I have a kindergartner in So. Cal. He is starting to use the slang, "He’s Like…"Like this…
If I knew someone who was an eccentric English expatriate who tried to send children to school in Southern California and insisted that they try to imitate his accent, I would try to dissuade him. Even though children will spend a lot of time in your home and you have a lot of influence over them, the wider linguistic, cultural sea they are swimming in is too big for this kind of pipe dream to work.
I dislike the over frequent use of “He’s all”, “I’m going”, etc. Is the effort to try and stop this way of talking Quixotic, or misguided? Anyone else try it? How about cursing? The rate and acceptance of cursing seems increasing.
The same way you teach any other behavior; apply immediate correction every time. With word usage, simply interrupt them each time by repeating the offending phrase.
However, you need to provide a viable alternative word. I’m not aware of a short word or phrase that means “s/he said something similar to, implied that, or was heard as …” which is the role commonly filled by “she’s all …” and “he’s like …”.
Also, it’s not just kids, I’ve heard that same language and usage from standup comics and other non-fictional (i.e. playing a character/role) but non-news people.
OP, imagine a parent doing this. Go through the scenario in your head. Does this parent look seem like a dick? Yes, of course he does, and the kid will see this for what it is: arbitrary rule-making, “correcting” a behavior that’s not incorrect.
Do you want your kid to talk smart or be smart? Inspire curiosity about the world instead of enforcing “proper” speech.
Why would you want to? Every language has variation, based on everything from region to socioeconomic status to formality. Most people can use several different speech registers depending on the group of people they’re talking to. Why would you want to stop your kid from learning the language variety of his peers?
What Motorgirl said. It’s not limited to California and it’s not just kids. I’m 36 and practically everyone my age still uses those phrases - maybe not in job interviews or formal situations, but certainly in casual conversation.
I think you’re misguided. The kids are just speaking in the vernacular. They need to be able to communicate with their peers as well as in “proper” English. It’s not hard or even uncommon for people to speak slangily as well as “properly.”
