ERIC Number: EJ1456384
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1534-8458
EISSN: EISSN-1532-7701
"Nací Hablando Los dos": Young Emergent Bilingual Children's Talk about Language and Identity
Ysaaca Axelrod
Journal of Language, Identity, and Education, v24 n1 p28-42 2025
This article examines young children's perceptions and ideas about their emergent bilingualism drawing on data from an ethnographic case study of the language development of a Head Start classroom. The purpose of this study was to examine the language practices of 4-year-olds in a bilingual (Spanish/English) classroom. The findings discussed in this paper focus on the children's understanding of the language(s) they speak and how they come to understand the complex interactions of their languages, identity and the contexts within which they use them. Examples of children's conversations where they explicitly discuss and articulate their knowledge of language demonstrate that young children are both capable of discussing their bilingualism and are developing an understanding of the intersections between language(s) and identity. These findings build on previous work that emphasizes the importance of examining language ideologies in early childhood classrooms and has implications for how to support young emergent bilinguals.
Descriptors: Bilingual Students, Language Attitudes, Self Concept, Young Children, Spanish, English, Bilingual Education, Childrens Attitudes, Intersectionality, Early Childhood Education, Immigrants, Hispanic American Students
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Early Childhood Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: New York (New York)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A