More than one language spoken, can that mess up childs understanding of learning words?

Question

Has anybody had this problem? In a family where there is more than one language heard by baby, can child get confuessed and start speaking later than others. And be confussed when putting words together?

and if they hear the other language and it is not taught to them what the words are and not expalined to them can it hurt them if they are try to communicate but is confussed on what they are actually saying?

I speak english and my husband speaks another language and he just wont teach our son his language just lazy and i dont really know it but we usually only listen to music in his language and sometimes watch movies in his language. so i didnt know if by exposing him to this other language and not teaching him the meanings of words he would get confussed

Answer 1

First off, it won't hurt him to learn (or just be exposed to) two languages. It will probably just take him slightly longer to master them, and the delay is negligible, assuming he doesn't have a learning disability or something like that.

Secondly, if nobody is speaking to him in the second language, he probably won't really learn much of it anyway, because children need ongoing interaction to learn the language (for instance, no kid ever learned French from watching a few Baby Einstein DVDs in French). So if nobody is interacting with him, teaching him words, and listening to him try to imitate the words, and so on, in the second language, he probably won't learn it. That said--he will have a leg-up on learning it later on, because he will probably be able to master the pronounciation with a native accent later on because he was exposed to it during the critical language development period.

The main thing is that you talk to your child, everyday, and spend time teaching him basic words and sounds in your everyday interactions. If you want him to speak both languages, you'll have to work that much harder to go through the same words in both languages. But don't worry about him not learning--he will learn, even if it takes a bit longer, and once he does talk, he won't want to stop.

Good luck.

Answer 2

Small children have an uncanny ability to sort out languages. They might mix words of different languages at first, but soon learn which language to use when speaking to one person versus another. Learning a second language in childhood is more often a benefit than a hindrance.

In my pediatric practice, I encountered only a few children that had difficulty growing up in bilingual homes. They usually had other learning disabilities.

Answer 3

What happens with kids who are raised bilingual, is that they are learning twice as many words so it takes a bit longer in the first couple of years. So if you evaluated them at age 3, they would seem to be behind if you were just evaluating one language and not both. But by 5, they are actually ahead of their peers in most cases, and have a tendancy to have a higher IQ (similar to the effect that music has on IQ). It is definately an advantage for the child in many ways! Hope this helps... :)

Answer 4

If your baby is exposed to more than one language, it is not uncommon for speech to be delayed by a couple of months. Also, the child may mix both languages into a sentence. However, this usually passes relatively quickly. Children soon realize that each object has more than one name, and if you don't understand what they're saying in one language, they'll switch and try the other.

Answer 5

No I grew up in bilingual home and I actually started speaking early as did my oldest. The only confusion is that in early childhood like 2-3 years of age at times they might start a sentence in one language and end in the other. That usually stops before school age.

Answer 6

I have 3 children. My son was the first. My husband and I decided that before he even started talking that both Spanish and English would be spoken. My son was talking well at 10 months (he was saying one word sentences in both languages). My second picked up both really fast also. My third is really good if you are a little dark complected she say something in spanish and if you look "white then she will speak in english. I personally think that it is easier for them to grow up with it. They say that one person speak one language and the other speak the other (ie., I spoke english and my husband spoke spanish).

It is ultamitly up to you weither you want your kid to speak more than one language.

Answer 7

All 3 of my sisters kids are Hispanic/ Caucasian. She speaks both languages in their home, and all 3 of her kids had to go through speech therapy because they all had problems learning to talk. Her 3 year old still has problems, but her 2 older ones seem to be getting better every day. They are all still in therapy. The 5 and 6 year old have been in therapy since they were 2.

Answer 8

no, there r so many immigrants in america. they all speak 2-3 languages atleast. but children grow up to be bilingual.
i don't think it affects their ability to speak, they don't know its 2 different language at that age, they just copy and repeat everything u say.

Answer 9

No, in fact it will make the child smarter. I am tri-lingual and I never had any problems with words, in fact, I excelled in Language arts, and had a more developed vocabulary in 6th grade than most of the kids in my class.

Answer 10

My baby is still very little, but I speak english and my boyfriend speaks spanish. He doesn't speak it to me since I don't speak it myself, but he speaks spanish to his family. Babies don't normally need words explained to them, all they need is the exposure. We don't sit there trying to explain what can't is, or what the means. Just keep exposing your child to both languages and your child will figure it out for themself.