Upcoming events

This event is open to all parents and carers of pupils at Leith Walk Primary School, Edinburgh.

Unfortunately, we cannot accommodate parents and carers of pupils at other schools.

If this topic interests you, please contact your headteacher to discuss the possibility of organising a similar session with us at your child's school.

This event is organised in collaboration with Leith Walk Primary School and Edinburgh English as an Additional Language service.

Find out more about Edinburgh English as an Additional Language service on their website: Edinburgh EAL

This event is open to all parents and carers of pupils at the following Edinburgh primary schools:

• James Gillespies
• Bruntsfield
• Sciennes
• South Morningside
• Prestonfield
• Royal Mile
• Buckstone

Families welcome.

If this topic interests you, please contact your headteacher to discuss the possibility of organising a similar session with us at your child's school.

This event is organised in collaboration with James Gillespies Primary School and Edinburgh English as an Additional Language service.

Find out more about Edinburgh English as an Additional Language service on their website: Edinburgh EAL

**Please note this event is now fully booked**

Workshop and information session with adult second language learners.

This is a joint event organised with YaketyYak Language cafe, and the Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology at the University of Edinburgh.
Yaketyyak language cafe
Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology

This event is open to all parents and carers of pupils at Flora Stevenson Primary School, Edinburgh.

Unfortunately, we cannot accommodate parents and carers of pupils at other schools.

If this topic interests you, please contact your headteacher to discuss the possibility of organising a similar session with us at your child's school.

**Additional event due to popular demand**
**Please note this event is now fully booked**

Workshop and information session with adult second language learners.

This is a joint event organised with YaketyYak Language cafe, and the Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology at the University of Edinburgh.
Yaketyyak language cafe
Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology

Join us for a screening of award-winning film "Speaking in Tongues" (60 minutes) followed by discussion and Q&A with Professor Antonella Sorace.

This event is free and open to all, but booking is essential.

Reserve your place now at the following link:

Or visit Eventbrite for more information

This event is part of the University of Edinburgh's Innovative Learning Week. Find out more:
Innovative learning week at the University of Edinburgh

Half-day workshop for practitioners from all sectors who deal with language diversity in their work. This is a free event, but booking is essential.

For more details including full agenda and registration form, please follow the link below:
Scotland, People and Language Forum

This is a joint event organised in partnership with Gathered Together and Education Scotland.
Gathered Together
Education Scotland

This event is open to all parents and carers of children at Strawberry Hill nursery, Edinburgh.

If this topic interests you, please contact your child's nursery to discuss the possibility of organising a similar session.

Free public lecture and discussion on what the evidence says about learning more than one language - at any age.

Cost: Free

Registration: Book your place today

More information:
This event is part of the Gather Festival - celebrating the rich cultural diversity at the University of Edinburgh. Find out more on the festival website:
Gather Festival

The Scottish-Finnish Society is organising an evening of information and discussion about bringing up bilingual children. The event is open to everyone with an interest in this topic.

Talks from Prof. Antonella Sorace (Bilingualism Matters) and Jenni Syrjälä (Scottish-Finnish Society).

Cost: Free

More information: Bilingualism Evening facebook event

Find out more about the Scottish-Finnish Society on their website:Scottish-Finnish Society.

This event is part of the Edinburgh International Science Festival

What happens when someone learns another language and does speaking two affect how our brains develop and age? Is it already too late for those of us who only speak English? Prof Antonella Sorace and Dr Thomas Bak will take you on the journey of a language learner’s brain, from infancy to old age, sharing what language-learning can do for us. They will be joined by zoologist and lifelong monolingual Prof Aubrey Manning alongside Louise Glen from Education Scotland to discuss language policy and the public health and social side-effects of a national shortage of language skills.

This event will have full British Sign Language interpretation.
If you'd like to access the interpreters, please let us know via email after booking so that we can make sure you are seated appropriately.

