Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site brl-tgr.ARPA Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!brl-tgr!wmartin From: wmartin@brl-tgr.ARPA (Will Martin ) Newsgroups: net.kids,net.nlang Subject: Re: Re: Teaching children to be bilingual Message-ID: <5370@brl-tgr.ARPA> Date: Wed, 17-Oct-84 16:26:24 EDT Article-I.D.: brl-tgr.5370 Posted: Wed Oct 17 16:26:24 1984 Date-Received: Thu, 18-Oct-84 19:15:32 EDT References: <1505@ucla-cs.ARPA> <858@ihuxb.UUCP> <1170@eosp1.UUCP> <186@scc.UUCP> Organization: Ballistic Research Lab Lines: 17 I have often heard that children learn multiple languages easily up to some age, and then the ability usually dwindles (to the level we have [probably] all encountered in studying foreign languages in school). Is this true? If so, what is this magic age? Is there any limit to the number of different languages a child can learn in this early age? (I mean pronunciation and syntax more than vocabulary here -- there's only so much time available to be exposed to different words, anyway.) With regard to the child changing over from thinking in Hebrew to thinking in English, yet speaking Hebrew: Can a person think in more than one language, or will one always take over and become the "base" or dominant thought language? Will Martin USENET: seismo!brl-bmd!wmartin or ARPA/MILNET: wmartin@almsa-1.ARPA