Bilingualism for children whose home language is English

     In chapter 5 of Anti-Bias Education, it states that "In most industrialized countries other than the United States, children become at least bilingual, and many speak three or four languages.  There is no reason why children in the United States shouldn't have this same advantage."  I completely agree with this statement and strongly believe that bilingualism should be taught as early as the early childhood grades in public schools in the United States.  I have had experience studying and volunteering abroad this past semester and summer and have realized that there are many advantages to knowing more than one language.  Knowing more than one language will help you relate to other cultures, help you develop cognitively, and open up to new experiences and possibilities. 
     I volunteered in a kindergarten classroom in an American International school in Quito, Ecuador this past summer and many of the students were from countries all over the world.  Most of these students were fluent in their home language, Spanish, and becoming fluent speakers and readers in English, and they were only 5 years old.  Even here in a preschool in Charleston, I have noticed 3 and 4 year-olds being able to speak both English and another language that their parents speak. 
     The easiest time to acquire a new language in a person's life is in their beginning years of life, so I think as early childhood educators, we should take advantage of this and implement a bilingual program in today's schools.  As mentioned in the book, it has been found that learning to become bilingual will not hinder a child's English language development, but rather foster their academic progress.  The United States is a growing to become a culturally aware country and I think it would be a huge advantage for our children to have the skills and knowledge of being bilingual or even multi-lingual.