Question Dear Multilingual Parenting team, I am still in my early pregnancy, but like all ambitious mother to be, I’m already considering all kinds of scenarios regarding the baby’s future education. As a multilingual person, which language shall I speak to my...
In this section, you can find Q&As to support you as the parent in a multilingual family

Some things parents of bilingual children experience seem to be universal. As a parent of a bilingual or multilingual child, you become more aware of your native language and you may also consciously try to improve your own skills. In today’s world, there is an infinite number of things parents can potentially worry about or feel pressure for. Adding another language to that brings a new dimension to parenthood. You have to ensure that your child gets enough exposure to all languages and be on a constant look-out for language resources. To make up for the lack of materials, you probably end up being more creative than you thought you would ever be.
Q&A: How to start speaking your native language after years of using the majority language with your child?
Question Hello I'm very glad to find this website. I have three years old daughter. Our language is Urdu but we start communicating with our daughter in English. In start it was okay but now we are feeling difficulty to explain things to her in English as she...
Q&A: How can a parent switch the language spoken with a toddler?
Question Hi from Turkey! I have twins, a boy and a girl and we have been speaking in our mother tongue since they were born, and it's been 20 months. I can speak English fluently and I wonder if I start to speak only in English with them to make them bilingual...
Q&A: How to choose the additional language to teach a toddler?
Question Hi, My husband and I have an 18-month-old son who we would like to raise bilingually in Austin Texas, USA, but we are having a hard time deciding which language to teach him. Predominant languages in our city environment: English and Spanish...
Q&A: How strict should OPOL-parents be with their languages when speaking to a small child?
Question Good day, Thank you for the good advice on multilingual parenting. I am Dutch and married to a Jordanian (Arabic-speaking). We talk English amongst each other but try to stick with our mother tongues (Dutch and Arabic) when talking to our 15-month-old son. He...
Q&A: How to convince a reluctant parent to speak a minority language with a child?
Question Hello! As every parent would like to provide best future for their children I have started to wonder about language routine for our baby girl that is due in a month. I would like to get any advice how to introduce the language that is very important to...
7 tips for parents: How to remember to speak the minority language
7 tips for parents: How to remember to speak the minority language “I want to speak my language with the kids but keep forgetting. Can you help me?” This was one of the questions during the first ever Multilingual Parenting Facebook LIVE Q&A session (you...
Q&A: How to prioritise between several family languages for your multilingual child?
Question Dear Sir/Madam Our daughter is almost 15 months old and we are seeking your advice on how to work on her languages. Here is the situation in our family: My native languages are Turkish and Russian. My husband's native language is English. We currently...
Q&A: How can a single parent raise a bilingual child?
Question Hey, I decided long time ago that I would want to make my possible future children multilingual. I have lived years abroad (English was and still is my study and work language), but recently moved back to Finland. I'm a native Finnish-speaker, but...
Q&A: When to teach literacy in the minority language and how to support a bilingual child with a new language?
Question Hi, My son is 3.5 years old. We are from South America (Colombia and Chile) so the language at home is Spanish. My son was born in Australia. He never attended child care there, so he was not exposed too much to English. Ten months ago, we moved to...









