English language learners are increasingly present in early care environments. In 2005, for example, 14.7 percent of children in nonparental care in the United States came from homes where only one parent or neither parent spoke English. Approximately 29 percent of children participating in Head Start programs spoke a language other than English. Because home languages often receive little classroom support as children acquire English, children may gradually lose their home language. Consequently, early educators could think that some children cannot speak either of their languages. This article challenges the notion that English language learners who experience home language loss do not have any language proficiency. This assumption is based on misunderstandings of the transitory phase of children's second language acquisition. It can result in children missing learning opportunities or receiving inappropriate assessments and unwarranted referral for special education evaluation. The authors describe characteristics of children's bilingualism that play a role in early educators' assumptions about children's shifting language proficiencies and present recommendations for teaching young English language learners.