Spanish Speakers Writing in an English Language Pre-Kindergarten
Document Type
Article
Subject Area(s)
writing, early childhood, bilingual
Abstract
This research study was conducted in a public Title I elementary school 4K program. Of the 17 children assigned to this classroom five children spoke primarily Spanish; three children knew some English and two started the year knowing only Spanish. This paper focuses only on the five Spanish-speaking children. The children’s journal writing was observed over one school year and the journals were collected and analyzed. An oral language assessment was administered. Both Spanish and English languages filtered into the children’s written and oral language interactions. All five children wrote according to their interests, yet individual children seemed to have a focus that carried them throughout the year of journal writing. The children used many symbol systems in order to follow a work program of their own design and purposes. However, in this English language classroom, demonstrations of how to read and write in Spanish were not consistently available. Opportunities to use a full range of signs and modes of communication would be greatly enhanced by more consistent opportunities to read Spanish storybooks, count in Spanish, and learn about content using Spanish vocabulary.
Publication Info
Published in 61st Yearbook of the Literacy Research Association, ed. Pamela J. Dunstan, Volume 61, 2012, pages 243-256.
Rights
Copyright © 2012 Literacy Research Association, Inc. All rights reserved