Day: February 1, 2019

Here are a number of strategies that teachers can incorporate into daily routines to support children as they walk through the flow of the day.   

• Be sure to keeps the routine is as consistent as possible.
• Incorporate key words from the child’s home language into the prompts you give during transitions and daily routines.   
• Use daily routines to teach new and common English vocabulary words.  Because routines are practiced each day, children will have repeated exposure to these new words and concepts.
• Post a picture schedule of the events of the day. Refer to it often, pointing out what is happening next.  Add home language words to the picture schedule, especially if children are able to read.
• Give one step directions, using familiar words and gestures, during daily routines.  As children learn the routine and develop new language skills, move on to two step directions. 
• Allow time for children to process requests and instructions during transitions and daily routines. 
• Work one-on-one with children to model the steps of different routines of the day.
• Illustrate the classroom expectations and incorporate words associated with the expected behaviors along with the images.
• Engage in conversations with children during meals and snacks. Hold conversations that are appropriate with the language skills that the child has demonstrated. 

Again, you may have noticed that these strategies are not that different from the strategies recommended for use with children who are new to the environment. 

For the main article, Supporting Dual Language Learners in Early Learning Environments, CLICK HERE

For the article, General Strategies for Supporting Dual Language Learners, CLICK HERE

For the article, Supporting Dual Language Learners Through Curriculum Planning, CLICK HERE

For the article, Director’s Corner – Preparing to Support Dual Language Learners and Their Families, CLICK HERE

There are a number of things directors can do to prepare to support DLLs and their families.  Be sure to gather as much information about the child and share it with staff prior to the child’s first day so that everyone is ready to meet the child’s needs on day one.  

• Create a written policy describing the specific steps the program will take to support DLLs.  Work with staff and other resources in the community to ensure that the policy aligns with best practices.
• Budget for toys, materials, and books that represent cultural diversity.
• During enrollment, find out what language is primarily spoken at home. Share the program’s policy for supporting DLLs and talk with families about what they can do to support your efforts when the child is at home.
• Find out which English words or phrases the child knows and create a plan to use them in daily interactions.
• Ask families to share key words and phrases that they use at home – especially words related to self-care and soothing.  Families can also share their child’s favorite songs, poems, and books.
• Invite families to spend some time either meeting with teachers or visiting in the classroom to share language experiences together.
• As much as possible, and especially during important meetings, communicate with families in their home language. Reach out to community resources to discover the availability of translators or translation services.
• Encourage staff to share resources and knowledge with one another. Staff should be encouraged to seek one another out for answers to questions they may have about supporting children in their classrooms.
• Encourage staff to take advantage of different language learning apps and resources, such as Google Translate, Duolingo, or Busuu.com.   
• If several staff need support, schedule a professional development session.
• If working with DLLs is something your program does well, consider highlighting that in your marketing materials and efforts.

For the main article, Supporting Dual Language Learners in Early Learning Environments, CLICK HERE

For the article, General Strategies for Supporting Dual Language Learners, CLICK HERE

For the article, Supporting Dual Language Learners During Daily Routines, CLICK HERE

For the article, Supporting Dual Language Learners Through Curriculum Planning, CLICK HERE

Here are a number of strategies that teachers can incorporate into daily routines to support children as they walk through the flow of the day.   

• Be sure to keeps the routine is as consistent as possible.
• Incorporate key words from the child’s home language into the prompts you give during transitions and daily routines.   
• Use daily routines to teach new and common English vocabulary words.  Because routines are practiced each day, children will have repeated exposure to these new words and concepts.
• Post a picture schedule of the events of the day. Refer to it often, pointing out what is happening next.  Add home language words to the picture schedule, especially if children are able to read.
• Give one step directions, using familiar words and gestures, during daily routines.  As children learn the routine and develop new language skills, move on to two step directions. 
• Allow time for children to process requests and instructions during transitions and daily routines. 
• Work one-on-one with children to model the steps of different routines of the day.
• Illustrate the classroom expectations and incorporate words associated with the expected behaviors along with the images.
• Engage in conversations with children during meals and snacks. Hold conversations that are appropriate with the language skills that the child has demonstrated. 

Again, you may have noticed that these strategies are not that different from the strategies recommended for use with children who are new to the environment.

