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Joining With Families to Set Dual Language Learners on the Road to Language and
Literacy Success
Joanne Knapp-Philo Ph.D.Patsy Pierce Ph.D.
National Early Childhood Inclusion InstituteChapel Hill, NCMay 13, 2015
Who’s here in your role as...
• Parents or other family members?
• Early Interventionists – Home Visitors?– Classroom Staff?– Therapists?– Medical Staff?– Other?
• Who else?
Outcomes
To explore:• The research on the importance of ALL young
children developing the home/family language to the best of their abilities
• Key materials that provide families and professionals with concrete suggestions and ideas
Diversity: What do we know?
• The U.S. has been undergoing a profound demographic transition
• Last quarter of the 20th century and will continue well into the 21st century
Dual Language Learners
The largest growing population in the US!
Home Language:A key part of instructional
design
Children’s Home Language is the foundation of their acquisition of English
Importance of Home Language
• Children develop their identity
• Children learn and develop social skills and emotional intelligence
• Children acquire cultural knowledge and identity
Children use their Home Language
• To understand themselves, their families and others
• To internalize the language they hear when parents and family members talk
• To think and reflect on information about themselves, their families, and their communities
Cognitive skills develop in the Home Language
• Classification
• Categorization
• Logical/cause-and-effect reasoning
• Narrative abilities (length and complexity)
• Concepts related to spatial relations/math
Uninterrupted development of the Home Language from Birth-5
• Enables children to continue to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes they already have
• Does NOT mean English can’t also be introduced
So… what’s it take?
Strong support for the home language• At LEAST one adult who speaks only the home
language with the child
• Other caregivers, family members, siblings, extended family, neighbors, and members of the community speak the home language to the child
• Whenever possible, and when they are good models of the home language, caregivers, teachers, therapists, nurses, etc. speak the home language to the child
Joining with families to support home language
• Providing families information about the FACTS—which are not always what they have been taught to believe
• Supporting families in their goals to teach their children in their language
Activity
• Work in your small group
• Read the entire handout you are assigned
• Report out to your group:– What do families need to know and believe ?
– What to professionals need to know and believe?
– How do you suggest this document be used and with whom? Take it deeper than you did this am. Make as long a list as you can to take home!
The Benefits of Being Bilingual
Shares some reasons bilingualism is an asset to individuals, families and our entire society
The Gift of Language
Written for families of dual language learners in an attempt to answer many of their frequently asked questions
Language at Home and in the Community for Families
Offers eight things families can do every day to help their children learn their family’s language and become successful in school!
Language at Home and in the Community for Teachers
Ideas to share with families—similar to what is written for families—helps you to see your role in encouraging families to share their language, culture and traditions
Overall reactions
Please share some of your group’s best ideas that you think others may not have come up with!
All families want what they believe is best for their
childrenTelenovela
Background Knowledge—A key for young children with
disabilities
• All the information children learn and store in memory about themselves, other people, objects, and the world around them
• Beliefs, values, rules, and expectations for behavior developed in different cultural settings and environments
Background Knowledge
• Developed through children’s daily interactions and experiences within their family and in their community
• Developed in one or more languages and can transfer to another language
• Organized in the child’s mind into concepts (schemas) that enable children to connect new information to their existing knowledge beginning at birth
Background Knowledge matters for DLLs because
• They may have different experiences depending on their family’s culture, language/s, social class, religion, emigration experiences, etc.
• Children are increasingly able to recognize and reflect upon aspects of different environments… this is a great source of conversation, word learning, and reflective thinking
How families and professionals promote Home Language
Activities that promote• Children’s enriched vocabulary• Levels of executive function• Specific approaches to
– learning– letter knowledge– print concepts and– phonological awareness
In the home language
How families and professionals promote Home Language
Think out of the box! Remember every adult should support language development for verbal and non-verbal children:• High-quality adult child interactions
‒ Extended conversations that build vocabulary and elaborate upon ideas and information
• Daily book-reading combined with multiple oral language strategies, e.g.‒ Talking about the book before and after the story‒ Explaining new words during reading, etc.
• When adults do not share the same language as the children they sometimes are “thrown off”
• Adults have the ability—not only to communicate—but to have a significant impact upon children’s development and to effectively model English when they understand and implement effective models of English for ALL children
When interventionists speak English only
When interventionists speak English only
Language acquisition… does not occur in isolation, it involves multiple, simultaneous levels of activity• Children get (and stay) involved in activities (physical
level) and…• … They process information mentally as the activity
continues (cognitive level)…• … Over time, children acquire language as part of
their involvement in the activity (language level)
When interventionists speak English only
Modeling English1. Get the child involved in an activity that they
enjoy; offer the child choices of activities as needed…
2. As the activity continues, observe the child’s actions…
3. Provide language models related to the child’s ongoing activity (for example, the “self-talk” and “parallel talk”
Translation/Interpretation
• How do you find qualified translators and interpreters ?
• What are the qualifications that you require?
• How do you certify their competence?
• What ongoing specialized staff development do they receive?
• What training do they receive about working with families of young children with disabilities?
Remember translators and interpreters are YOUR voice!
Key thoughts
Young children with disabilities:• Are capable of learning multiple languages with
the right supports
• Deserve to be able be communicate and develop strong relationships with their closest caregivers
• Families may not know this yet and need support to use their home language with their children with disabilities
Our job is to share the facts!
Closing
Please complete the evaluationsThank you for participating!
Feel free to contact us:Office of Head Start National Center on Cultural and Linguistic Responsiveness
• Toll free 855.494.0331
• Email [email protected]
• http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/tta-system/cultural-linguistic
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