Understanding Late Talkers: A Comparison of Bilingual and English-Speaking Children (18 and 24 Months)

Late talking, often a concern for parents, can be a natural variation in language development. This blog explores late talkers within the context of bilingualism versus English monolingualism in children aged 18 and 24 months. We'll delve into what constitutes late talking, how language is typically developed for bilingual and Monolingual English speaking children, and strategies for supporting children through this phase.

Late Language Emergence (LLE)/ Late talkers typically refers to children who have a limited vocabulary or struggle to form sentences compared to their peers of the same age (ASHA, 2024). In bilingual households, late talking can present unique challenges. Children are exposed to two languages, potentially doubling the vocabulary they need to learn. As a result, they might appear to lag behind their monolingual peers initially. However, research suggests that bilingualism doesn't inherently cause language delays (Oliveira, 2022). 

Bilingual (Mandarin and English) vs. English Monolingual Late Talkers:

Here are some typical language developments for children around 18 and 24 months. 

		Monolingual children (English) (Bowen, 1998)
Language Development	18 months	24 months
Understand phrases	‘It’s time to eat’ “Stop that”	Simple instructions “Pick up your ball”
Combine words	2 words “Me apple”	3 words “I go up”
Single words	Nouns: “baby” Verbs: “go” Prepositions: “up”a Adjectives: “hot” Social words “hi” Refer themselves by name	Use more nouns, verbs, prepositions, adjectives, as well as Adverbs: “more”  Pronouns: “I”

		Bilingual Children (Mandarin and English) (Liu & Chen, 2015).
Language Development	18 months	24 months
Single words	Say 50-100 words most from both languages Nouns: “Cat” (貓) Verbs: "Eat" (吃) Object: "Ball" (球)	Up to 200-300 words Use more nouns, verbs, objects, as well as Adjectives: “高兴” (gāo xìng - Happy) Pronouns: “我” (wǒ - I)
Phrases	2 words “我要” - wǒ yào (I want) “All done”	3 words "I want cookie" (我要饼干)
Code switching	“No 要” - no yào (Don’t want)	"Where is 爸爸?" (Where is Daddy?)

Supporting Late Talkers:

Regardless of language context, early intervention is key in supporting late talkers:

1. Speech-Language Therapy: Professional intervention can help identify any underlying issues and provide tailored strategies to support language development.

2. Encourage Communication: Create a language-rich environment with plenty of opportunities for interaction and communication.

3. Embrace Bilingualism: For bilingual families, continue nurturing both languages, acknowledging that temporary imbalances are normal.

Late talking can be a source of concern for parents, but understanding its nuances in bilingual versus English-speaking contexts is crucial. While bilingualism may present unique challenges, it doesn't inherently cause language delays. By providing a supportive environment and seeking early intervention when needed, parents can help late talkers thrive in their linguistic journey.

Reference: 

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). (2024). Late Language Emergence. https://www.asha.org/practice-portal/clinical-topics/late-language-emergence/#:~:text=LLE%20is%20diagnosed%20when%20language,or%20%22late%20language%20learners.%22 

Bowen, C. (1998). Brown’s Stages of Syntactic and Morphological Development. Retrieved from www.speech-language-therapy.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33  on [20/5/2024]

Liu, H.-M & Chen, Y.-C. (2015). Developmental changes in the content and composition of early expressive vocabulary in mandarin-speaking infants and toddlers. Bulletin of Educational Psychology. 47. 217-242. 10.6251/BEP.20150205

Oliveira, M. B. (2022). Bilingualism is always cognitively advantageous, but this doesn’t mean what you think it means. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.867166