How can my child become bilingual?
This is a very common question for parents, who know that the language-learning methodologies used at school are often insufficient to make their children bilingual.
Parents also realize that, like them, learning a second language is not much fun and motivation is often lacking.
In fact, the methods used to teach languages in education systems around the world, from kindergarten to high school, rarely encourage genuine bilingual competence. In the US, for example, only around 10% of the population speaks a language other than English proficiently.[1] Similarly, in 2022, only 28% of working-age adults in the EU who knew at least one foreign language reported being proficient in it.[2]
Only a few countries, such as Singapore and Sweden, can boast widespread proficiency in English as a second language. Despite achieving excellent results in written assessments, many former French second-language students express frustration at their inability to communicate orally and manage real-life situations. True proficiency in a second language is rarely achieved in secondary schools. In the United States, for example, only 3.5% of students achieve a high level of oral proficiency in a second language after four years of study, while just 13.2% reach that level in writing.
The Bop! Methodology is a disruptive language learning methodology that enables children aged three to ten to become fluent in another language through "teaching" by a multilingual parent, nanny, au pair, babysitter or relative who speaks the target language, essentially through play at home. If you are interested in learning more, I invite you to purchase the book.
However, you may have other questions, to which I will provide answers.
“What is the best age to learn a second language?”
Although age is not the only factor, evidence shows that children find it easier to learn languages than adults do.[3] They can become bilingual when the right conditions are in place. It develops naturally and with little effort in a country where the language is widely spoken, but it becomes almost impossible in a country where the language is rarely spoken or taught poorly.
Fluency is more easily achieved through a bilingual education and integration into a community that speaks the language from an early age.
The Bop! Methodology is designed to help children aged three to ten reach fluency in a language, particularly in circumstances where learning a minority language is challenging.
“Is it too late for my child to become bilingual?”
It's never too late. Adults can also become bilingual, but they may not achieve the same level of fluency as a child who has spoken the language from an early age. They may also develop an accent, as brain plasticity reduces over time.
Bop! Methodology is designed for children aged three to ten, so you can use it if your child is within that age range. If you are interested in learning more, I invite you to purchase the book.
“Do bilingual children get confused?”
Multiple studies show that this is not the case if the languages are spoken consistently:
One parent speaks one language and the other parent speaks the other language (the now famous 'One Person, One Language' approach), or
one language is spoken at home and another outside the home ('Minority Language at Home' strategy), or
each language is spoken in different settings or communities (at home, at school, at grandparents' house, in communities that speak specific languages, in specific countries, etc.), and
the people who speak to or teach the child a language are native or near-native speakers of that language.
“Can babies learn two languages at once?”
The answer is yes. This is such a common situation that it should not be a concern, provided the languages are spoken logically (see the above paragraph).
“Does early bilingualism delay speech?”
Studies show no correlation between speech delay and bilingualism [4]. If parents notice a speech delay in their child, they should seek the necessary professional guidance, regardless of whether the child is raised in a monolingual or bilingual environment.
“How can my child learn a language naturally?”
Language teaching in schools is usually more akin to the study of linguistics than to natural language learning.
The most effective way for a child to become bilingual is to spend a year or more in a country where the target language is spoken. However, this is not an option for most parents, especially as immigration is severely controlled in most countries.
However, if your child is aged three to ten, you are multilingual and can pass on your language skills, you have a relative who is a native speaker and can interact with your child often, or you have the financial means to hire a native-speaking nanny, babysitter or au pair, then you can use the Bop! Methodology to teach your child English and make them a native speaker. The Bop! Methodology book is a practical, play-based guide for parents and carers who want to raise bilingual children or teach English or any other language naturally to children aged 3–10.
“How can I teach my child a language at home?”
While many books and blogs offer tips and general guidance, they don't provide a specific methodology with practical resources.
The Bop! Methodology book provides a step-by-step approach as well as practical resources for teaching a child a language at home, provided they are aged between three and ten. The book is available for purchase here.
“The best way to make a child fluent, not just good at grammar.”
As mentioned earlier, schools use an inefficient, linguistics-inspired approach to teaching languages, introducing grammar too soon before the child has become fluent in the language.
Bop! Methodology bases its approach on child psychology, which theorises how children acquire new skills at an early age. It favours oral fluency over written and academic fluency, enabling the child to become a true native speaker.
“How do children learn languages like native speakers?”
For decades, schools have used the wrong approach to teaching languages, which has demotivated children from learning languages. The school methodologies are largely inspired by linguistics, but not by child development psychology. Oral fluency should be prioritised above all else because this is how babies and young toddlers naturally learn their mother tongue.
Bop! Methodology is based on child psychology and motivates children to learn through play. It favours oral fluency over written and academic fluency, enabling children to become true native speakers.
