About one-third of children under age 8 in the United States have at least one parent who speaks a language other than English at home. And as of 2016, 9.6 percent of all U.S. public school students were identified as English language learners. It is obvious that the American student population is becoming increasingly multilingual. This trend is often widely celebrated in other countries. But as scholars who have focused on an array of issues related to borders and democracy have noted, the United States has a complex history with bilingualism. In this article, the author addresses the following questions that relate to school policies and teaching practices: (1) Do bilingual children suffer from cognitive and linguistic disadvantages, or do they enjoy advantages unavailable to monolingual speakers? (2) Is it detrimental to learning English at school if a child speaks, reads, and writes in a different language at home? (3) What are some of the strategies teachers can use to help bilingual students and families? While across-the-board answers are impossible, the author briefly summarizes relevant studies and connects them with the U.S. school context. In the end, suggestions are offered for classroom teachers.