Cost: £8/£6

Booking: via the Edinburgh International Science festival website

Join Dr Martha Robinson in this 2 hour event exploring the myths and realities of bilingualism as part of the University of Glasgow's 2015 Open Studies Programme.

Cost: £15.00
Registration: Centre for Open Studies, University of Glasgow

We are pleased to welcome 50+ researchers from the EU funded AThEME project (Advancing the European Multilingual Experience) for this two day consortium meeting.
Registration for this event is now closed

This event is open to all parents and carers of children at Cowgate nursery, Edinburgh.

If your child attends nursery elsewhere and this topic interests you, please contact your child's nursery to discuss the possibility of organising a similar session with us.

This event is open to all parents and carers of pupils at Leith Primary.

If this topic interests you but your child attends a different school, please contact your headteacher to discuss the possibility of organising a similar session.

This event is organised in collaboration with Leith Primary School and Edinburgh English as an Additional Language service.

Find out more about Edinburgh English as an Additional Language service on their website: Edinburgh EAL

Workshop led by Dr. Vicky Chondrogianni as part of NHS Lothian Paediatric Speech and Language Therapy: Annual Study Day

Workshop led by Bilingualism Matters Deputy Director Dr. Vicky Chondrogianni for social workers, community nurses and health visitors.

This is a joint training session with Afasic Scotland, who work with children with communication impairments and their families. You can find more about their work on their website: Afasic Scotland

This event is part of the cabaret of Dangerous Ideas at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival

Learning a language? Sounding like a native speaker is good, right? What if we said that maintaining native-level perfection in your own language might stall your second-language learning? People living abroad often make mistakes in their mother tongue; the same mistakes as second-language learners. Why? The more your brain adapts to accommodate another language, the better you’ll speak the second language, but the less native-like you’ll seem in your own. Join Professor Antonella Sorace to explore how languages affect each other in the brain, and why the key to multilingualism might lie in making more mistakes.

Cost: £8/£7

Booking: via the Edinburgh Fringe Festival website

This event is part of the Talking Translation series at the Edinburgh International Book Festival

It is thought that around 143 different languages are spoken in homes across Scotland and evidence suggests that bilingualism offers many benefits. How can bilingual families be supported and each mother tongue acknowledged and respected? Join Antonella Sorace, Professor of Developmental Linguistics and founder of Bilingualism Matters, and Michelle Jones from Craigmillar Books for Babies, an early literacy charity. Together they discuss the benefits and challenges of early bilingualism.

Cost: £8/£6

Booking: via the Edinburgh International Book Festival website

This event is open to all parents and carers of children at Stanwell nursery, Edinburgh.

If this topic interests you, please contact your child's nursery to discuss the possibility of organising a similar session.

Two hour workshop for parents and carers exploring opportunities, strategies and challenges for maintaining your child's home language at home and at school.

This event is part of the "Scottish Education System and Beyond" series, organised by Gathered Together.

This is a free event, but booking is essential.

For more information, including how to book, visit the Gathered Together website.

Two hour workshop for parents and carers exploring opportunities, strategies and challenges for maintaining your child's home language at home and at school.

This event is part of the "Scottish Education System and Beyond" series, organised by Gathered Together.

This is a free event, but booking is essential.

For more information, including how to book, visit the Gathered Together website.

Join Dr. Martha Robinson and Prof. Antonella Sorace as they present the Scottish results of the School and Family Together (SOFT) project on early language learning in the community.

This is a free event, but booking is essential.
Registration link

*This event is open to students at the University of Edinburgh*

Two hour session for children and their parents to explore language learning together in a fun environment.

The session is aimed at children aged 3 - 7 years old. The children (and parents!) will take part in collaborative language learning activities as part of the EU-funded SOFT (school and family together) project.

This event is part of the "Give it a go" programme run by the University of Edinburgh's Student Association.

This is a free event, but booking is essential.

For more information, including how to book, visit the Edinburgh University Students Association website.