Helping bilingual children with English at school

What to work on, by age

Keep the home language strong

Parents sometimes worry that speaking Arabic, Urdu, Hindi or another language at home will hold back a child's English. In practice, a strong home language helps: a child who can follow a story, explain an idea or argue a point in one language has the thinking skills to do it in another, and only needs the new words. Reading together in the home language, and talking about school in it, is time well spent.

In the UAE there is also a practical reason. Arabic is taught in schools, and KHDA lists strengthening Arabic language and cultural identity among its priorities for 2026-27, so balancing both languages is part of school life for many families.

Conversational English is not the same as school English

Bilingual children often sound fluent in the playground well before they can read a science textbook or write an analytical paragraph in English. The vocabulary of school, words like evaluate, evidence, compare, photosynthesis or significant, does not come up in everyday conversation and has to be learned deliberately.

This explains a common pattern: a chatty, confident child who gets lower marks than expected in reading comprehension and writing. It is not a sign of a learning problem on its own; it usually means academic vocabulary and extended writing need direct attention.

Ten minutes a day that make a difference

• Read aloud to younger children, and let older children read to you, every day if possible.
• Talk about what they read: what happened, why, and what they would have done.
• Keep a small notebook of new subject words from school each week and use them in conversation.
• Ask your child to explain what they learned today, in English or the home language.
• Write a little, often: a diary entry, a short story, a paragraph answering a question.
• Use audiobooks and podcasts in English for listening practice on journeys.

Choosing English at IGCSE

At 14, many bilingual students face a choice between Cambridge IGCSE First Language English (0500) and English as a Second Language (0510 or 0511), or the Edexcel equivalents. First Language English expects close analysis of texts and sophisticated writing. English as a Second Language tests reading, writing and listening (with speaking in some versions) at a level suited to students still developing English, and is a respected qualification.

The school usually decides the entry based on Year 9 work. If your child is near the line, ask what would move them up, and check whether the sixth forms and universities your child is considering accept the course for their English requirements.

When to ask for more help

Learning in a second language takes time, and slow progress at first is normal. It is worth talking to the class teacher and the school's inclusion or EAL lead if your child struggles in their home language as well as in English, if progress stalls after a sustained period of support, or if there are signs such as persistent difficulty remembering sounds and letters. Only qualified professionals can tell whether a learning difficulty is involved, and schools can arrange screening and advise on next steps.

How one-to-one lessons help

One-to-one lessons give a bilingual child something a busy class rarely can: time to speak, to try new words, and to have every sentence they write looked at. A tutor can follow the school's phonics or reading scheme with a younger child, build subject vocabulary and paragraph structure in the middle years, and practise IGCSE English papers with mark-scheme feedback later on.

LiveTutor lessons are one to one, 60 minutes, online, after school in Gulf time. Many of our tutors have British or American accents, and families can state an accent preference. Arabic-speaking tutors are available for some subjects, ask when you book, which some families find helpful for younger children.