Today’s question was sent by fellow blogger Gabriela:
“Since my oldest son (3 years) was born we decided to speak to him only in Spanish, figuring that he would easily learn English later on. My plan was to start teaching him English gradually sometime after his 2nd birthday. However, I started noticing a speech delay around his 2nd birthday. At 2 1/2 I took him to be tested and he was found to have a speech delay. However, the testing was mainly based on my reports of his use of words. The speech therapist recommended that we continue to use only Spanish at this time since using English as well would be confusing to a child with a speech delay. Further, he has not really received any type of speech therapy due to the fact that there are not any Spanish-speaking speech therapists around.
Recently, I have started introducing a little English to him since I noticed his vocabulary has expanded a bit more and my hope is that if he learns English he can recieve speech therapy if he continues to need it. He is even saying a few words in English now. And just recently he started putting two-word sentences together, but only after I request him to do so (but it is still visibly hard for him).
I guess my question is, should I continue using mainly Spanish or is it okay to speak to him some more in English now? I am a mental health therapist but currently a stay-at-home mom, and I feel sooo lost when it comes to speech issues. Now I feel guilty for having only taught my son Spanish since this prevented him from getting the help he needs (speech therapy), but I do want him to be bilingual.”
Dear Gabriela,
It’s great that you have given your son a solid base in Spanish and that you want to introduce English now. You have only recently started using English with your son and he is already using a few English words. Clearly, he can learn English and Spanish words.
There is a very common misconception that teaching children two languages confuses them. Current research indicates that even for children who have speech and languages delays or impairments, they are not any more delayed or impaired as a result of learning two languages. In fact, there is a lot of research that indicates improvements in cognitive flexibility and vocabulary learning as a result of learning two languages.
You did not mention where you live but if you are in the United States there are federally supported programs for birth-to-3-year-olds with language delays. These are available for all children with developmental delays—income is not a factor. Now that your son is 3, the public school system provides programs for children with developmental delays. I would also like to point you to a couple of resources that might be helpful.
Our team at Bilinguistics developed an intervention program, SMILE for Infants and Toddlers, aimed at enriching language in daily routines for children with language delays. SMILE is an acronym for sign, model, imitate, label, and expand, five language enrichment techniques frequently used in language intervention. It was developed for interventionists in early childhood programs, and includes a parent handbook. It is available through Children’s Publishing.
We also have a number of free resources available on our website. They have been created for professional development workshops and continuing education courses but there is some very helpful information about the aspects of Spanish and English that overlap. Addressing the overlapping areas can affect change in both languages.
It’s amazing how much guilt people are made to feel for trying to give their children the gift of two languages. My advice to you is drop the guilt and pat yourself on the back for giving your son the opportunity to learn both English and Spanish. The most important thing is that you create a rich language environment for your child by using one or both languages to talk to your child about the actions, objects, textures, sizes, colors, and senses of his environment as he experiences it.
Sincerely,
Ellen Kester, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
Ellen Stubbe Kester, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
Ellen Stubbe Kester, Ph.D, CCS-LLP – A bilingual (English/Spanish) speech language professional who earned her Ph.D. in Communication Sciences and Disorders from The University of Texas at Austin. She earned her Master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology and her Bachelor’s degree in Spanish at The University of Texas at Austin. She has provided bilingual Spanish/English speech-language services in schools, hospitals, and early intervention settings. Her research focus is on the acquisition of semantic language skills in bilingual children, with emphasis on assessment practices for the bilingual population. She is the President of Bilinguistics, which is “dedicated to enhancing speech and language services for Spanish-English bilingual children, enabling those children to achieve their highest communicative and academic potential.” You can read her answers here.
As always, feel free to leave your thoughts or advice about this in the comments below. You can also leave your own question for the Experts here.
