Growing up with several languages does not cause speech or language delays, and children with a language disorder show it in all of their languages, not just one. To judge whether a multilingual child is a late talker, count words and skills across every language combined, compare them with general milestones, and look for red flags that languages cannot explain. If you are worried, start with your pediatrician and a hearing check, then ask for an assessment that covers all of your child's languages. Waiting to see is not the safest default.
Parents of multilingual children in Ho Chi Minh City often hear two opposite messages. Some are told that bilingual children always talk late, so there is nothing to worry about. Others are told to drop a language because the child is confused. Both can delay help. This guide explains what research and professional bodies say, offers a rough milestone table to use across languages, describes the silent period that many children go through when starting a new language at preschool, and sets out what a good assessment looks like. It is not a diagnostic tool and does not replace a professional evaluation.
The principle: count everything
Professional bodies such as the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association state that learning more than one language does not cause speech or language disorders. Researchers including Johanne Paradis, Fred Genesee and Martha Crago, authors of Dual Language Development and Disorders, have reviewed the evidence and reached the same conclusion. Bilingual and multilingual children reach major milestones such as first words and first word combinations within the same broad age ranges as monolingual children.
What looks different is how the words are divided. A two-year-old might say some words only in Vietnamese, others only in English and others only in a home language such as Japanese. Counted in a single language, the child may seem behind. Counted together, by meaning, the total is usually similar to that of a monolingual child. Barbara Zurer Pearson and colleagues called this total conceptual vocabulary in their research on bilingual toddlers in the early 1990s.
The practical rule follows directly. When checking development, count all words and phrases in all languages, and look at skills such as understanding, pointing, gesturing, turn-taking and combining words, regardless of language. A child who has plenty of words overall but few in English is a multilingual child. A child who has few words in every language combined may need a closer look, whatever their language background.
Rough milestones to check across all languages
The table summarises widely used milestones, broadly in line with the revised checklists published by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2022 and with general developmental guidance. Ages are approximate. Count skills in any language.
| Around this age | Many children can | Worth discussing with a professional if |
|---|---|---|
| 12 months | Babble with varied sounds, respond to their name, point or wave | No babbling, pointing or gestures at all |
| 15 to 18 months | Say a few single words besides mama and dada, follow simple directions | No single words in any language by about 18 months |
| 2 years | Put two words together, point to things in a book when asked | No two-word combinations in any language |
| 30 months | Say around fifty words in total, name things in a book | Very few words overall, rarely combines words |
| 3 years | Hold short back-and-forth conversations, be understood by family much of the time | Family cannot understand most of what the child says in the strongest language |
| 4 to 5 years | Use sentences of several words, tell a simple story about their day | Very short sentences only, or great difficulty telling what happened |
Milestones are guides, not deadlines. Children vary, and a child who is slightly behind on one item may be well ahead on others. The point of the table is to help you decide when to ask for an expert opinion, not to diagnose. If your child loses skills they previously had, in any language, seek advice promptly rather than waiting for the next milestone.
The silent period is not a delay
Many children who start a preschool in a new language go through a phase in which they say little or nothing in that language. Patton Tabors described this in her book One Child, Two Languages, based on observing young children learning English as a second language in a preschool in the United States. She noted that children often first try to use their home language with teachers and classmates, then go quiet in the new language while they listen and observe, and later begin with short, memorised phrases before building their own sentences.
For a child from an expat family entering a Vietnamese–English preschool at three, the silent period may apply to one or both school languages. The child may speak their home language normally at home while saying almost nothing at school for several weeks or even months. This is a normal response to an unfamiliar language environment, not a sign of a disorder.
The key difference is that a child in a silent period communicates normally in their established language. If your child chats freely at home in Korean but is quiet in class, the silent period is a likely explanation. If your child is quiet and has few words in every language, including the home language, the silent period does not explain it, and it is worth asking for an assessment. Teachers can help by telling you whether your child understands instructions, plays with others and communicates with gestures at school.
Red flags that languages do not explain
Some signs are worth discussing with your pediatrician regardless of how many languages a child hears. They do not prove a disorder, but they are reasons to look further rather than wait.
- Little or no response to their name, sounds or voices, which may point to hearing difficulties.
- Limited eye contact, pointing, showing objects or sharing attention with adults.
- Loss of words, gestures or social skills the child previously had.
- Very few words when all languages are counted together, compared with the milestones above.
- Persistent difficulty understanding simple instructions in the language the child hears most.
- Speech that remains very hard for family to understand in the strongest language after about age three.
- Strong frustration, tantrums or withdrawal linked to being unable to communicate.
- A family history of speech, language or learning difficulties, combined with any of the above.
A hearing check is a sensible first step whenever speech development is a concern, because even mild or fluctuating hearing loss, for example from repeated ear infections, can affect speech. Your pediatrician can advise on hearing tests and referrals. Early help is generally more effective than late help, so if something worries you, raising it early costs little.
