Upcoming events

Information for speech and language therapists in NHS Lothian, delivered by Dr Vicky Chondrogianni.

This event is open to all parents and carers of children from the above school. We are unable to accommodate parents and carers of pupils from other schools, but if you are interested in a similar session at your own school please contact your headteacher.

This event is open to all parents and carers of children from Indigo Childcare. If you are interested in a similar session at your own nursery or school please contact the manager or headteacher and ask them to get in touch with us.

Enjoy and discover the benefits of bilingualism for your brain, alongside your physical health!

Join us for three special one-hour active workshops, mixing language learning, drama games and yoga to perfect your accent and your moves in a foreign tongue! This is a unique opportunity to test how exercise can affect your language learning in a fun and innovative multi-sensory experience.

No previous language skills are required, but remember to wear comfortable, loose clothing and be ready to move your body and your tongue!

Choose from three workshops:
Tuesday 20th February 2018,12:00-13:00 (for anyone)
Friday 23rd February 2018,14:00-15:00 (for anyone)
Friday 23rd February 2018, 15:30-16:30 (aimed at language teachers of any language)

Registration is open on Eventbrite.

These workshops are presented by Theatre Sans Accents, University of Edinburgh Sport & Exercise and Bilingualism Matters, as part of the University of Edinburgh Festival of Creative Learning.

http://bilingualismmatters.ugr.es/

Antonella Sorace gives a talk at this large Italian language festival.

http://festivaldellelingue.iprase.tn.it/web/festival-delle-lingue

Join Zofia Wodniecka from Jagiellonian University for a free talk in Polish on how bilingualism changes the brain. Rescheduled from 2nd March, which was cancelled due to the severe weather.

Members of the Bilingualism Matters team will be joining this event for multilingual parents in Fife.

More details on Facebook.

Talk for parents of bilingual children at the Polish Saturday school in Livingstone.

We're delighted to be joining this event for children, young people and their families organised by SCILT. Come and discover the benefits of language learning for yourself through fun activities such as dance, singing, painting and many more! Antonella Sorace will be delivering a session, and we will be in the market place with fun language activities.

Register on Eventbrite!

This event is open to all parents and carers of children from the above school. We are unable to accommodate parents and carers of pupils from other schools, but if you are interested in a similar session at your own school please contact your headteacher.

Register to attend on Eventbrite.

Tickets are £5 and can be booked on the Edinburgh International Science Festival website.

The Undergraduate Linguistics Association of Britain hosts an annual conference for linguistics students to present their undergraduate research. Over three days, undergraduate students studying at a wide range of higher education institutions are invited to present their research and meet students with similar interests.

Antonella Sorace is one of the plenary speakers at this year's conference. http://lingstudents.co.uk/ulab2018/

Public lecture in the Netherlands. More details here (site in Dutch): https://www.uu.nl/agenda/publiekslezing-antonella-sorace-over-tweetaligheid

Refugee languages are often viewed as an obstacle to integration. For refugees, however, they provide a source of continuity at a time of great upheaval and disruption, and can play a key supporting role in learning the new country's language. For the host country, the languages that refugees bring with them are a rich and untapped resource.

As part of Refugee Festival Scotland 2018, Bilingualism Matters is delighted to present testimonials from young refugee learners alongside expert talks by Professor Antonella Sorace and other high-profile language researchers, followed by a round-table discussion with local community organisers and ESOL providers.

Register for this free event on Eventbrite.

The 21st branch of Bilingualism Matters, second in Germany, launched by Antonella Sorace. More details: http://www.leadsummerschool.de/2018/07/10/bilingualism-matters-tuebingen/

Is anyone truly monolingual anymore? Knowing dialects, learning languages at school, and hearing migrant speakers make everybody ‘bilingual' to some extent. This means that the mother tongue changes, in completely natural and predictable ways. It also means that people may not be as bad at learning languages as they often think they are. Join Professor Antonella Sorace of Bilingualism Matters (The University of Edinburgh) to discover what the extinction of monolingualism could be doing to your brain – and why it matters.

Book tickets here

Presented by Bilingualism Matters at the Edinburgh International Fringe Festival as part of the Cabaret of Dangerous Ideas.

