Providing service to dual-language students can be a challenging task, but it is also rewarding since students tend to display considerable academic and social progress. Educators need to understand students better to choose the most effective teaching strategies, which implies the understanding of literacy practices utilized in dual language families (State Advisory Council on Early Learning and Care, 2013). In order to gain insights into the literacy strategies families use, it is possible to use several strategies. One of the most effective strategies is to communicate with parents and invite them to attend some of the classes or activities (“Speaking in tongues,” 2020; “Diego and the apricots,” 2010). Teachers may ask parents about their practices and discuss the most effective measures to be undertaken during classes (“Speaking in tongues,” 2020). I have discussed many questions with parents, and even when some linguistic issues occurred, I still managed to collect valuable data about the child and literacy practices.
By inviting parents, teachers may observe the way parents and children interact. These observations provide valuable insights into the different aspects of student’s learning. I used this technique as well, but it is not a common practice as the vast majority of parents have limited time to invest it into school visits. At that, it was an invaluable experience as I could actually see the ways parents teach their children and the way children respond. I could use some of their technique and could also help parents to make their literacy practices more effective. In this case, linguistic difficulties were less relevant as we could exchange our skills with basic verbal communication. I have also managed to learn more about literacy practicing by playing games. Children model their parents’ methods, so I could also use this information to develop a student-centered approach with every student.
References
Diego and the apricots. (2010). Infants & Toddlers. Web.
Speaking in tongues. (2020). Films on Demand. Web.
State Advisory Council on Early Learning and Care. (2013). California’s best practices for young dual language learners: Research papers. California Department of Education.