Алена Хмельницкая (актриса): «Английскую няню ребенку нужно брать как можно раньше»

Alena Khmelnitskaya: «An English nanny should be hired as early as possible»

Is it possible to raise a bilingual child in a Russian-speaking family? Actress Alena Khmelnitskaya share her experience.

The most successful investment is an investment in the future of our children. Perfect command of one or more foreign languages is an absolute must have for a successful person today. And education in British universities is provided to the children of the most affluent and influential people on the planet.

This may surprise you, but you should start preparing for training in another country literally from the cradle. The older the child gets, the more difficult it is for them to learn a foreign language – bilingual abilities decrease with age.

But how can you raise bilingual child if you live in Russia and your family speaks Russian? There is a great way out – a foreign nanny or governess. Where can I find a first-class, highly qualified specialist? Professional English-speaking nannies only work with trusted agencies. And there is such a thing in Russia – English Nanny Agency.

English Nanny has been on the market for more than 30 years and has a solid reputation. This Agency is trusted by businessmen from the Forbes list and movie stars. We asked the actress Alena Khmelnitskaya to tell us why she chose an English-speaking nanny for her daughter and how it turned out.

How did you come to the conclusion that your child needs an English-speaking nanny?

My eldest daughter who is 22 years old graduated from the University in New York this year. And she's practically bilingual for a long time already. She is a really talented person and always wanted to learn languages, so it was easy for her. Then she went to study abroad. But children are different, and you can never count on the fact that the second child will also be as talented in terms of languages as the first one. I want to help my child, and I know that foreign languages will make her life easier, but also I'm not sure if my eldest daughter will stay in the English-speaking country or live in Russia as well, I just don't want my children to have a language barrier in the future.

Alena Khmelnitskaya found an English nanny for her daughter
in English Nanny Agency

What age was your daughter when you hired an English-speaking governess to work with her?

We hired our first governess just recently, when Ksenia was 6 years old. Before that, she studied English in different children's groups. I started taking her to English classes as soon as she started to speak Russian, at the age of one and a half or two. But the problem was that she couldn't talk. She had learned the English alphabet a long time ago and knew a lot of words in English, but she could not speak. Perhaps it was better to hire an English-speaking governess first.

Your daughter is currently studying only English. Are you planning to add any other foreign languages?

It is not that simple in our family. I studied French, my eldest daughter has finished a German school, she studied English via different language courses, and also she studied French, she can speak 3 languages. Therefore, I think we will not limit ourselves to just one language. I plan to add both French and Spanish. But here we must take into account the total workload, this year my child starts school. I don't know if there will be enough time for everything. She also goes to swimming and gymnastics classes.

Therefore, I would advise hiring such teachers before your children start school because later it becomes more and more difficult.

Your daughter has been working with a nanny for a while. Do you see any results already?

Yes, very fast results. For example, we had just returned from Greece, and she spoke excellent English with the children there.

So she started speaking the language? This language barrier is no longer there?

Yes, she started speaking the language. I think there's another important point: there she realized that language is not something abstract that you need to know just because someone said so, but it is a specific tool that helps you solve many problems. For example, you can order food in a restaurant.

It just took a few months, didn't it?

Yes.

Have you been looking for your nanny for a long time?

Well, to be honest, my good friends immediately advised me English Nanny. They have been working with this Agency for a long time and they introduced me to its director, Valentin Grogol. So I was immediately put in good hands. And somehow you immediately start trusting them: if the company has been on the market for a very long time, it means that they work well.

Now we have an American nanny who's name is Christina. And before that, we were working a nanny from England.

Valentin Grogol - director of the international Agency English Nanny.

Why did you decide to hire someone else?

Well, generally it's hard to find "your" person. People should fit together.

Is everything good now?

I really hope I finally found what I was looking for. It is very important to me that we understand each other with the people I work with, whether we communicate in English or Russian. And now, it seems to me that I finally found "my" person. I really hope it will last.

What is your daughter's relationship with the nanny? Did they become friends?

Yes, they became friends. Although Ksenia is a girl with a character, and she, of course, likes to test people. She clearly knows what she wants, and she works hard every day to get it.

Are you happy?

Yes, I am happy, and I would like it to last as long as possible. By the way, hiring an English-speaking nanny for my daughter was unexpectedly good for my English language skills as well. There's no choice, after all. So it can also be a language practice for parents. It is advantageous for all.

It may seem that this girl is from England, but she just learns English from childhood with a nanny from London.