EARLY BILINGUAl development

Parents often worry that speaking multiple languages can cause children to have language and communication disorders. However, the research consistently shows that this is not true. Studies have shown that bilingual children reach key developmental milestones around the same time as monolingual children (Muszyńska et al., 2025). Research has also been done with children who have neurodevelopmental disabilities such as Autism Spectrum Disorder and Developmental Language Disorder/Specific Language Impairment. These studies show that children are capable of becoming successful bilingual speakers with the appropriate supports (Vender et al., 2021).

Take for example, two preschoolers: LISA and SARA. SARA knows 200 words in English, but LISA only knows 100 words. Based on English vocabulary, it seems like SARA has a larger vocabulary than LISA which can cause parents to worry. 

However, LISA also speaks Spanish at home and knows 100 words in Spanish.
When combining the words LISA knows in English and Spanish, she knows 200 words which is equivalent to SARA. 

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