As a parent in a bilingual household, you may wonder if introducing multiple languages is affecting your child’s speech development. It’s a common concern among families, but the good news is that speech therapy can help if your child is struggling with one or more languages.
I’m Jessica Abawag, and I’m a Speech-Language Pathologist and owner of Fluens Children’s Therapy in Tacoma, Washington, and Columbia, Tennessee. We provide speech therapy and occupational therapy for kids. Today we’re going to talk about if learning multiple languages can cause speech delays in kids.
Many Parents in Bilingual Households Worry About Their Child’s Language Development
A common question that we get when we’re working with families is this: did introducing another language or is being bilingual causing their child’s speech delay? And we always want to reassure families that no, being bilingual in and of itself does not cause a child’s speech delay.
Growing up in a bilingual house does not negatively impact a child’s speech and language development, but there are some strategies that could be used to support those children who have been diagnosed with a language disorder.
Tips to Make Learning Multiple Languages Easier for Your Child
If your child has already been diagnosed with a speech delay, there are some strategies that you can consider using to help support your child’s language development in both languages.
- One of the things we talk with families about is making it very clear and distinct when each language will be used. For instance, one parent could speak in one language at home and the other parent could speak in the other language. That makes it very clear for the child with a diagnosed speech or language disorder to understand and predict which language is coming from which parent.
- You can also think about your daily routines and use a certain language during each routine. For instance, maybe at every mealtime one language is spoken, but every other time of the day, a different language is spoken. Those are some strategies that we’ve talked with families about who are bilingual or multilingual to consider utilizing to help support your child’s language development if they are diagnosed with a language disorder.
- Another thing to consider is possibly introducing one language first, and then as your child gets a little bit older, introducing the second language. And we always leave it up to the families which strategy they decide to use.
Learning Multiple Languages Is Great for Your Child’s Future
Overall, being a bilingual or multilingual individual can be a huge asset. As we know, the world is ever changing and becoming more diverse, and having more than one language can really help your child to maintain your home culture and be proud of that.
And as they get older, if they’re traveling or they enter a certain occupation, being bilingual can really be beneficial to their success. We always encourage families that, if your goal is to maintain two or more languages, then don’t let a language disorder prohibit you from doing that. Just consider adjusting how or when you are introducing it, and definitely talk with a speech therapist if it seems like your child is struggling.
Reach Out to Fluens for an Evaluation
If you’re not sure if your child has a language disorder, or if they are having trouble learning another language, I encourage you to give us a call and we can definitely help walk you through it.
The ideal situation is if the therapist who is working or assessing your child speaks both languages, but even if they only speak English, we can still do an assessment to determine whether it’s a language disorder or if your child is just taking a little bit longer to learn both languages.
If you have any concerns, feel free to reach out to Fluens Children’s Therapy for an evaluation today.