This practical and reassuring guide will enable readers to make informed decisions about how to raise their child bilingually.

In the first decade of life, children become bilingual in different language learning environments. Many children start learning two languages from birth (Bilingual First Language Acquisition). In early childhood hitherto monolingual children start hearing a second language through daycare or preschool (Early Second Language Acquisition). Yet other hitherto monolingual children in middle childhood may acquire a second language only after entering school (Second Language Acquisition). This Element explains how these different language learning settings dynamically affect bilingual children's language learning trajectories. All children eventually learn to speak the societal language, but they often do not learn to fluently speak their non-societal language and may even stop speaking it. Children's and families' harmonious bilingualism is threatened if bilingual children do not develop high proficiency in both languages. Educational institutions and parental conversational practices play a pivotal role in supporting harmonious bilingual development.

This book contains reports of research on bilingualism in infants and children as well as perspectives from those involved in cross-linguistic research on language development, literacy development in bilingual children, and psycholinguistic research on bilingualism in adults. It offers a fresh multidisciplinary perspective and next steps for research on childhood bilingualism.

In this accessible guide to bilingualism in the family and the classroom, Colin Baker delivers a realistic picture of the joys and difficulties of raising bilingual children. This revised edition includes more information on bilingualism in the digital age, and incorporates the latest research in areas such as neonatal language experience, multilingualism and language mixing.

Project Report from the year 2009 in the subject Speech Science / Linguistics, grade: 1, Syddansk Universitet (Syddansk Universitet, Sønderborg), language: English, abstract: A lot of people in the world are bilingual. People in Africa and Asia often speak their community language and additionally an official language like English or French. It is not a big surprise when calling in mind that according to Prof. Dr. Martin Haspelmath of the Max-Planck-Institut für evolutionäre Anthropologie, Leipzig there are about 6500-7000 languages in the world and according to www.welt-in-zahlen.de 193 countries. That makes an average of 35 languages per country. Despite the fact that bilingualism is widespread, there are a lot of negative opinions in the mind of people. People say for example "Your kid is going to get all these languages mixed up.", "when will she (or he) use that (language)" (both cf. Bosemark, 2006b, my italics) or that bilingual children are overstrained and that they start later to talk than their monolingual peers (cf. Leist-Villis, 2008). Within this research-paper I will deal with bilingualism in childhood. More precisely I will answer the research question "What are the reasons for parents to raise their child bilingually". First I will define the term bilingualism. For that I quote a few definitions of bilingualism from experts and afterwards I will define the one I will work with. Afterwards I will introduce some successful methods applied by parents and I will point out the advantages and disadvantages of the methods I found in literature. I will continue explaining the research I have done on the topic followed by the analysis of my data. Concluding I will answer the research question and give a prospective view on possible future research. Bilingualism is a huge topic and to look on it more deeply I decided to consider families who raised their children English-German or German-English. To get in contact with families bringing up their children in th

The best time to learn a second language is as a child. During childhood, the brain is more receptive to language learning than at any other time in life. Aware that a second language can enrich their child's understanding of other cultures and bring future job opportunities in a world drawn ever closer by globalization, many parents today are motivated to raise their children bilingual. This book helps parents in both monolingual and multilingual families determine and achieve their bilingual goals for their child, whether those goals are understanding others, the ability to speak a second language, reading and/or writing in two languages, or some combination of all of these. The authors explain how the brain learns more than one language, explode common myths, address frequently asked questions, and reveal an array of resources available to families. Packed with insightful anecdotes and powerful strategies, this is a one-of-a-kind guidebook for those seeking to provide their children with a uniquely valuable experience.

Child development comprises children’s cognitive, linguistic, motor, social and emotional development, communication, and self-care skills. Understanding developmental periods means that possible problems or roadblocks can be planned for or prevented. Knowledge of child development is necessary for achieving educational goals and is integral to promoting children’s healthy and timely development. The Handbook of Research on Prenatal, Postnatal, and Early Childhood Development is an essential scholarly reference source that compiles critical findings on children’s growth periods and characteristics as well as the principles that affect their development. Covering a wide range of topics such as at-risk children, early intervention, and support programs, this book is ideally designed for child development specialists, pediatricians, educators, program developers, administrators, psychologists, researchers, academicians, and students. Additionally, the book provides insight and support to health professionals working in various disciplines in the field of child development and health.