For the main article, Supporting Dual Language Learners in Early Learning Environments, CLICK HERE

For the article, General Strategies for Supporting Dual Language Learners, CLICK HERE

For the article, Supporting Dual Language Learners During Daily Routines, CLICK HERE

For the article, Director’s Corner – Preparing to Support Dual Language Learners and Their Families, CLICK HERE

I began my career in early childhood in 1982 after graduating from college. My first experience working with children was so extremely rewarding that I couldn’t imagine doing anything else. I found it amazing how children developed physically, socially, and emotionally in such a short period of time. I quickly realized that during the first three years of life children need as many positive and fun experiences to help facilitate healthy growth and overall development. I attended many conferences and workshops to stay current with the ever changing world of education.

I discovered CCEI January of 2012 and I loved the experience. I was able to work at my own pace and could do the courses anywhere as long as I had internet access. There are so many courses to choose from covering topics from child development, curriculum, health, guidance and literacy just to name a few. The courses are research-based and contain current knowledge in education.  CCEI is an educator’s dream come true. I have completed certificate programs in Diversity and Multiculturalism and Child Care Orientation. CCEI has also helped me to renew my Infant/Toddler CDA certificate.

I enjoy the active times with children because they are constantly exploring, learning and growing. When I am in the classroom I really enjoy having art activities or messy play for children to express their very own uniqueness. Messy play is another important aspect of child development because during this time they are learning about themselves and others. They are learning what they can do and what they can become.

I am motivated by the children’s curiosity. Children are always learning. They always want to know what’s going on and how they can make things happen. Their scientific exploration is a driving force and to be able to provide a safe and nurturing environment is very important to me. The children are our future so I feel I need to be able to give them what they need now.

I really enjoy just observing children because children have a lot to teach us. Children have taught me patience, love, flexibility, respect but most of all how to look at the world in a more positive way. Children are our future and what we teach them now will carry on to their adulthood and help to shape what is to come.

I live in Sumter, SC.  In my free time, I enjoy fishing with my family or just trying to catch some quiet time for me. I am very family oriented and spend as much time with my family as possible.

My current position as Education/Disabilities Coordinator keeps me extremely busy because part of my responsibility is to be sure the teaching staff has required trainings and any other needed trainings. My plan for the immediate future is to provide what the teaching staff needs and to stay current with any educations requirements and changes. 

I currently have a subscription with CCEI for my teaching staff at our Early Head Start Program. The staff can easily access the courses when it is convenient for them and it also helps them to complete the required annual training hours for DSS. 

I am always recommending CCEI to others. I also give out the free trial course invitations to the families we serve.  CCEI has been a wonderful discovery for me because there are so many courses to choose from and more courses are always being added. CCEI fits the needs of anyone in the education field from Administration to teachers. It has given me opportunity to stay current in my training needs and to always be available so I can work at my own pace to complete courses.

ChildCare Education Institute® (CCEI), an online child care training provider dedicated exclusively to the early care and education workforce, offers CHD102: Dual Language Learning in the Early Childhood Environment as a no-cost trial course to new CCEI users February 1-28, 2019.

The United States is an amazingly diverse country, and if you work in child care or education long enough it is almost guaranteed that at some point you will welcome into your classroom a child and family who don’t claim English as their home language. In some areas, non−native English speakers may make up the majority of your students.  Whatever the case may be, it is important for all early childhood educators to be prepared to meet the challenges of guiding a child toward English fluency while maintaining fluency in (and respect for) their home language and culture.

Young children do not meet the definition of fluency in any language. Whether or not they are native English speakers, all young children are language learners.  A dual language program is one in which students learn content and literacy in two languages.  The overall goal of a dual language program is for children to become academically proficient in two languages.  In the early childhood setting, proficiency means helping children develop conversational skills as well as a solid foundation of early literacy skills. In this way, children can be prepared to learn, read, write, and speak fluently in both languages during their elementary school years and beyond.

Young children have much to gain from dual language instruction, cognitively, academically, and socially. Furthermore, a dedicated, thoughtful dual language program brings the center, families, and other community members and organizations into close cooperation with shared goals. Rather than viewing dual language learning as a challenge to be overcome, early childhood educators should value it as the opportunity to enrich a program.

Researchers refer to the first five years of life as a “window of opportunity” for learning language. This includes infancy, when children learn language even though they do not speak.  Thus, in recent years, a strong push has emerged for dual language education. This includes teaching foreign languages such as Spanish and French to young native English speakers. But thanks to this window of opportunity, researchers and educators also recognize that the early years are a great time to ensure that children from non−English speaking households gain important English language knowledge without sacrificing fluency in their home language.

This course provides early childhood professionals with strategies and tools for helping young children develop language and early literacy skills in English as well as the children′s home language. Participants will learn the benefits of “dual language” learning for young children along with key strategies for increasing family engagement and promoting rich, dual language development in the classroom.