Everybody believes that education is good: the more, the better. But what if the benefits of education are mainly due to having learned different languages? Shouldn’t we just concentrate on learning them? In a rapidly changing world in which factual knowledge becomes quickly out-of-date, aren’t languages the ultimate transferable skill, improving the way in which we can learn and understand new things? Whether you learn one of the big languages of culture, politics and business or one of the little known minority ones, it will not only open a new world for you but also train your brain.

Book tickets here

Presented by Bilingualism Matters at the Edinburgh International Fringe Festival as part of the Cabaret of Dangerous Ideas.

Everybody believes that education is good: the more, the better. But what if the benefits of education are mainly due to having learned different languages? Shouldn’t we just concentrate on learning them? In a rapidly changing world in which factual knowledge becomes quickly out-of-date, aren’t languages the ultimate transferable skill, improving the way in which we can learn and understand new things? Whether you learn one of the big languages of culture, politics and business or one of the little known minority ones, it will not only open a new world for you but also train your brain.

Book tickets here

Presented by Bilingualism Matters at the Edinburgh International Fringe Festival as part of the Cabaret of Dangerous Ideas.

Is anyone truly monolingual anymore? Knowing dialects, learning languages at school, and hearing migrant speakers make everybody ‘bilingual' to some extent. This means that the mother tongue changes, in completely natural and predictable ways. It also means that people may not be as bad at learning languages as they often think they are. Join Professor Antonella Sorace of Bilingualism Matters (The University of Edinburgh) to discover what the extinction of monolingualism could be doing to your brain – and why it matters.

Book tickets here

Presented by Bilingualism Matters at the Edinburgh International Fringe Festival as part of the Cabaret of Dangerous Ideas.

Paper to be presented at Rannsachadh na Gàidhlig - a biennial academic conference series established in 2000 to promote research on any and all topics related to Gaelic as well as to promote research through the medium of Gaelic.

Vicky Chondrogianni, Morna Butcher, Thomas Bak and Maria Garraffa

Dinner address by Antonella Sorace at the final scientific conference 'Interdisciplinarity and the future of multilingualism research' of the EU MIME Project. More details here: http://www.mime-project.org/berlin/

The Bilingualism Matters team bringing exciting activities to East Lothian school children!

More details here: https://www.artpointscotland.org/create-the-future-festival/

Come and join us to celebrate 10 years of Bilingualism Matters - from one branch based at the University of Edinburgh to 20 branches around the world! Learn more about bilingualism and get updates on the latest research.

Book in now open on Eventbrite - details on full programme coming in August.

You can also read all about last year's event here.

Our 2018 inaugural research symposium aims to provide an opportunity for researchers in Edinburgh and from across our Bilingualism Matters international network to come together to share and exchange ideas on any aspect of bilingualism, with a focus on dissemination potential beyond the academic world.  

Full details on the event page: https://www.bilingualism-matters.ppls.ed.ac.uk/bilingualism-matters-research-symposium-2018/

Explorathon is Scotland’s event for EU Researchers’ Night with events around the country on Friday 28th and Saturday 29th September. It is a public celebration of research that takes place in more than 300 cities across Europe, and Bilingualism Matters.

We are joining Leith Labs in Ocean Terminal, Edinburgh, on Saturday 29th September from 12 noon to 6pm. Come and see us for fun language activities and to chat about our EU project AThEME, language learning, bilingualism and language research in general!

Public talk by Antonella Sorace as part of Seachdain na Gàidhlig/Edinburgh Gaelic Festival. Full details and tickets on Eventbrite

Public talk by Vicky Chondrogianni as part of Seachdain na Gàidhlig/Edinburgh Gaelic Festival. This is a free, ticketed event - full details and booking on Eventbrite.

Bilingualism Matters researchers from all our UK branches will be at The Language Show in London - a must for all language enthusiasts, this three day show is free to attend.
- Find out about the major five-year EU project on multilingualism, AThEME (Advancing the European Multilingual Experience).
- Don't miss Antonella Sorace's talk on Friday 9th Nov, 16.45-17.30 "Further evidence that minority languages in Europe are worth learning."
- Stop by our stand for our fun language activities and challenges.
- Chat to our researchers about bilingualism and language learning.

The Edinburgh Multilingual Stories Festival - A celebration of Edinburgh’s diversity through the Arts! The Festival will offer a programme of workshops, talks, performances, concerts, mini food festival and other events to celebrate bilingualism and showcase Edinburgh's various vibrant artistic and cultural talents. More details on our dedicated page.