Your child speaks a language you don't.
German and English · Spanish and English · German and Spanish
It was never one big moment. It was the small ones. My son wanting a particular food. Wanting to tell me something that happened at kindergarten, or about his friends, or how he was feeling. He'd start in my language, run out of words, and finish in Mama's. As he got older his language grew. Mine didn't.
When it didn't work he'd cry, or make that frustrated noise, or go to his room. Sometimes he'd just go to Mama, because she could understand him and I couldn't. What I felt was simple: separated. Unable to be part of my own child's whole life.
So we started doing one small thing after dinner. One phone on the table. He hears me say the sentence, and he decides whether I've got it yet. Then he teaches me the next one. He thinks it's very funny when I get it wrong, and he laughs. But he cheers me on too, because he's a good kid and we're family. I think he knows what the effort means. I think he'll remember it.
On his own he has the same game the other way round: pictures, saying things out loud, the phone listening. No clock, no fail screen, nothing that reads like a lesson. It ends warmly every time.
Every evening anyone in the house does moves the same road of stones one step further, and every phrase we've learned goes into a book we can read back. No leaderboard, no streak to lose. The language stops belonging to one of us and starts belonging to all of us.
I built this because I want my boys to know they're valued. That I'll do everything I can to be there for them, and to be part of every corner of their lives, including the one that happens in a language I'm still learning. It works for German and English, Spanish and English, and German and Spanish, for the whole family on every phone.
With you,a dad who's still learning
The questions
How does an evening go?
Ten minutes after dinner, one phone on the table. Your child hears you say tonight's phrase and decides whether you have it yet. Then they teach you the next one. On their own, they have the same game the other way round: pictures, saying it out loud, the phone listening.
Which languages?
German and English, Spanish and English, and German and Spanish. Each family picks its pair. The app itself speaks English, German and Spanish.
What does it cost?
$9.99 a month, $49.99 for six months (two months free), or $79.99 a year (four months free). The first 14 days are free. One price covers the whole family on every phone.
Is there anything hidden in it?
No ads. Nothing sold. The app keeps what it needs to remember where your family is on the road and nothing else. You cancel in the store, any time.
How old should my child be?
It was built with a five-year-old and a two-year-old at the table. The listening game suits a child who can say a few words out loud; the evening Huddle suits any child old enough to enjoy being the one who knows.
Where do I get it?
Not in the stores yet. The two buttons below will work the day it is, and the people on the list hear first.
Be first to try it
It isn't in the app stores yet. Leave your email and I'll write once, when it is.