Sharon Bond, lead EAL advisor at the Alliance, explains the importance of the home language for children with English as an additional language... Forming working partnerships is a vital skill in all aspects of our lives. Never is this more true than when working with the parents of the children who attend your setting. Sometimes this relationship grows naturally and other times there are barriers that may hinder your partnership. Imagine you have English as an additional language (EAL), speak little English or are new to the country. As a parent, what would be important to you if you had a child attending an early years setting? How would you ensure that you understand what happens in the group and what is required of you? Welcoming everybody inSkilled and experienced early years managers and educators should have measures in place to help support parents, including essential documents translated into the families’ home languages and access to interpreters where possible. The setting should be welcoming to every child and parent to show that they are valued and part of the community. For example, you could have welcome signs and greetings in a variety of languages, reflecting those spoken by your families. Home is at the heartSomething to consider when welcoming EAL families to your setting is how you can value their home language, culture and home environment. The first thing the EYFS says about children with EAL is: “For children whose home language is not English, providers must take reasonable steps to provide opportunities for children to continue to develop and use their home language in play and learning[...]” This statement has been part of the EYFS framework since it was first introduced in 2008 and remains unchanged in the 2021 version. The accompanying non-statutory guidance in Development Matters and Birth to 5 Matters also refer to the important of the home language. “Speaking more than one language has lots of advantages for children. It is the norm in many countries around the world. Children will learn English from a strong foundation in their home language. It is important for you to encourage families to use their home language for linguistic as well as cultural reasons. "Children learning English will typically go through a quiet phase when they do not say very much and may then use words in both languages in the same sentence. Talk to parents about what language they speak at home, try and learn a few key words and celebrate multilingualism in your setting.” Development Matters “A child’s first language provides the roots to learn additional languages, and parents should be encouraged to continue to use their home languages to strengthen and support their children’s language proficiency as they join new environments.” Birth to 5 Matters EAL specialists and consultants like us welcome these additions to the non-statutory guidance, giving extra value and importance to the home language. Supporting home language in the home is one of the key messages we should share with parents and caregivers. We need to ensure we have the right information to do this effectively and in partnership with families. How is language used and by whom?What is the home language? Who speaks it and with whom? Who else looks after the children, who else is in the home? All of these questions need to be answered to help build a full picture of what our families might need from us. This will help us get it right. So, as well as language, what other factors do early years educators need to think about? There are many aspects of other cultures we need to consider when building relationships and partnerships with parents. For example, in some cultures it is considered bad manners for a child to look an adult directly in the eye, yet how many times do we get down to a child’s level and ask them gently “Look at me, please”? Exploring what the home environment is like for families is key for all children in your setting. Home visits are an excellent way of doing this. A home visit can give valuable insights into family life. More importantly, it can be a stepping stone on the transition journey for a child. It’s also an opportunity for parents to ask questions and gain valuable information from you, while in the familiar and comfortable setting of their own home. Getting it right for the futureThe quality of the home learning environment is a key predictor of a child’s early language ability and future success; positive experiences can have a lasting and life changing impact. Early language ability is consistently linked to later outcomes – including school attainment and job prospects. Children raised in middle and upper-income homes are more likely to experience a language-rich environment. By contrast, children from low-income homes are more likely to arrive at school with below-average language skills, leaving them at an educational disadvantage from the start. Studies also consistently show that many home learning activities support children’s early language development, including: going to the library, playing with/being taught letters, playing with/being taught numbers, songs/poems/rhymes. In particular, studies show that the quality of caregiver-child interactions taking place during these activities are a better predictor of school attainment at age seven than children’s exposure to computers or other learning technologies during the early years. So, the message is clear: value and respect a child’s home learning environment and do everything you can to build relationships and partnerships with parents. Build on your existing knowledge and expertise to think about the small additional steps that you could put in place to welcome EAL families to your setting, because by doing so you could make a big difference to a family’s experience of early years education. Sharon Bond is the lead EAL advistor with the Alliance’s Somerset EAL Advisory Service, offering specialist support to early years educators in Somerset. Virtual Classroom - supporting children for whom English is an additional languageDo you want to feel confident in supporting children who have English as an additional language? The Alliance is running a Virtual Classroom on this topic. It is an interactive online session in which you will:
The sessions are suitable for early years educators and those working in family support services. This Virtual Classroom will take place across two sessions on Thursday 10 & 17 March, 10am - 11.30am. Prices: £35 pp for members £50 pp for non-members Book now
THE majority of South African children do not know how to read or write in their mother tongue because of the influence of English and the choice to make English their first language. It doesn’t help that there is a perception in our communities that you have made it if you speak fluent English. IMPORTANCE OF AFRICAN LANGUAGES Research has shown that learners who use English as their first language often forget their mother tongue. “Children who are taught in a language rather than their home language often find it challenging to understand complex topics that are taught in the other language. Most children attend schools where neither the language of their community or their home language is used,” says Susan Coetzee, director research developer in the faculty of humanities at North West University. The importance of your child being taught in their home language is that they will understand better at school and will be more comfortable when learning. “Children who go to school with a solid foundation of their mother tongue develop literacy abilities in the language of instruction at school.” SPEAKING YOUR HOME LANGUAGE Encourage your child to speak their mother tongue by setting an example and speaking the language. Read to your child in your home language and frequently visit family elders. Teachers can also help children retain and develop their mother tongue by communicating strong affirmative messages about the value of knowing additional languages. “Members of the community, parents and caregivers also need to provide additional learning support and build on what the teachers are doing,” says Susan. “Teachers require access to materials that allow them to provide a platform in the students’ mother tongue. When a child is learning something for the first time, language is the bridge that takes them where they need to go and without the right language neither student nor teacher can set off on the learning journey.” THE IMPROVEMENT OF HOME LANGUAGE As most schools encourage the use of English on the school grounds, it is advisable to encourage your child to speak in their mother tongue at home. This way, your child will become multi-lingual. Parents, guardians and society also play a role and have influence on how language is dominant in a child’s life. Your child connects to you,the relatives, their culture, history, identity and religion through their mother tongue. Speaking their mother tongue links your child to their culture and shapes their identity. Children who are unaware of their culture, language and history might lose their self-confidence. Find ways to help your child maintain and improve their mother tongue and also teach them to respect other cultures. |
What is the importance of supporting children to continue speaking their home language if their home language may not be English?
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