About this plan

Planning an OPOL week around two minority languages

Families raising a child in two home languages face a challenge that single-language families don’t: the two languages need to be balanced with each other, while the school/society language also arrives through school, friends, hobbies, and media.

Each language needs its own share

The evidence from multilingualism research is clear: what predicts whether a child ends up speaking a language is how much of that language they’re asked to use. Being a bilingual household in general does not help a particular language; it’s the hours in a language, and the richness of the input, that matter.

How much exposure is needed depends on a child’s age. A share that carries a toddler (around 25-30% of waking hours) will not carry a seven-year-old whose vocabulary and grammar have to keep growing. Quality also matters: an hour of real conversation can be worth more than two hours of hearing a language on TV. The post Is 30% enough? covers what the research says about percentages, and this post explains what makes input rich for learning.

What the planner asks you

This planner begins with your starting point: your child's name, their age, and the two languages you want them to learn. From there, you’re asked about the goals per language, for speaking and for literacy. This is because families often want different things from each language (full fluency in one, basic family conversation in the other).

Next, you’re invited to schedule your week in language. For every part of every day, you mark which of the languages your child will likely be using, or a mix where it varies. The planner totals the hours, shows each language's share, and flags a language whose share is looking relatively thin. There’s also an optional notes column where you can leave specifics, like which parent does bedtime, which family member calls on a Sunday, or which afternoon belongs to the sports club and its language.

The planner then asks you more questions about your child’s context: other people your child can speak the language with, community events and media you might use for language input, how you’ll use the language at home and how you might respond to the majority language coming in, etc. If you feel these are too much or not relevant for you right now, simply skip the questions. At the end of the planner, you can print a PDF with your complete, personal family language plan and any practical tips given.

What the planner covers

These are the topics and questions in this planner, with a few examples of the tips it gives. In the planner itself, you get more tips, and only ones that fit your answers.

Starting point

A few details first, so the rest of the plan can speak about your family.

What's your child's name? (optional)
How old is your child?
What's the first minority language you want your child to learn? (This is a language to be learned at home, which isn't the main society language)
What's the second minority language you want your child to learn? (Another language to be learned at home, which isn't the main society language)
What's the main language spoken in the wider society/community (the majority language)?

Goals

Knowing a language can mean many things, from using basic sentences to speaking and writing well. A child’s level is often not the same for each language. Setting goals can help you plan when and how to use each language with your child, and see how they’re progressing.

How well would you like your child to speak Language 1?
How well would you like your child to speak Language 2?
What's your goal for your child's reading and writing in Language 1?
What's your goal for your child's reading and writing in Language 2?

Time planning

For children to become bilingual, they need a meaningful share of their days in each language. How much is enough depends on the goals and your child’s age. About a quarter of the time seems enough until children are about 3 years old, but more is needed as they grow older.

Which other language does your child mostly hear?
How do the languages fit into your child's week? For each time slot, select what your child will likely use: Language 1, Language 2, another language (for example, at school), or 'mix' if you're not sure. If you choose 'mix', these hours will be split between the three. You can use the 'Notes' field to add anything you find helpful, like regular video calls with family in Language 1 on Sundays.

Example tip · When one of the home languages gets less than 20% of the week

At the moment, the share of the week in one of the home languages looks low. As a rule of thumb, this planner suggests spending at least 25% of the time on each language learned at home, or 20% on each if there are two home languages. (This doesn’t apply to the majority language.)
Maybe there are slots that you could switch to one of the home languages. If there aren’t, don’t worry. You can make the language hours rich for learning. You’ll get help with this later in this planner.

Languages in the home

Which languages do you use at home, and who speaks which language? How do you feel about switching to the majority language, or about your child doing so? Thinking about this early can help you build the language habits you want.

Do you (either one or both of you) also speak the majority language? (Even if just a little, and even if you don't plan to use it with your child.)
As you also speak the majority language, your child might start using this with you. What do you plan to do when your child talks to you in the majority language? The options here are commonly used by parents, going from explicit (strict) to implicit (mild). You can also add your own.

