Second language

What can I expect when a child is learning a second language?

• A silent time of up to 6 months in the second language: A child needs time to understand a new language before using it. During this time, the child might listen but not talk. However, the child’s first language should continue to grow.
• Mixing the two languages: Children may use words from both languages in one sentence to help replace words they don’t know.
• Grammatical errors: Children will make mistakes in the new language until they figure out all the rules.

How can I help my child learn more than one language?
You child needs REPEATED AND CONSISTENT exposure to each language. Here are some ways to do this:

• “One parent-one language”: One parent speaks one language to the child; the other parent speaks the other language to the child.
• “One place-one language”: One language is spoken at home; the other at day care or at school or at a community activity.
• “One activity-one language”: One language is spoken at bath time; the other is spoken during outdoor play.

Whatever your strategy, expose your child to each language at least 30% of each day.

Since I speak two languages well, I sometimes switch from one language to the other. Could it cause a delay?
Bilingual speakers sometimes switch back and forth between languages. This will not cause a language delay. But, using the “One parent-one language” strategy can help you manage language use in your family and make sure that your child will get enough practice in both languages. This is very important when one language is spoken very little outside the home. Your child needs to hear both languages often, to be able to use both. As a parent, you need to decide which language to use with family and with people who visit your home. Remember, if you are not fluent in one of those languages, it is best to only use your first language.

My child has a speech/language delay. Will speaking two languages make the delay worse?
No. There is no proof that children with a speech or a language delay will be more delayed if they hear two languages. However, they will have the same speech and language difficulties in both languages.

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