Choices about bilingualism will be different according to the age of the adopted child (e.g. whether that child already speaks one or more languages) and whether the parents speak the language of that older child.
If an adopted child is very young, (for example, up to the age of two), it seems quite appropriate for parents with different first languages to use both those languages with the child. When a child is very young, there will be some, but not an extensive recognition of a different language being spoken, particularly if the parents present those two languages in a sympathetic, caring and loving way.
An important choice by parents is of a sympathetic school for their adopted child (see Section E). Some schools are more attuned to language diversity, to language development for first and second language speakers, to celebrating the different languages that children bring to school. When the adopted child is of primary and secondary school age, the choice of a language-sensitive school will affect the child's achievement and progress in school, and their self-esteem.
Parent-centred parents often find monolingualism the most efficient for their needs. Child-centred parents may, in contrast, find bilingualism and biculturalism most appropriate to serve the child's short-term and long-term interests.