There are two major reasons people should pass their heritage language onto children. First, it connects children to their ancestors. The second is my research: Bilingualism is good for you. It makes brains stronger. It is brain exercise.” Dr. Bialystok, a distinguished professor of psychology at York University Toronto, summarizes the advantages of bilingual children beautifully.

Raising a Happily Bilingual Child will cover the two major reasons as well as other motivations raising a multilingual child. In addition, this seminar will address questions such as: What is bilingualism? What are the disadvantages? How important is the role of caregivers and the environment? How true are all the negative stories? What are the success factors and pitfalls of raising a child bilingual?

The spotlight of this seminar, however, is to discuss the importance of a “family language roadmap.” This includes language choice, setting of objectives, strategy development, method choice, and support.  The “family language roadmap” is the key to success for raising a happily bilingual child.


Ute Keyes is Founder & Director of BABYlon (www.babylonnyc.com), a new parenting and consulting organization providing training for raising multilingual children.