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 ncclrinfo@edc.org

• http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/tta-system/cultural-linguistic

NCCLR Mobile: Scan QR Code

Scanning a QR Code is done with a smart phone and an app that uses your phone’s camera