The importance and value of multilingual children is the focus of an Explorations Series free public lecture at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst on Wednesday 20 August. Professor Sharynne McLeod, an Australian Research Council (ARC) Future Fellow and the Professor of Speech and Language Acquisition at the CSU School of Teacher Education and the Research Institute for Professional Practice Learning and Education (RIPPLE), will deliver a multimedia presentation about her 4-year ARC research around the world. Professor McLeod's research emphasises the right of everyone, particularly children, to participate fully in society. Her research has supported multilingual children in many countries including Vietnam, Jamaica, Fiji, Turkey, Zambia, Hong Kong, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, the United States and Australia. "Children master most of their speech and language skills in their first five to six years of life," Professor McLeod said. "Additionally, many children around the world become competent communicators in more than one language. However, some children can have difficulty with speech and language, regardless of the number of languages they speak. In schools, we should encourage and support the use of 'home languages' (ie languages other than English spoken at home). As a nation, we should celebrate multilingualism and recognise it as a valuable resource to be used more effectively." Please RSVP to Ms Kate Esdaile on (02) 6338 4645 or kesdaile@csu.edu.au.