Example tip · For the answer “Pause the conversation to ask them to speak to us in Language 1 or Language 2 only”

This is an explicit strategy. Research has shown explicit strategies work best with small children, but that they can backfire with school-aged children, especially if they feel they don't speak the home language(s) well enough.

Example tip · For the answer “Continue the conversation, but responding in Language 1 or Language 2, hoping they switch to it”

With this strategy, your child sees that you happily continue a mixed-language conversation, and there's no need for them to use Language 1 or Language 2 with you. It's comfortable, but makes it more likely that your child becomes a passive bilingual: understanding but not speaking your home language(s). Try to make sure that your child speaks Language 1 or Language 2 with you as much as possible.
Sometimes your family will be with people who speak the majority language, like neighbors. It's a good idea to decide in advance if you want to switch languages with your child, or not. What will you do when you and your child are with majority language speakers?
Does your child have any older siblings that go to school (or will start going soon) in the majority language?
We know from research that older siblings who go to school often take the school language home, and start speaking this language with their younger sibling. This is why it's important to create moments where your child only uses Language 1 or Language 2, without their sibling inviting them to switch to the school language. How would you like to do this? You can select multiple options, and/or add your own ideas.

Languages outside the home

It can be helpful for your child to meet other people who speak the language. This shows them that the language is used by many people, not just at home. It can also make them feel more connected to the language, while introducing them to different accents.

What language is used at the daycare or school of your child?
Example tip · For the answer “The majority language”
Your child will become very strong in the school language, and learn to read and write in it. If you want the same for the home languages, you may need to give these extra attention at home.
- For stronger speaking skills, talk about school topics in Language 1 and Language 2, so your child learns the words for what they are learning. You can also read books or watch videos about the same topics, and talk about them afterwards, to invite your child to actively use the words.
- For reading and writing, it can help to wait until your child has learned to read in the school language first. Once they understand how reading works, learning to read in another language may be easier.
- If the school and home language use a similar writing system, like English and Spanish, you may be able to support reading and writing at home. If not, it may take more support, and a heritage language school can be helpful.
Hearing a language from different people helps children get used to a range of accents, words, and ways of speaking. This is why it's a good idea to plan regular meetups with other speakers. What communities in Language 1 do you plan to engage with?
What communities in Language 2 do you plan to engage with?
Besides yourself, how many Language 1 speakers does your child talk with regularly (say weekly)?

Example tip · For the answer “One or two people”

This is a good start. If meeting more people is difficult, see if you can plan some calls (video or audio). Screentime can also offer input, but we know from research that interaction (whether face-to-face or in video calls) is better for learning than pre-recorded material is.
What are their names? (Optional - these will show on the plan)
How many Language 2 speakers does your child talk with regularly, besides yourself?
What are their names? (Optional - these will show on the plan)

Input and interaction

Research has found that children's language development depends most on parents' practices at home: how much the language is used, and how. You’ve already planned the time for each language. Here, we look at how you plan to use the language to help your child’s learning.

Media can keep a language fun and help learning. Especially shared reading is great for learning new words. It's best to use different types of media, so your child learns across modes, topics, and voices. What media would you like to use with your child in Language 1 and Language 2?
Besides using rich media, there are more things that help learning. Here's a list of practical tips, all drawn from language learning research. Which ones would you like to try? Select as many as you wish, or add your own ideas.

Example tip · For “Read books interactively and often”

Shared reading is great for learning, and the amount of reading matters; more reading means more learning - research

Example tip · For “Put away your phone when talking”

Children learn fewer new words from their parents when phones interrupt their conversations - research
You can also stimulate your child's learning when you're talking together. For instance, there are techniques that prompt children to speak more, or ways to model correct language. Would you like to add an overview of these to your plan? Choosing 'Yes' will add a section with "Talk and learn" tips.

If you’re not sure OPOL is right for your family

If you haven’t settled on an arrangement yet, the family language strategy guide is the place to start. It asks who speaks what, and based on your responses, it suggests a structure that might suit your family.

Create a family language plan:OPOL with two minority languages