241 SERIES: Speech & Language Delays: 2 Languages, 1 Young Brain: What’s Normal and What’s Not

Hey Friends~

Recently, I got a written message from a listener who wrote, ‘My husband is Serbian and speaks Serbian to our son. I speak English, but I don’t speak Serbian well. Our little one is just 17 months and very vocal — but in my expat group, parents worry their bilingual kids might be confused. How young is too young for two languages? And how old is too old for 2 languages?”

It’s such a good question — and one that so many families wonder about. In this episode, we’ll look at how babies process two languages, the benefits, milestones, red flags, and what you can do - all geared for the multilingual home.

If you would like to send your question, you can email me at hello@thelanguageofplay.com or Leave a voice message here: https://castfeedback.com/play . I may just highlight your question on the show! And remember, when you have the question, it means hundreds of other listeners have the same question, too! You will help many by asking.

Always cheering you on!

Dinalynn

CONTACT the Host, Dinalynn: hello@thelanguageofplay.com

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IF YOU LIKED THIS EPISODE, YOU WILL WANT TO LISTEN TO THESE EPISODES:

07 How Language is Learned in a Dual Language Home

08 Bilingual Kids and Speaking Delays in Multi-Language Households

38 Cheyanne Cleyman: Dual-Language Living Across Cultures in a Step Family, part 1

39 Cheyanne Cleyman: Dual-Language Living Across Cultures in a Step Family, part 2

220 What Does “A Language Rich Environment” Really Mean?

224 Did Your Child Babble? When It Begins, What It Means, And Why It Matters

227 Child Not Doing As Told? Change Their Response With Concept Words

Here are OTHER EPISODES in the ongoing SERIES: SPEECH & LANGUAGE DELAYS:

232 SERIES: Speech & Language Delays: What Parents Need to Know

233 SERIES: Speech & Language Delays: Do Boys Really Talk Later Than Girls?

236 SERIES: Speech & Language Delays: What Is The Cause?

237 SERIES: Speech & Language Delays: “My Child Did Not “Qualify” for Speech Therapy. What Does That Mean?”

240 SERIES: Speech & Language Delays: Therapy & Intervention Options for Parents

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Recommended resources / further reading:

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) — articles on bilingualism and SLP guidance. (Leader)

“Young Children Learning Multiple Languages: Parent FAQs” (HealthyChildren.org / AAP) — practical myths vs facts. (HealthyChildren.org)

Review on infant bilingual perception (Werker) and phonetic learning (Kuhl) — explains how infants separate languages. (infantstudies-psych.sites.olt.ubc.ca)

Research on vocabulary measurement in bilingual infants (Byers-Heinlein et al., 2023) — useful if parents want evidence for how to track vocabulary. (PMC)

Critical period / age effects review (Hartshorne et al. & reviews) — context on age and accent/nativeness. (PMC)