Bop! Methodology provides a practical approach for teaching a child a language at home, provided they are aged between three and ten. The book is available for purchase here.
“How much exposure to a language does a child need each day?”
Ideally, language transmission sessions with the Bop! Methodology for children aged 3 to 10 should be one hour a week for quick language learning. If that is not possible, sessions at a lesser frequency are also possible, in which case fluency will come more slowly, but will come nevertheless. Each child will learn at their own pace, depending on the quality of the teacher.
“Is once a week enough?”
Any frequency is fine with the Bop! methodology that is designed for children aged three to ten. At this frequency, fluency will develop slowly but surely.
“How long does it take for a child to become fluent?”
With intensive language transmission, one hour a day, five days a week, using the Bop! Methodology, results can be seen in one year for a four year old child. However, the exact duration will depend on the child and the quality of the teacher's transmission.
“What happens if we stop for a few months?”
Children between the ages of three and ten forget things very quickly. If you stop for many months, your child may forget most of what they have learned.
“One parent one language method”
This is indeed an effective way to teach a second language, but it may not be enough for a child to become bilingual, especially if their parents speak to each other in a different language, if the country they live in has another dominant language, or if the family is not integrated into a community that speaks the second language.
With the Bop! Methodology, the parent who transmits the minority language is given a clear step by step guide to teach naturally and through play, even when the environment is generally unfavorable. The book is available for purchase here.
“How to raise a bilingual family”
A bilingual family is a multicultural family. Language and culture are inseparable. Culture gives language its true meaning and purpose. Bilingual families should immerse themselves in the cultures associated with the languages they speak, either by frequently visiting relatives, integrating into communities or travelling in countries where the languages are spoken.
“What language should we speak at home?”
In my experience, the most effective way to raise a bilingual child is for both parents to speak a minority language at home. However, this is not always possible if only one parent speaks the language.
In this case, one parent should speak one language and the other should speak the other language. This is a weaker system, as there will probably be a dominant language outside the home, in which case the minority language will not be used much. In this situation, your child may not become bilingual. Consider using Bop! Methodology, which addresses such cases specifically and enables your child to become bilingual anyway. The book is available for purchase here.
“How to keep the minority language alive?”
A minority language must be practised by the child in a meaningful way, whether that be through immersion in a culture or community, frequent travel to a country where the language is spoken, or within the family. Parents living in an area with few speakers of the minority language may try to create a community and organise celebrations and get-togethers with other parents and speakers of the language.
“My child understands, but won't speak the language”
This is a common issue for multilingual parents living in environments where one language dominates, outside and at home.
I would suggest using the Bop! Methodology to encourage your child to speak and become fluent in the language they already understand. Bop! Methodology provides a practical approach for teaching a child a language at home, provided they are aged between three and ten. The book is available for purchase here.
“How to motivate a child to learn a language?”
Motivation is key when it comes to language learning, and the methodology used at school does not provide much motivation in general.
At home, children can become bored with school-based methodologies and reject attempts at language teaching.
François Grosjean said that children and adults learn a language when they need it [5], such as when they migrate and require language skills to survive. However, this does not apply to children learning a foreign language in their own country. Other ways must therefore be found to make children fluent in another language.
Bop! Methodology is designed for children aged 3 to 10 to learn a new language through play, in a similar way to how they learn their mother tongue or a new language in a different country.
This methodology is highly motivating for children, who learn the language effortlessly and almost unknowingly with the help of a native speaker who spends a little time with them several times a week.
“My child refuses to speak the second language”
This relates closely to the answer given in the previous paragraph. If there is no pressing need for the child to speak the second language, they simply won't. For example, if a parent speaks to a child in a second language, but speaks the first language themselves, the child will often respond in the first language. This issue is further compounded if the child does not meet anyone else who speaks the second language, such as relatives, members of the local community, or if the child does not travel in the country where it is spoken.
Such situations are extremely common, and many bilingual parents fail to raise their children to be bilingual.
In such cases, Bop! Methodology is ideal for the person teaching the second language to succeed. Through play, the child becomes active and starts talking. The book is available for purchase here.
“How to make language learning fun for kids?”
Through play, of course! How else?
This lies at the heart of the Bop! Methodology, which has been specially crafted for children aged 3 to 10. The Bop! Methodology book is a practical, play-based guide for parents, educators and carers who want to raise bilingual children or teach English or any other language naturally to children.
“How to avoid forcing a language on a child?”
Through play. See the paragraph above.
“Best cartoons to learn English”
Watching cartoons alone won't make your child bilingual, but it will consolidate and build on the language they already know.
The Bop! Methodology book recommends cartoons in English for children of different ages and levels of English proficiency. The book is available for purchase here.
“Best apps for kids to learn languages”
I am not convinced that such apps would help children learn a new language. In fact, young children should avoid screens as much as possible.
