Is it Good to Speak Multiple Languages with Toddler?

Children start to learn and recognize sounds before they are even born. By the time they are born, babies can tell the difference between their mother’s languages to any other language. At birth, a baby’s brain is gifted with an ability to differentiate between more than 800 sounds. This means that at this initial stage they can learn any language that they are exposed to.

Myths about Raising Bilingual or Multilingual Child

• Multiple languages confuse children.
• It leads to speech delays
• You can’t teach your child multiple languages after a certain age
• Your child will learn the language just by grasping what you and your families speak
• Your child will mix the languages

Benefits of Speaking Multiple Languages

Know whether Is it good to speak multiple languages with a toddler? Read on...

• Your child will easily communicate with their extended family
• Your child will develop open-mindedness and would easily accept people who speak different languages.
• Future education and job opportunities.
• A diverse cultural upbringing with music, films, literature, art etc.
• Ability to learn different languages

How to Teach Your Child Different Languages?

• Agree on multilingual – First, you and your partner need to decide if you want your kid to be bilingual or multilingual.
• Don’t push your child- know that learning takes time. Don’t expect your child to understand and to speak as soon as possible. Children tend to understand the language but wouldn’t be able to speak frequently. Have patience.
• Decide the number of languages- remember your child is not a machine but a human being. Two to three languages are enough for your child to learn. You and your partner should decide which languages you would want your child to learn.
• Don’t wait for the perfect time – your baby can understand sound and language even before he/ she is born. Listen to music from a different language or reading a book of any different language can help build an understanding of that particular language in your child.
• Get relevant material for your baby if you want him/her to learn a different language. Help your kid read books in a different language, watch movies with him/her, help them as a friend. Also Read: Teach Your Child The Importance Of Language
   
• Have patience!

Use These Methods to Teach Child More than One Language

• One person one language – In this method, each parent uses a different language to talk to the child. If you speak any minority language then your husband/wife can use some different language to communicate with the child.
• Minority language at home – minority language needs more attention and support. You and the entire family should only communicate in minority language at home. This would help your child get familiar with the same.

Here are our tips and tricks on how to teach your child multiple languages. Do let us know how many languages do your child speaks? And how do you teach your children the same? We would love to read your comments.