“We want to destroy stereotypes that all Russians drink Vodka and are always cold,” Mosman said. Now, people from Wyoming, Fort Collins, Greeley and Windsor are showing an interest in the library’s group.Īnd though the group is geared toward those with Russian roots and those looking to learn and teach their kids, the women hope to teach the community, as well. That was needed, since the nearest Russian cultural center is in Lafayette, which is a long way to drive with small children. In creating a community for their children, the women created a community for themselves in northern Colorado, as well. “We would love to have some sort of educational foundation or cultural center in the future.” With so much adult interest in the group, there is plenty of room to expand. The women hope the group will be able to meet at the Clearview Library once a month with a break in the summer months. It helps them to have friends to speak Russian with.” “The major challenge for parents with older kids is they don’t want to speak Russian,” Mamatsiuk said. Mamatsiuk wants her kids to be able to speak to the rest of her family as well. “The hardest part is that all our family is in Belarus,” Mamatsiuk said. “My last master’s was in English, my husband’s was in business.”Īfter her husband got a job in Colorado, the two of them stayed. “We got several degrees each here,” Mamatsiuk said. “Russian grandparents are so connected with their families it would be heart breaking.”Īnastasija Mamatsiuk came to the United States from Minsk, Belarus, with her husband in 2006 to study. “It would be horrible if my daughter’s grandparents couldn’t speak to their grandchild,” Mosman said. Without intentional exposure, that language could be lost or never developed. Her 2-year-old daughter can already distinguish whom to speak to in which language. “I wanted it to be a natural learning process.” “I was not really interested (in finding other Russian speakers) until I had my daughter,” Mosman said. When they married, she settled down in the states. Mosman came to the United States from Rostov-on-Don, Russia. “People with the priority in helping their kids be bilingual participated.” “Step by step with social media and face-to-face meetings, it came together,” Samokhina said. Through Facebook and accidental meetings on the playground, Samokhina discovered others seeking a connection to Russian culture. Mamatsiuk said there’s a lot of play involved in the storytelling so everyone can understand what’s going on. The stories are read entirely in Russian to integrate the culture for children with or without Russian roots. The story is geared toward young children, usually between 18 months and eight years old. “If you don’t teach children from the beginning, it will be harder or children won’t be interested in learning their mother’s language,” said Anastasiya Mosman, a professional linguist living in Severance and another mother who helped organize the group.īefore the storytime group, Mosman didn’t have a way to connect with northern Colorado’s Russian community.įor Samokhina, Mosman and Anastasija Mamatsiuk, another mother who helped organize the group, the Russian Storytime group at the Clearview Library is important because of the cultural exposure it allows their children.Īpril 10 marked the third Russian Storytime event in Windsor since December. That’s why Samokhina and a group of Russian moms, linguists and specialists in child education kicked off Russian Storytime at the Clearview Library. The Colorado State University library wasn’t helpful either. It started when Tatiana Samokhina asked a library in Fort Collins where the Russian books were.
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