Thread by @ekapic

There are several myths regarding raising children in more than one language.

My son is 4 years old.

We live in Barcelona. He's surrounded by Spanish and Catalan language. Yet, he speaks Bosnian like I do.

This is what I discovered about raising a multilingual child:

👇🧵

Myth #1: If they learn more than one language at the same time, they'll learn slower.

False.

Learning 1 language: N days
Learning 2 languages: WAY less than 2 x N

Think of it as a "buy one, get one free" offers in supermarkets.

Myth #2: The child will be confounded by the two languages.

False, again.

They learn differently, but they don't confuse the languages.

"But my bilingual child sometimes borrows words from the other language when speaking..."

Lucky for them. A monolingual child has no such advantage.

#Tip: Just repeat the sentence in the target language. Easy.

Myth #3: Children should first learn one language and then another.

False, again.

They don't "learn" like we do. They acquire the words and the sounds and intuitively infer the grammar rules.

There is a short "window of opportunity" where your children can learn new sounds intuitively.

Use the most of it when they are babies.

You'll thank me after.

The myths being dispelled, let's focus on the technique.

There are 2 main approaches to bilingualism:
- One Parent, One Language (OPOL)
- Minority Language at Home (MLAH)

I use OPOL.

I speak to my son exclusively in Bosnian.
My wife speaks to him in Catalan.

Easy, right?

You have to be consistent. Your child will have different fluency for every language at a given time.

Don't cheat by speaking to them in the other language, you'll be depriving them of learning opportunities.

If you are living somewhere where your language is not widely present (like I do), it is strange to speak to your child in your language when outdoors.

Just stick with it, it will pass.

Plus, you get interesting questions by the bystanders 😉

MLAH technique works best when both parents speak the minority language. In that case, home becomes a "language bubble" that envelops the child.

From time to time, my wife practices her Bosnian and we both speak to our son in that language, but it's not a usual thing.

My rule of thumb when speaking to him in public:

- Is the conversation between him and me? Use Bosnian.

- Is it a part of a conversation with other children or adults? Use the common language.

In Barcelona, he goes to preschool that uses Catalan as a teaching language. Children also use Spanish to speak among themselves when playing and in which they watch the cartoons.

He kind of got Spanish fluency by that exposure alone plus some Spanish-speaking friends.

English, on the other hand, was not so easy.

We showed him cartoons in English. (He wants them in Bosnian/Catalan/Spanish better)

We used picture dictionaries (he takes it as a game to know how to say things in English)

We taught him simple sentences in English.

We also have a family member who's English native speaker. When we're together, he patiently speaks in English with my son and they kind of get understood mutually.

Now, at 4, he attends an English class (2 h weekly) with slightly older children. It took him time to get comfortable speaking it among others but he's doing fairly well now.

There is a disadvantage when a minority language is considered (Bosnian in my case).

You have to get around 30% minimal time exposure to the language, EVERY DAY.

It's the threshold of being active vs passive speaker.

If they are exposed less than 30% to the minority language, they'll understand it but not actively speak it. (Don't worry, they'll become active if interested enough later)

So, how do I managed to get him exposed to a 30% minimum of Bosnian?

- Reading a book when going to sleep. Even if it's a non-Bosnian book, I translate it to him.
- Tell stories.
- Use the most of the time to talk instead of passively watch him.
- Cartoons/Child programs in Bosnian
- Speaking to friends and relatives via Skype

When I would go away for a week, I noticed that he loses some fluency in Bosnian.

No worries.

Kept the same routine, he picks it up in about a day.

(Funny thing, it used to happen to me when visiting my family after a year in Barcelona. I would struggle a bit with fluency for a day.)

Another tip:

If they mispronounce a word, don't correct them.
Repeat the sentence and carry on.

🧒 "I have SEED a bird."
🧑‍🦰"Ah, you have SEEN a bird? Which one?"

2-3 exposures and they learn the correct form.

TL;DR
1. Babies are magnificent learners of more than one language at a time
2. Choose OPOL or MLAH
3. Be consistent
4. Minimum 30% exposure to minority language daily

5. Enjoy the process!!

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