“The need to train in dual language and ESL increases each year across the United States,” says Maria C. Taylor, President and CEO of CCEI.  “Educators will learn strategies and methods for working with children and families in order to meet the goals of dual language education.”

CHD102: Dual Language Learning in the Early Childhood Environment is a two-hour, intermediate-level course and grants 0.2 IACET CEU upon successful completion. Current CCEI users with active, unlimited annual subscriptions can register for professional development courses at no additional cost when logged in to their CCEI account. Users without subscriptions can purchase child care training courses as block hours through CCEI online enrollment.

For more information, visit www.cceionline.edu or call 1.800.499.9907, prompt 3, Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. EST

ChildCare Education Institute, LLC

ChildCare Education Institute®, a division of Excelligence Learning Corporation, provides high-quality, distance education certificates and child care training programs in an array of child care settings, including preschool centers, family child care, prekindergarten classrooms, nanny care, online daycare training and more. Over 150 English and Spanish child care training courses are available online to meet licensing, recognition program, and Head Start Requirements. CCEI also has online certification programs that provide the coursework requirement for national credentials including the CDA, Director and Early Childhood Credentials.  CCEI, a Council for Professional Recognition CDA Gold Standard™ training provider, is nationally accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC) and is accredited as an Authorized Provider by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET).

It is said that language development is the foundation of future academic success.  As our country has become more culturally diverse, education experts have noted concern about the academic success of Dual Language Learners.  Dual Language Learners (DLLs) are defined as children living in households where a language other than English is primarily spoken.  One recent report  found that nearly one in every three children is a Dual Language Learner.  Another report found that approximately 23% of all three- and four-year-olds are DLLs. 

Experts have also identified an achievement  gap between English speakers and DLLs, resulting in a push for the establishment of systematic supports in the earliest learning environments.  As early childhood educators, we have an important opportunity to close that achievement gap by putting in place meaningful policies and strategies to support DLLs.    

The most important recommendation is for teachers to ensure that all interactions with DLLs are supportive and warm. You could strengthen this attitude by imagining what it might be like to spend 8 or more hours a day in an environment where you didn’t understand the language that was being spoken all around you.  Consider how you might feel in this type of environment.  How would you prefer to be treated by those speaking the language? What kind of interactions would help you feel comfortable in the environment? 

The second general recommendation is to ensure that learning environments for young children are culturally responsive.  This involves including learning materials and opportunities that represent a wide variety of cultures.  The goals is for children to learn and grow in an environment in which they feel valued and see themselves represented in the materials made available to them.

In this month’s newsletter, we will provide many additional strategies designed to support DLLs and their families in the early learning environment. 

For the article, General Strategies for Supporting Dual Language Learners, CLICK HERE

For the article, Supporting Dual Language Learners During Daily Routines, CLICK HERE

For the article, Supporting Dual Language Learners Through Curriculum Planning, CLICK HERE

For the article, Director’s Corner – Preparing to Support Dual Language Learners and Their Families, CLICK HERE

Here are just a few of the strategies you can use to support language development for DLLs.  Notice that many of these strategies are similar to those you would use with English speaking infants and toddlers as they learn to communicate with others: 

• Follow the child’s lead – generate conversations about the toys or materials that the child is drawn too.
• Meet children where they are – If a child is pointing at objects, name the object.  If another child is using two word phrases, add additional details in your response.
• Use gestures and modeling to reinforce new vocabulary words.
• Include many images and photos to the learning environment and your interactions with children.
• Incorporate familiar songs and fingerplays from the child’s home language.  You could also adapt the lyrics to English language songs to incorporate words from the child’s home language.
• Encourage conversations with other children.  Guide English speaking children, or other DLLs, to use new vocabulary words with new DLL students in the class.
• Allow time for children to process language used in requests and questions. Give children additional time to respond, either through language or actions.   
• Use self-talk to describe the actions you are taking.  Also incorporate parallel talk as well, which is done when you describe what you see the child doing.
• Build onto the language children use by adding more words in a developmentally appropriate way.  This Head Start resource contains an illustrated example of how you might do this. 

For the main article, Supporting Dual Language Learners in Early Learning Environments, CLICK HERE

For the article, Supporting Dual Language Learners During Daily Routines, CLICK HERE

For the article, Supporting Dual Language Learners Through Curriculum Planning, CLICK HERE

For the article, Director’s Corner – Preparing to Support Dual Language Learners and their Families, CLICK HERE