Children are born ready to become bilinguals and multilinguals. Too many are restricted to becoming monolinguals. No caring parent or teacher denies children the chance to develop physically, socially, educationally or emotionally. Yet we deny many children the chance to develop bilingually and multilingually.
Language is about communication (and identity). We need language to communicate information, to build relationships, to play games and tell stories, to make new friends and work in groups. Some bilingual parents fuss endlessly about correctness of grammar, accuracy of vocabulary, not mixing two languages, and skilled interpreting and translating. Instead, the most important factor in raising a bilingual child is to make their language development a pleasure, a positive and enjoyable experience. Children need to value their two languages, two cultures and in a modest way, become aware of the advantages of being bilingual and bicultural.
It is important that children's attitude towards their two languages (and their motivation to extend their two languages) is encouraged continuously. Show delight at small steps forward in bilingual development. The occasional pat on the back, a quiet ‘well done', a wink or a smile works wonders for a child's language ego. For example, when a child has correctly switched languages in front of grandma so she understands, or automatically translated something for a friend to help relationships in a group, gently show your delight. We all need encouragement to carry on learning and refining our skills. Encouragement and aptly directed praise will provide the positive ambience, the caring ethos and helpful family atmosphere to surround the development of bilingualism.