The idea of raising bilingual children is both appealing and possible for more and more families these days, and growing up with more than one language certainly has its advantages in today's global village. Yet bilingualism really isn't something that simply happens. Raising kids to be successful in more than one language requires some careful planning and learning about bilingual language development.

The reasons for choosing to raise kids with two or more languages are as varied as the families themselves. Even the word "bilingualism" has different meanings for different families. For some families, having the ability to listen in two languages but speak in just one may constitute bilingualism, while other parents expect their kids not only to be bilingual, but also literate in both languages. Whatever the goals for developing bilingualism in each family may be, success appears to depend on whether a "language plan" has been worked out in advance. Families who take the time to consider how their kids will develop two languages, and who make the necessary commitments to bilingual language development, tend to be more successful in raising bilingual children.
If you're thinking about bringing up your children bilingually, it's a good idea to clarify your own definition of bilingualism. Language proficiency can be evaluated in terms of listening, speaking, reading and writing. You could also add a fifth area of speech and language, in which a person is able to use one or both languages for reasoning, to your definition of bilingualism. A person may speak only on language but have listening comprehension in two languages. Another may listen and speak in two languages but reading and writing ability in only one.

The term balanced bilingualism is used to describe individuals who possess about the same fluency in two languages, while semilingualism refers to those who have deficiencies in both languages compared with monolinguals. These deficiencies could be in a reduced vocabulary, incorrect grammatical patterns, difficulty thinking or expressing emotions in one of the languages, etc. Few people are truly balanced bilinguals in both languages in all situations. One language is usually dominant. This dominance may be different for listening and speaking or for reading and writing and usually changes over time.

At any rate, it's most useful to define for yourself what type of bilingualism is important and necessary in your family, within your community and culture, in order to pan a strategy for raising kids with the ability to use more than one language.

Most of us are able to learn a second language at any time in our lives. And, thought no critical age for bilingual language development has been found, kids do tend to develop more native-like pronunciation when bilingualism begins before adolescence. Two types of childhood bilingualism have been define. The first is simultaneous learning of two languages, which tends to be affect by four key factors:

The parents' ability in one or more languages. Some parents speak only one language, the language of the home, and are unable to speak the language of the school and possibly of the community.

The parents' actual use of language with the child. The parents may have language ability in two or more languages but have made a decision about which language they speak with the child.

The language or languages other family members speak with the child, such as the language spoken between siblings or between children and grandparents.

The last factor is the language the child uses in the community.

The second type of childhood bilingualism is called sequential or successive bilingualism. This happens when a child has one established language before learning a second language, whether in preschool or later (the age of three usually separates simultaneous and sequential language learning). Some kids and adults, of course, usually learn a second language formally through school or language classes.
Families who take the time to discuss their goals for language development often see their kids acquire higher levels of language skills in both languages. Parents need to talk about how bilingualism will be achieved for their children, looking at what language strateg