Cradling Literacy: Supporting Young English Language Learners

Eva K. Thorp and Sylvia Y. Sánchez Graduate School of Education, George Mason University

ethorp@gmu.edu ssanche2@gmu.edu

March 20, 2007

Session Objectives

Explore the power of language in the lives of linguistically diverse infants and toddlers and their families;

Learn about the stages of second language acquisition and how they apply to infants and toddlers acquiring a first language;

Develop an understanding of culturally and linguistically responsive strategies for infants and toddlers and their families.

General Demographics

In 1990, 32 million people (14%) over the age of five spoke a home language other than English

In 2000, 47 million (18%) of U. S. population In 2000, 15% of all public school PK children were

identified as ELLs National Center for Education Statistics

480 languages represented in PK-3rd grade, 80% of children speak Spanish

Kindler, 2002

Latino Children, Birth to Age 5

In decade and a half, Latinos increased from 3.5 to 38.8 million

In 2000, 3.7 million Latino children (0-5) By 2050, 8.6 million Current Population Survey (CPS), March 2002

In 2000, 17% of the children served under Part C were Hispanic NEC*TAC

South experienced tremendous growth for children 0-4, No Carolina (417%), Arkansas (392%), Georgia (342%), Tennessee (339%)

National Council of La Raza, N.D.

Language and Very Young Children

The home language plays a significant role in supporting infants and toddlers through the two major developmental tasks they are faced with during this period in their life:

to develop a strong emotional relationship with the significant people in their lives; and

to develop the knowledge, skills, and world view to help them make meaning of their environment.

Language Loss

What did this young woman lose?

If this had occurred in infancy, how would her loss relate to the two major developmental tasks of infancy?

What societal messages might contribute to language loss in the infants and toddlers your work with?

When Infants and Toddlers Experience Linguistic Discontinuity

They might:

Appear unresponsive and/or disorganized

Exhibit excessive shyness

Appear resistant or defiant

Refuse to interact and communicate

Be mistakenly identified as having a language or behavior problem

Keep in Mind

Language is strongly linked to emotion, affect, and identity

Providing linguistic and cultural continuity advances language and cognitive development, as well as emergent literacy.

Language loss and discontinuity occur when young children and their families get the message that their home language is not an acceptable means of communication.

If providers cannot provide linguistic continuity, they can still support language and literacy development by encouraging infant-family interactions through the use of the home language.

How Does a Child Acquire English?

Stages of second language acquisition in older children:

Home language use Observation of new language Telegraphic and formulaic language Productive use of the new language

Conversational fluency may take two yearsAcademic proficiency takes five to nine years

L2 in Young Children Under 3

Very young children are language learners, not just English language learners

For most children and families, no choice to grow up bilingually or monolingually

Young children are surrounded by English on television, in schools, in the community

Families continue to be told not to speak their home language, and English acquisition is occurring at a faster pace than ever in history

Supporting Language Development

Support family-child relationships in the home language through meaningful play embedded in daily routines.

Be a willing communicative partner with child and family. Focus on efforts to communicate.

Encourage families to share their stories with their children and with you.

Encourage families to continue using home language.

Child in Crib Video Clip

Think about the two major developmental tasks for infants and toddlers: building emotionally secure relationships and learning about their new world

Family member was using their strong emotional bond to scaffold the cognitive foundation.

Home language was the tool used to mediate the relationship and to help the baby learn about his new world.

Willing Communication PartnerMirror Video Clip

How is she a good communication partner? Notice that her focus was not on using English words, but on reading the child’s cues.

How could she now turn this over to the baby’s non-English speaking parent?

Power of Family Stories Video Clip

to a great extent we are the stories we tell, and our memories of personal experiences are what give us a history and a sense of who we are--past, present, and future.

~Susan Engel (1994). The stories children tell.

From their families, young children gain a feeling of belonging, a sense of personal history, the joy of shared meaning, and the security of knowing who they are and where they come from.

~Sánchez, 1999

Stories and Young Children

…to a great extent we are the stories we tell, and our memories of personal experiences are what give us a history and a sense of who we are--past, present, and future.

~Susan Engel (1994). The stories children tell.

Encourage Families to Use Home Language

There is no evidence that acquiring more English is helped by the loss of the home language

On the contrary, building the first language helps the acquisition of a second one

Attachment is a primary development goal and family –child interaction is essential for babies to meet that goal

Key Points to Remember

For children who lose their home language, the effect can be devastating as their socio-emotional foundation is weakened and their cultural identity becomes brittle

Language is not taught—it is acquired within the context of responsive relationships with the significant people in children’s lives

Language is central in the process of relationship building between families and babies

Language is the primary means used by families to socialize young children as members of a cultural community

Resources Head Start: English Language Learners Focus Group Report

http://www.headstartinfo.org/publications/english_learners/appa.htm

Im, J., Osborn, C., Sánchez, S. Y., & Thorp, E. K. (2007). Cradling literacy: Building early language and literacy in young children birth to five. Washington, DC: Zero to Three Press.

Sánchez, S. Y. (1999). Issues of language and culture impacting the early care of young Latino children. http://nccic.org/pubs/sanchez99.html (English version) http://www.nccic.org/ccb/issue24sp.html (en espaňol/Spanish version

Sánchez, S. Y. Is it wrong to speak to my babies in their home language? http://www.headstartinfo.org/English_lang_learners_tkit/Home.htm