› Supporting children with counting, sorting, and comparing in their home languages, and incorporating math into daily routines, play, and activities. For example, start a movement pattern, saying“ clap-stomp-clapstomp,” then repeat it in children’ s home languages( such as“ bater palmas, bater os péz” in Portuguese). Children can identify and continue the pattern, then create their own patterns. When children fully comprehend math concepts, they can more easily transfer this knowledge to English.
Prepare Children for Next Year’ s Routines and Expectations
In addition to the skills and concepts children may need to know for kindergarten, they should also be prepared for changes in curricula, daily routines, and expected behaviors. Some of these( going to the cafeteria for lunch; sitting at a desk for part of the day) apply to all children. Others are specific to the experiences of multilingual learners: Their new school may have educators who will teach in the child’ s home language, in English, in both languages, or even in a different language. They may have in-class language supports or pull-out sessions with an English as a second language specialist.
Multilingual children and their families may need additional assistance to fully understand new routines and expectations. Preschool administrators can collaborate with receiving schools to provide information to children and families. Teachers can help prepare children by role-playing, adding new elements to the dramatic play area, or creating class books with images of the new school and stories about what kindergarten will be like.
Partner with Families
Families face important decisions about kindergarten while their children are still in preschool. This is compounded for multilingual families, who need to know
› What supports will be provided to children who qualify for English language development( ELD) services?
› What supports will be provided to multilingual learners whose English proficiency is determined to be high enough that the school does not recommend ELD services?
› What languages will be available in bilingual or multilingual formats?
› Will multilingual kindergartners use the same curriculum as children in English-only classes?
ELD SERVICES
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