I began this blog many years ago, after recognising in my work with parents that there was a real need for accessible, accurate information about raising bilingual children, based in research. While this is still definitely true, my blog has languished over the last years, as my consultancy workload took off and I took on an academic post. I was thinking of winding down the blog last year, but in a series of serendipitous events, I found two wonderful multilingual parents and experts in development, who have agreed to partner with me to bring the blog back to a more active state and to widen the scope to provide Family Language Planning services for families. I’ve had very little capacity to work with families directly over the last years, with the exception of my book being published in 2021, so I’m delighted to be able to once again provide families with this valuable service. So without further ado, I will introduce you to my wonderful new consultants, who I will be working closely with to continue the work of onraisingbilingualchildren.com.

Daphne Vlachojannis

Daphne Vlachojannis is a New York-qualified international human rights lawyer. She has lived and worked as an expat since 2006, first in Italy and Bosnia-Herzegovina, followed by the UK (London) and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kinshasa). In 2013 she moved to The Hague, where she currently lives with her husband and three children. Daphne is passionate about languages, and is fluent in English, French, Greek and Italian, and has a working knowledge of Dutch and Spanish. Motivated by this passion, and by her own experience in raising multilingual children, Daphne is dedicated to helping families create an environment that fosters multilingual development. Daphne is also an avid writer on expat issues, including the role of language on cultural identity.

Maria Potvin

Moving to Munich, Germany from Bulgaria in 2000, at the age of 18, Maria completed her Master’s degree in English Linguistics and Applied Linguistics at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität. She is a CELTA-qualified English language trainer and holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching Multilingual Learners. Maria is fluent in Bulgarian, English and German, and has a basic command of Dutch and Russian. After more than 10 years of gaining wide-ranging experience in an international corporate setting, following her heart and returning to her linguistic “roots” came naturally. She set out to pursue her passion for languages and foreign cultures in order to support families in navigating their multilingual journey. 

Maria moved to Amsterdam with her Canadian husband and two children in 2018, where you can find her trying to blend in with the locals riding a bakfiets.