Meeting the Home Language Mandate: Practical Strategies for All Classrooms



This article outlines steps that teachers and directors may use to meet the home language mandate in the classroom. It encourages teachers to overcome challenges with available resources, consider the individual needs of classrooms and children, and recognize factors that may be beyond their control. To read PDF files, get here.

All children deserve to have conversations in their own languages in early care settings. Classrooms have much to gain by supporting the home language of each child while scaffolding their English learning. This guide gives tips to teachers and directors on how to support all the different home languages they encounter in various contexts of the preschool day. There is no one right answer and teachers should use their resources and creativity to better meet the home language mandate. Meeting the Home Language Mandate: Practical Strategies for All Classrooms» [PDF, 524KB]

"Meeting the Home Language Mandate: Practical Strategies for All Classrooms." Young Children Journal: March 2009. National Association for the Education of Young Children. 2009. English. [PDF, 524KB].

Last Reviewed: January 2010