When we speak about literacy development in multilingual families, we often picture clear, parallel progress across all languages: a child learns to read in one language, then transfers those skills into the next. However, real multilingual development unfolds in waves, sometimes accelerating in one language while temporarily pausing in another. The pattern of literacy development
Multilingualism is often celebrated or emphasized as a gift or a superpower. Such descriptions emphasize the advantages of using multiple languages, they can also mislead people to falsely assume and expect it to be easy.
Multilingual societies are a testament to the vibrancy and complexity of human culture, where multiple languages coexist and evolve within a shared social framework. These societies are not simply collections of diverse linguistic groups but intricate networks of communication that weave together histories, cultural identities, and social dynamics.
Raising multilingual children is a rewarding yet complex task that requires thoughtful strategies and a supportive environment. Every family needs to find what works best in the many (!) different stages of the children’s (and parent’s!) language development and learning. We often worry when others make remarks or seem to know better what is good
Beyond simply knowing two or more languages and dialects (or sign languages), being bilingual* offers a wide range of cognitive, cultural, and future benefits that make it a skill worth cultivating
When Marilyn Gardner asked me to write an article for the September 2019 issue of Among Worlds, Communication: our languages and lexicons I couldn’t resist writing about the gift of multilingualism. I am very honored to see my article published in this magazine dedicated to so many important topics for internationals! – Thank you, Marilyn
Multilingualism is not only good for our brain, our overall flexibility and open mindedness, it is also good for the economy. That countries like the UK with relatively “poor language skills” loses “the equivalent of 3,5% of its GDP every year” for exactly this reason whereas Switzerland, with its four national languages (German, French, Italian
Many bilinguals (and with this term I mean people who talk two or more languages, so including also plurilinguals) feel annoyed by all kind of questions that refer to them being able to understand, speak, write and read two or more languages. Instead of listing up these negative examples, I think it would be good
We can find many suggestions about how to support our children to become bilinguals* when they are toddlers, in preschool or primary school. But what happens when they are teenagers and young adults? Can we still support them with their family languages or other languages they’re learning along the way? If culture was a