Real learning happens through interaction with other people.
“Books for raising bilingual children”
Books are indeed a great way to strengthen and develop a child's language skills. However, books should be carefully selected. Very simple stories with basic grammar are best for young children or those who are just learning a new language; book complexity can then increase little by little.
Bop! Methodology is designed to teach languages to children aged 3 to 10 at home. The book references books in English that your child can read independently or with you (even better!). Some of the books are entirely written by me and can be used; there are very simple, basic stories that help children to acquire the basics of a language. The book is available for purchase here.
Can my child get a native accent?”
Yes, of course. This depends on who primarily teaches your child the minority language, ideally a native speaker of that language. However, bear in mind that accents vary greatly even within a country. English is spoken with different accents in countries such as the United Kingdom, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, India, Tanzania, South Africa, Hong Kong, etc. So, the accent should not really be a concern.
Bop! Methodology provides an effective method to improve your child's pronunciation and accent through play.
“Why does my child have an accent?”
They must practise speaking in that language more, ideally with native speakers. It may take time for the accent to become established, especially when the minority language is learnt after the first language.
“How to improve pronunciation in kids?”
Bop! Methodology book has a whole chapter dedicated to providing an effective method to improve your child's pronunciation and accent through play. The book is available for purchase here.
“Do bilingual children sound native in both languages?”
This is usually the case, of course. The Bop! Methodology book has a whole chapter dedicated to providing an effective method to improve your child's pronunciation and accent through play.
“Why school language learning doesn’t work”
I ask myself the same question. Despite being trilingual in English, French and Sinhalese, after having studied German for three years at school several hours each week, I never achieved fluency in that language. The school approaches are often ineffective, as demonstrated by the statistics in the introductory paragraph of the article.
If you (or someone you know such as a relative, nanny, au pair or babysitter) are a native speaker of a minority language and your child is aged between three and ten, consider following the practical Bop! Methodology, which will help you make your child bilingual. The book is available for purchase here.
“Why kids forget languages learned at school”
Whether you are an adult or a child, a language must be practised constantly or it can degrade very quickly. Immersing yourself in a community that speaks the language, frequently travelling to a country where it is spoken, or (as an adult) working in multiple languages, is a sure way to maintain your practice.
“Does bilingualism improve intelligence?”
There is significant evidence that bilingualism impacts cognitive abilities. Studies suggest that people who speak more than one language often have better memory, problem-solving and multitasking skills. [6][7][8]
“Does speaking multiple languages help careers?”
The answer depends on the career and the languages in question. English, for example, is a global language and is used as the lingua franca for many jobs[9]. Similarly, Arabic is an important language in many economies, including those in the Middle East.
“Are bilingual children better learners?”
See the answer to the question, “What is the best age to learn a second language?”
“Does bilingualism affect identity?”
Of course it does, and in a very positive way. A language is learned alongside a culture and a sense of belonging to a community or nation. Learning a language broadens one’s mind to humanity and other cultures.
“How do I help my child live a language, not study it?”
Immersing them in a community that speaks the language or frequently travelling to a country where it is spoken is a sure way to maintain and develop their skills. However, this will not work unless your child is already fluent in the language. The real challenge lies in first becoming sufficiently fluent in speaking a language. Schools usually do not provide these skills.
The Bop! Methodology book is a practical, play-based guide for parents, educators and carers who want to raise bilingual children or teach English or any other language naturally to children aged 3–10. The book is available for purchase here.
References
[1] "The state of language in the U.S. - A statistical portrait", American Academy of Arts & Science, accessed November 15, 2024, https://www.amacad.org/sites/default/files/academy/multimedia/pdfs/publications/researchpapersmonographs/State-of-Languages-in-US.pdf
[2] Eurostat, Foreign language skills statistics, accessed 4th december 2024, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Foreign_language_skills_statistics#:~:text=In%202022%2C%2028%25%20of%20working,at%20least%201%20foreign%20language.
[3] Birdsong David. Second language acquisition and the critical period hypothesis. Milton Park: Routledge, 1999.
[4] Ashawire, Exploring Assumptions of the Bilingual Delay in Children With and Without Developmental Language Disorder, accessed 1st Jan 2025, https://pubs.asha.org/doi/10.1044/2023_JSLHR-23-00117
[5] Grosjean François. Parler plusieurs langues: le monde des bilingues. Paris: Albin Michel, 2015.
[6] American Psychological Association
[7] Harvard Health Publishing
[8] Frontiers in Psychology
[9] David Crystal, English as a global language, Cambridge University Press, 1997, 2003. Accessed 1st Jan 2026. https://culturaldiplomacy.org/academy/pdf/research/books/nation_branding/English_As_A_Global_Language_-_David_Crystal.pdf