Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/early-childhood-classroom-setup-a-powerful-tool-for-facilitating-english-as-a-second-language/5014317/
As early childhood classrooms have become more diverse and multicultural, many children enter our classrooms without having mastered the English language. Often a teacher may have numerous children learning English as a second language, all of whom may have different native languages. This situation poses quite a challenge for the early childhood educator. Educators often feel overwhelmed and ask the question, "How can I help a child be successful in my classroom when he and I do not speak the same language?"The nature of the classroom atmosphere contributes greatly to children's success in learning English as a second language. This environment must cultivate motivation to learn the language and provide an ample exposure to English (Tabors, 1997). By doing so, the classroom allows children to use social strategies described by Wong Filmore (1979) as essential for learning a second language. In order to learn a second language, children must be engaged in environments that provide them a variety of circumstances in which they can use their language (De Houwer, 1999). Additionally, Wakefield (1984) observed that an ability to speak English was not a prerequisite to social interaction in a preschool classroom. She noted that while learning English was not necessarily a ...