of whom have Japanese and international backgrounds.
They shared their personal experiences of growing up multilingual in Japan, including:
－How they communicate with their families
－Their experiences navigating different cultures
－The challenges and strength of being raised between languages
－Why they decided to study their heritage language at university
Their honest stories offered a perspective that research alone cannot provide.
Participants’ Voice
“Over the two sessions, we learned the foundation of raising multilingual children, and gained a deeper understanding of the experiences of those who actually grew up in multilingual.
We also loved the warm, home-like atmosphere, which made it easy to ask questions and connect with others.”
At Mom & Dad Japan, our goal is not only to share information.
Throughout the workshops, parents exchanged experiences, children played together, and new connection were formed.
These moments reminded us that community is just as important as information.
Thank You!
A heartfelt thank you to everyone who joined over two sessions.
We are especially grateful to Dr. Morita and the two students for sharing their knowledge and experiences so openly.
We look forward to creating more opportunities for international families to learn, connect and grow together.
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