Gabriela, you didn’t do anything wrong…You are giving your child the gift of language, in two languages. My name is Gloria and I am a bilingual speech/language pathologist, originally from Cuba. I came to the US many years ago with my twin brother in what was called Operation Peter Pan. We were placed in a home in Albuquerque, New Mexico with a family who spoke no Spanish and we spoke no English. All I can say is thank God my mom had provided us with a language foundation (in Spanish) because the transition to English was effortless. You are doing the same thing..providing your little one with a foundation, a language base. Even though he may have some delays, he’s starting off on the right foot by having those foundational skills. Trust me, learning English or continuing on the bilingual path will be that much easier. I like to think of it as “concept” vs “label”. You are providing the “concept” and “label” in the native language. It will be easier for him to learn the English “labels” because he’s already learned the “concepts” behind the words. I evaluate many students who have limited “concepts” and “labels” in both languages and those are the kids who really struggle academically. That’s a challenge! I’ve ordered Ellen’s products and think this is a good place to start in terms of intervention and strategies you can use in everyday interactions at home. I love Signing Time products http://www.signingtime.com. You can start with Baby Signing Time or the initial Series I. Yes, SIGN LANGUAGE. It’s fabulous! I advocate the use of sign language as an instructional strategy that reinforces learning and acts as a “bridge” between two spoken languages (Spanish/English). I also like the fact that it incorporates music. I’m developing similar products to Signing Time although mine are not as developed as hers. I’m writing “bilingual” songs with the same target vocabulary in Spanish/English using authentic Latin rhythms. I also use American Sign Language (ASL) as the bridge between the languages. I’ve produced CD#1 called Chakuchukucha and am about to release CD#2 which teaches vegetables, sea animals, letter sounds, feelings, adjectives, etc. I also want to recommend a product I absolutely love, developed by a pediatric speech pathologist called Teach Me to Talk http://www.teachmetotalk.com. She has several DVD’s but I think you would love the teach me to talk one. She demonstrates how to elicit language through PLAY but also provides essential strategies. This process is not meant to be rocket science. With a few strategies and examples of how to interact with your little one, all parents can do this. Ok…enough for one comment, don’t you think? Gloria
Gabriela:
You are doing a wonderful thing for your child by teaching him more than one language! My daughter also has a speech delay and has been receiving speech therapy (in English) for a little over 6 months now. She has made tons of progress and we are really pleased. I wish that there were more resources available for speech therapy in Spanish, but that is very difficult to find. My advice would be to start therapy in whatever language is it available in, and continue speaking to him in both languages at home. You’re doing a great job! Buena Suerte!
Gabriela, I’m not a professional but I am an experienced mom and observer. It’s so easy for kids to pick up on our preoccupations. It’s hard to be confident but you just have to seek out the resources and support you need to get to that mental state yourself.
My son is 21 months old and is talking at about the same level my daughter did when she was 8 months old. It would be easy to say it’s because he’s being raised bilingual, whereas she was raised mostly in only one language. But I really don’t even think that’s it at all. My son at 1 year was able to climb almost anything, and started walking 2 weeks later; my daughter did not even start to crawl until a week before her 1st birthday and was 17 months old before she walked.
Kids are weird!
If you ask people and get the honest truth, you might be surprised to hear about folks who didn’t speak a word until they were 3, but you never knew them until they were school age or adult, and you’d never have guessed. You’ve already determined there’s nothing wrong with his hearing, and as Gloria was discussing in her post there’s a lot more to language than just learning to say words. Even in school, with the right attitude from teachers, other kids adapt very easily to having a friend who doesn’t talk much yet or is still afraid to go down the slide.
I’m not saying don’t continue addressing the delay. But, have confidence in yourself as Mamá and our homes being the #1 teacher. In consultation with the professionals, along the way I really think you could learn some techniques and make yourself into a mighty fine, personalized “speech therapist” in Spanish, too.
Gabriela,
I’m also just a mom, not a professional. I have a 3 year old and a 2 year old and both are bilingual. I always speak to them in Spanish as well as my husband. That is their base language. English they get from shows they watch on TV or when they get together with their cousins who only speak English. My 3 year old takes both karate and soccer the only language spoken is English and yes at first he didn’t respond as fast as all the other kids but he quickly got the hang of it and now understands his coaches. It’s amazing how kids absorb information. You’re on the right track. Ignore who ever tells you it’s wrong. Believe me I’ve heard it all. Don’t let that deter you.