Comments on: Guest Blog: Helping Young Children Who Speak Different Languages Become Friends

By: kimberly

kimberly — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 18:36:23 +0000

i work in a toddler (EHS) migrant program and have found more benefits than can be imagined using ASL with mostly non-verbal children from spanish speaking homes.

By: Ayn Colsh

Ayn Colsh — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 18:06:08 +0000

I am so glad you included ASL in your article! All of my students, including my DLL’s, are fluent in English this year (or as fluent as possible in pre-k), so I have been bringing ASL into my class. We try to learn a couple of new signs with each theme.

I plan to print your article and post near my desk to keep these strategies handy!

By: Deborah Stewart

Deborah Stewart — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 03:03:33 +0000

Karen wrote, “Research tells us that all preschool children need to continue learning in their home languages even while they are also ready and able to learn a second language.”

This is such an important point to make. Too often I see non-English speaking parents come into the classroom and feel pressure to speak English and sometimes embarrassed if they can’t. I encourage them by reminding them that I can’t speak their native language so they would be most helpful to me and their child if they continue to share their native language while I work on the English in the preschool classroom. I think consistency is the key. When a child hears the languages consistently over time – he or she is quick to pick both languages.

By: Tweets that mention Guest Blog: Helping Young Children Who Speak Different Languages Become Friends | mychildfeels.com -- Topsy.com

Fri, 08 Jan 2010 03:49:54 +0000

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by mychildfeels, karen nemeth. karen nemeth said: RT @mychildfeels Guest Post:Helping Young Children Who Speak Different Langs Become Friends" by @KarenNemethEdM http://mychildfeels.com/56z [...]