Ask your child's teachers what they see as well. A teacher who works with many children of the same age can tell you whether your child follows the group, plays with others and makes their needs known, even if they speak little Vietnamese or English yet. That picture from school, set next to what you see at home, is often what a professional needs most.
What a good multilingual assessment looks like
A detailed language history. The professional should ask which languages your child hears, from whom, since when and for roughly how many hours a week. Without this, it is impossible to judge whether a weak language reflects limited exposure or a real difficulty.
Assessment in more than one language. Ideally, the child's strongest language is assessed, not only English. Where the professional does not speak it, an interpreter, a parent's detailed observations or tasks that do not rely on one language can help.
Careful use of tests. Many standard tests were designed for monolingual children. A good professional interprets scores with caution and does not label a multilingual child as delayed just because they score low in one language.
Dynamic assessment. Some professionals teach the child a new word or rule during the session and see how quickly they learn it. A child who learns quickly but scores low on a vocabulary test is probably showing limited exposure rather than a learning difficulty.
Information from school. Teachers see the child communicating in other languages and with other children. Their observations help complete the picture.
Respect for the home language. A good assessment does not end with advice to drop a home language. Professional guidance generally supports keeping the family's languages, including during therapy.
Finding help in Ho Chi Minh City
Services for multilingual children in Saigon vary in approach and language. These steps help you find appropriate support without relying on chance.
- Start with your pediatrician. Describe your concerns, bring notes on your child's words in each language, and ask whether a hearing check or a developmental assessment is advisable.
- Arrange a hearing check if recommended, before or alongside a speech assessment.
- Look for a speech and language professional who works in a language your child uses well. Ask other parents, your child's preschool and international parent groups for recommendations.
- Ask about qualifications and training. Many practitioners in the city trained abroad and belong to professional bodies in their home country. It is reasonable to ask where they trained and whether they have experience with multilingual children.
- If no local professional speaks your child's home language, ask whether they can work with an interpreter or combine their assessment with input from a professional who speaks it, including online sessions.
- Agree on clear goals and a review date, so you can see whether therapy is helping.
Professional names, services and costs change, so this guide does not recommend specific providers. Your pediatrician and other parents are usually the best starting points. If you receive advice that seems to conflict with what you have read, it is reasonable to ask the professional to explain their reasoning or to seek a second opinion.
If you are told to drop a language
Some parents of multilingual children are advised, by relatives, teachers or occasionally professionals, to stop using a home language so the child can focus on one. Research and professional guidance generally do not support this. Children with language difficulties can learn more than one language, and removing a home language can have real costs: weaker communication with parents and relatives, loss of cultural connection and less rich input from a parent who is not fully comfortable in the replacement language.
Paradis, Genesee and Crago note in their work that children with language impairments learning two languages tend to show similar difficulties to monolingual children with the same impairment, not greater ones. Their view, shared by many clinicians, is that therapy should support all of the languages a child needs in their life, with the home language seen as a resource.
That does not mean every decision is simple. Families with a child who has significant difficulties may choose to focus extra effort on the language of schooling, for example, while keeping the home language present at home. The important point is that such decisions should be made together with a professional who understands multilingual development, based on the child's needs and the family's situation, rather than on the general assumption that fewer languages are always better.
Câu hỏi thường gặp
Do bilingual or multilingual children always talk later?
No. Research reviewed by Johanne Paradis, Fred Genesee and Martha Crago, among others, shows that multilingual children usually reach first words and first word combinations within the normal age range. They may have fewer words in each separate language, but their total across languages is usually similar to that of monolingual children.
How long can a silent period last at preschool?
It varies. Some children start using short phrases in the new language within a few weeks; others take several months. What matters is whether the child communicates normally in their established language and shows understanding at school. If the child is quiet in every language, the silent period is not a sufficient explanation.
Should my child be assessed in English if that is their weakest language?
An assessment only in the weakest language can make a child look delayed when they are not. It is better to assess the strongest language, or several languages, with help from an interpreter or detailed parent reports where needed. Ask the professional how they will account for your child's language background.
Can a child with a speech or language disorder still learn three languages?
Many children with language difficulties do learn more than one language, although they may progress more slowly in each. Professional guidance generally supports keeping the family's languages. Decisions about where to focus extra effort should be made with a professional who understands multilingual development.
Is a hearing test necessary if my child seems to hear well?
A hearing check is a standard first step when speech development is a concern, because mild or fluctuating hearing loss can be hard to notice in daily life. Your pediatrician can advise whether a test is needed and arrange a referral.
What should I bring to a first appointment?
Bring a list of your child's words and phrases in each language, a description of who speaks which language with the child and for roughly how many hours a week, notes from teachers if available, and any earlier medical or developmental records. Short videos of your child talking at home can also help.