A two-language card routine for an ordinary meal.

The short routine

One or two cards are enough for this example. It uses the English and Spanish words and native voices from the app’s free cards. If your family uses another pair, the language pages show the available languages. The audio gives you a way to check a word before using it together.

1. Before the meal: milk or banana works if it is being served. You can listen to the word in the language you want to check, then use the picture on your phone or a printed card.
2. At the table: the picture goes beside the real thing. Your usual word — “leche” or “milk” — starts the exchange. Another adult who uses the other language can name it in their own turn.
3. When your child asks for more: a point, gesture, sign or word is an opening for “Más, por favor” or “More, please” as you serve some more. The phrase card below has the wording and audio in both languages.
4. At another meal: the same picture can come back with the same food. Your child might point to it, name it or ask for more in either language; you have something familiar to talk about again.

Four cards to try

These are the English and Spanish labels in Their First Words, with the picture and a native voice in each language from a published free card. “Spoon” fits when you set the table; the other cards are there for the food and requests that come next.

How it fits your home

If Spanish is the language you want to use more at home, it can belong to serving the banana, setting out the spoon or calling a relative after dinner. The example works the other way round if English is less used. Each language can have its own place without an equal number of turns at every meal.

The Spanish card page has more word and phrase examples, and the Spanish printable set gives you paper cards. The same free cards and both voices are in Their First Words. For questions about mixing languages and milestones, raising a bilingual toddler and the bilingual language-delay guide cover the research.