Book a talk

We offer talks, training workshops and other bespoke supports to develop inclusive linguistic and cultural strategies. Our talks focus on 

  • parenting bilingual children
  • multilingualism and interculturalism in the workplace
  • multilingualism and interculturalism in early childhood
  • breaking language barriers 

Book a talk

We offer, talks, training workshops and other bespoke supports to develop inclusive linguistic and cultural strategies. Our talks focus on 

  • parenting bilingual children
  • multilingualism and interculturalism in the workplace
  • multilingualism and interculturalism in early childhood
  • breaking language barriers 

You can see some of our main themes below. Contact us if you would like to discuss a specific topic for a talk or workshop in your workplace, school or parents’ group. To book a talk, fill in the form below or contact info@mothertongues.ie. You can watch one of our online talks here.

Topics:

Target audience: Parents / carers.

Why do some bilingual children prefer one language over the other? Is it true that bilingual children start speaking late? How can I help my child to develop two languages at the same time? How long will it take for my child to start speaking the school language? Is it too late to start speaking my mother tongue to my child? 

These and other questions will be addressed in this informative talk. Parents will learn about bilingual language development and about some of the most common strategies to support their child’s linguistic development throughout childhood. Parents will also find out more about the cognitive, social and educational benefits of bilingualism across the lifespan.

Target audience: Parents/carers of children between the ages of 0 and 6.
In this talk we will discuss some of the key tips to successfully raise bilingual children, learn about methodologies to boost children’s language skills in each language, with practical examples.
This talk will address parents’ doubts, concerns and curiosities in a lively Q&A. 

Target audience: parents / carers of children aged 7-10  
This talk offers useful tips and techniques for cultivating cultural connections and using different languages in the home. For non-Irish families who are considering sending their child to an Irish medium school, we will touch on the ways parents can pass on a language that may not be their native language. 

Target audience: any professional working with multilingual families with children aged 0 to 6 years old (home visitors, social workers, PH nurses, etc)

This session walks you through the different types of “bilingual”, what to expect at different stages of the child in terms of language development, typical phenomena and the best advice to give parents based on the latest research-based evidence. This session will address professionals’ doubts, concerns and curiosities in a lively Q&A.

Target audience: parents / carers / Also available for early childhood educators

In this talk we will discuss some of the key tips to successfully raise bilingual children, as well as techniques to introduce a new language to a young child and/or keep up the mother tongue.  We also discuss how children learn a second or additional language and what parents and the staff in the education setting can do to support their children in developing a new language while maintaining the one they have already developed. 

Target audience: employees / managers /teams working in multilingual/multicultural environments

In increasingly diverse workplaces, multilingualism has become part of our everyday lives. Yet multilingual skills are not always fully understood or embraced as a resource.
In this talk, we explore the cognitive and social dimensions of multilingualism and invite participants to reflect on their own experiences of using language(s) and being part of linguistically and culturally diverse working environments. We will explore how multilingualism can influence our perceptions of self, our thinking and learning processes, the formation of cultural and professional identities, and the relationships we build at work and in the classroom.
 
Together, we will aim to answer questions such as: Do we communicate differently when we use different languages or accents? How do diverse linguistic repertoires of colleagues and students shape our communication? Are some languages and accents valued differently in professional and educational settings? How can universities and organisations make better use of the linguistic resources already present in their communities?
 
This session invites us to rethink multilingualism as both an individual and collective resource. 

Target audience: employees / managers /teams working in multilingual/multicultural environments

In this interactive online course, participants will learn about linguistically and culturally responsive strategies that will help them to bridge language barriers and build connections in their work. During the session, participants will get to reflect on their use of language for different purposes and they will draft a plan to address language barriers in the workplace.

Testimonials

Our talks 2017-2025

Department for Children DCEDIY
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South Dublin County Council Arts Office SDCC
Conradh na Gaeilge, Mother Tongues, Mother Tongues Dublin, multilingualism, rising bilingual children Dublin, bilingualism, Dublin
microsoft
UCD
google
linkedin
Ernest Young
Technological-University-Dublin
ebay
VHI
Archways
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microsoft talk

Microsoft

parents at linkedIn

Parents at LinkedIn

Talk @ Ebay

Parents at EBay

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