The Bilingual Baby 

By William H. Staso, Ph.D.

Children in the first three years of life can and do learn multiple languages faster than at other ages. Moreover, being exposed to the sounds of a language before eight months will help them become native-sounding as well. If you or your spouse already speak a second language, the process is basically simple: The spouse who speaks two languages just has to use them both (though not in the same sentence!). If you do use two languages with your child, be aware that he/she may begin to talk later than other children. The more the two languages are different in their syntax and verb constructions, the longer it takes for the child to separate and use them. For instance, a child learning Chinese and English will need longer than a child learning Spanish and English.
At age two, Jasmine was still speaking what sounded like gibberish, verbalizations that were unclear to her Thai-speaking mother and English-speaking father. But within six months she had separated the sounds and word order and begun to speak two distinguishable languages, though her utterances were initially just two-word constructions.
If you are speaking several languages to your child, you should expect more significant delays. One military family discovered this for themselves. The father spoke Dutch fluently, while the mother spoke German. Both parents wanted to preserve the language that they each had grown up with and began speaking to Brian in their own family languages. The father was stationed in Japan at the time, and both parents worked during the day. They hired a Japanese woman to care for their son. Friends on the base, as well as other neighborhood children, spoke English. Thus, Brian was exposed to four languages. He was almost 15 months old before he started speaking single words. And then he selected words from all four languages, regardless of who he was with. This language mixing continued until he was nearly four years old. At that age he would use three- to four-word groupings, but since he borrowed from all the languages, no single person could understand exactly what he was saying. Finally, shortly after turning four
Whether your baby is exposed to one or many languages, he/she is actively, perhaps constantly, deciphering the language “code.” In the first seven months he/she learns the sounds, rhythm and lilt of the language. At about seven to nine months, associations are made between certain sounds and certain objects. For instance, a dog’s bark becomes associated with a dog, a doorbell becomes associated with a door, and running water may become associated with an upcoming bath. Infants also associate the tone of language meaningfully. They differentiate a stern “no” from a bouncy “you’re so cute.” You don’t need to “teach” anything to make this process happen. When you speak directly to your child and encourage interchanges, you provide all that is needed. Beginning at about nine months, or once your child clearly associates sounds and objects and events, you should actively start naming objects. Naming objects for infants younger than nine months is far less usef
What if you want your child to learn a language that neither you nor your spouse currently speak? Simply put, you will need to make special arrangements. First, you will need a tape recording of a male and a female adult speaking that language. The recording should last at least one hour to ensure that all the sounds are covered. Let your baby hear this recording at different intervals in the first six months. At or around six months you’ll then need to have a fluent speaker of that language verbally interact with your baby for a couple of hours each week. This method will allow your child to learn the second language in the same way he/she is learning the first language. During a yet unknown period of time in the first few years of life, the first or primary language is learned. Recent brain imaging techniques show that languages learned later in life utilize a different part of the brain. You probably have a sense of this difference if you learned a second
language later in life. In using the second language there is a tendency to “translate” the second language through the first, or primary, language.
When you begin to label objects for your child, pick one time to teach one language and another time to teach the second. You can use a video or computer program to assist you in the naming process. But make sure that the objects being shown are life-like and the words used describe that object only. Also, make sure only the object is shown. For instance, if you’re teaching the word “swing,” don’t show a swing among other playground equipment. The child has to know exactly what you are naming.
From 12 to 36 months, your child will need ample opportunities to verbally interact in the languages. An adult who speaks the language fluently needs to be with the child, addressing what he/she is doing and encouraging verbal interchanges in order for bilingualism to flourish. By 36 months, you might involve your child in settings with other children who speak both languages. You might be able to locate other children by placing an ad or checking through the school system. Finding several children of similar or somewhat older ages to play with who speak the additional language will dramatically advance your child’s language skills, even if the contact is just two to three hours a week.
Knowing two languages can be of value in later schooling and job ventures. Also, it’s helpful when traveling in foreign countries where the second language is spoken. Your child will thank you for your thoughtfulness and hard work.

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