Interested in learning more about multilingualism for yourself and your family? As part of our month focusing on multilingualism, FIGT Member and family language coach Rita Rosenback shares with us a list of resources to get you started.

(Edited on 15 January 2020)

What does “multilingualism” mean for you? Perhaps you grew up with multiple languages and incorporated (or are incorporating) those into your identity, or you are raising children multilingually and wondering how to do it or what it will mean for them. Or maybe you are learning new language(s) as globally mobile adults and appreciating the difference it makes to life in a new country or wondering whether you’ll ever “get it.” 

Within such a diverse group as serviced by FIGT, the answers are bound to be myriad. But we know that language is entwined with questions of culture and identity.

Online and off, a smorgasbord of resources are available on the many facets of “multilingualism,”—which can be somewhat bewildering. FIGT Member and former Vice President, family language coach, author, and founder of Multilingual Parenting Rita Rosenback shares with us some resources to get you started.

Benefits of multilingualism

Research has suggested that speaking more than one language delays dementia and enhances a child’s working memory. It makes you smarter, better at multitasking, open-minded, and less easily distracted, among other things. Here are two collections of some of the best studies and articles out there.

• Bilingual is better: the advantages of speaking more than one language (Multilingual Parenting): Rita summarizes key benefits and provides links to the studies.

• Multilingual advantage (The Piri-Piri Lexicon): Linguist and expat mom Annabelle Humanes shares her list of links to studies and articles, and various infographics presenting the advantages of being multilingual.

Learning a language as an adult

We know that learning a language is a great way to adapt to and get to know other cultures. But it can be challenging. Can adults still attain fluency? 

• ‘Learning Russian has given me a whole new life’ (Russia Beyond): English writer and translator Mary Hobson started learning Russian when she was 56, completing a PhD when she was 74 and showing that it’s never too late to learn.

• Language acquisition versus language learning (Ute’s International Lounge): Ute Limacher-Riebold explains the difference between language “acquisition” (“a subconscious process during which [children] are unaware of grammatical rules”) and language “learning” (“the result of direct instruction on the rules of language”), and how different brain areas are involved. She also gives some tips on learning a new language as an adult.

Language, culture, and identity

• How to pass on not only the heritage language, but also the culture to the next generation? (Multilingual Parenting): Language doesn’t stand on its own; it is inextricably linked to culture. In this Q&A, Rita and her daughter address one parent’s concern that they aren’t able to pass on the “pure” culture to their children. (And here’s another article on “Language and culture — integral parts of a bilingual child’s identity.”)

• Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds (3rd edition, 2017): The classic book on TCKs by David C. Pollock and Ruth van Reken (now with co-author Michael V. Pollock) includes an updated discussion on language skills.

Raising multilingual children

Each family needs to find the approach that works for them, but if you’re trying to raise your children to be multilingual, here are some places to start you off.

Approaches to raising a multilingual child

Here are some of the most popular approaches that many families use and adapt: 

• One parent, one language – OPOL is dead, long live OPOL!

• Minority language at home – mL@H: use it if you can!

• Time and place - T&P as a family language strategy

• Two parents, two languages – 2P2L, double the benefits of OPOL?

The language environment

The right language environment can make it easier for children to learn more than one language.

• Family language strategy - a must-have when raising bilingual children? (Multilingual Parenting): While some families find it helpful to have a family plan, there are some conditions that — if met — can facilitate your child’s language learning, even without a concrete plan.

• How to keep our languages alive while living abroad (Ute’s International Lounge): For global nomads, it’s not only about passing on a heritage language to a child, but doing so while moving to different countries. Ute talked about “the languages we collect during our life, and how we can keep them alive while living abroad, in different countries” at FIGT2018.
  

• Are 3 (or more) languages too many for a child? Preparing for baby's arrival (The Piri-Piri Lexicon): One linguist expat mom shares her experience in preparing for baby’s arrival and her advice to other families.

Common myths

There are an incredible number of debunked myths still making their rounds. Don’t get caught up in them; know what the latest research shows and know when to say “yes, yes” to (usually) well-meaning but misguided advice and continue to do your own thing.

• Early Bilingual Language Development: Facts and Fictions! [guest post] (Multilingual Parenting)

• Can you lose your native language? (BBC)

• Bilingualism and dementia: how some patients lose their second language and rediscover their first (The Conversation)

• Can SEN children become bilingual? (Ute’s International Lounge): Children who have special needs can also learn multiple languages.

Resources and support for parenting multilingual kids

Books and other reading

• 15 books for parents and educators of bilingual children: Rita’s recommended list of books from her library.

• Life as a Bilingual (Psychology Today): Articles by François Grosjean, Ph.D., emeritus professor of psycholinguistics at the University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland, and author of Bilingual: Life and Reality, among other books.

FIGT member websites

• Multilingual Families: by Ute Limacher-Riebold  (see also her YouTube channel)

• Multilingual Parenting: by Rita Rosenback

Facebook groups

If you are on Facebook, there are several groups that parents of multilingual children can join to get support and advice.

• Raising Bilingual/Multilingual Children: the biggest FB group on the topic

• Multilingual Parenting: run by Rita Rosenback

• Multilingual Families: run by Ute Limacher-Riebold

• Multilingual Family Life: run by Annabelle Humanes of the Piri-Piri Lexicon

Thank you, Rita, for sharing these resources!

If you find any of these useful or want to suggest others, please leave a comment. Rita and Ute also look at some of the challenges, opportunities, and concerns of being a multilingual family on the move; you can watch the video from the links below.

To access this month’s content: Please join us on Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter. Video content will be available for the month and then archived to the members’ only section of this website.

[Prepared by Ema Naito]