Thinking about language learning . . .
On your paper make three or four columns.
At the top of each column, list a language with which
you’re only slightly familiar (one you haven’t studied).
Jot down any words or phrases you know—
greetings, foods, musical terms, song titles, etc.
Beside each word or phrase, write how or where you learned it.
For example:
blitzkrieg--elementary school Social Studies book
auf wiedersehen--Lawrence Welk show
gnocchi--Italian restaurant
Turn and talk with someone near you (or reflect and write)
about any observations you have.
Teaching Latino
English Language Learners
Using L1 to Develop L2
Amy Cain
dcaina@aol.com
Number your paper from 1 to 3.
You’re about to see three words.
Write each word.
Beside each word put the
● part of speech,
● number of syllables, and
● definition.
pared
dame
red
1. pared
2. dame
3. red
part of speech,
number of syllables,
definition
We’ll be talking more
about vowel sounds later.
In English words spelled the same
can have different sounds
(project, produce, polish, etc.)
What other examples of homographs
can you think of (in English)—
words that are spelled the same
but pronounced differently?
“All writing systems represent spoken languages,
a universal with consequences for reading
processes. . . reading universally requires the
reader to make links to language at the
phonological and morphemic levels.”
Writing systems encode spoken language;
they do not directly encode meaning.
Learning how to read involves learning how
one’s writing system encodes one’s spoken
language (Perfetti, 2003, p. 3).
Reading instruction is much more complex that
many would imagine. Prater (2009) mentions
five instructional variables that are “potentially
critical” for effective instruction. One of those
variables is “strategic use of native language for
support and clarification” (p. 609). She also
describes strategies good readers use. One of
those strategies is to “apply various forms of
background knowledge including knowledge of
language (English and their heritage language)”
(p. 609).
“English language learners use cognates
to their advantage, monitor their
comprehension, use metacognitive
strategies, apply background knowledge
and schema to assist in understanding
texts, and comprehend differently
depending on the text structure”
(Prater, 2009, p. 608).
When assessing reading comprehension,
is oral fluency (conversational ability in
English) being assessed or are we actually
measuring children’s reading abilities?
Before we think about English and Spanish
specifically, let’s consider a quote from a
book called Learning Is a Verb (Reynolds).
We see with our mind . . .
Part of what we see is determined by what
we already think
(p. 47).
Transparent and Opaque Languages
Transparent languages have a close
grapheme to phoneme correspondence.
Spanish is very transparent—
each vowel has only one sound.
English is quite opaque. Each vowel may
have several sounds (or be silent).
Spelling (Encoding)
(Onomatopoeia)
Dutch = Boe/Moe
Finnish = Ammuu
French = Meuh
Japanese = Mau Mau
Urdu = Baeh
http://www.womansday.com/Articles/Lifestyle/
Family-Fun/13-Animal-Noises-Translated.html
http://www.quack-project.com/table.cgi
Arabic = Haw Haw
French = Ouah Ouah
Spanish = Gua Gua
Swedish = Vov Vov
Russian = Gav Gav
Dutch = I-A
French = Hihan
Hebrew = Yi-Ah
Icelandic = E-Haw Haw
Turkish = A-Iiii A-Iiii
Danish = Rap-Rap
French = Coin Coin
Greek = Pa-Pa-Pa
Russian = Krya Krya
Spanish = Cúa Cúa
Hungarian = Nyihaha Nyihaha
Japanese = Hi-Hiin
Korean = Hee-Hing
Russian = I-Go-Go
Swedish = Iihahaha
Dutch = Oe Hoe
Finnish = Huhuu
French = Hou Hou
Russian = Uh Uh Uh
Turkish = Uuu Uuu
Dutch = Knor Knor
French = Groin Groin
German = Grunz
Japanese = Boo Boo
Russian = Hrgu Hrgu
Chinese = Go-Geh-Goh-Goh
Danish = Kykyliky
Korean = Coo-Koo-Ri-Koo
Spanish = Quiquiriqui or Kikiriki
Turkish = U Uru Uuu
German = Zichen
Hungarian = Sz-Sz
Italian = Hshs
Norwegian = Hvese
Turkish = Tiss
Belgium = Irka Kloek Kloek
French = Glou Glou
Greek = Glou Glou
Spanish = Clou Clou Turkish = Glu Glu
English and Spanish
How are the alphabets alike?
How are the alphabets different?
Think about what you know already.
Recall what you teach (or what you were taught)
about consonants and vowels.
What similarities do you anticipate?
Spanish, like English, has five vowels—
a, e, i, o, and u.
However, in Spanish each vowel has
only one sound.
In Spanish there are not short and long vowel
sounds as there are in English.
Think about Spanish words you know
that include the letter a.
mamá
papá
casa
manzana
blanca
What conclusions can you draw,
or what can you infer?
In Spanish words, the a is always pronounced
like the ah in father.
Practice saying the following words.
taza
mapa
plaza
vaca
rana
Think about Spanish words you know that
include the letter e.
mesa
cabeza
verde
tercera
elefante
What conclusions can you draw,
or what can you infer?
In Spanish words, the e is always pronounced
like the short e sound in egg.
Practice saying the following words.
escuela
está
eco
enchilada
Think about Spanish words you might know
that include the letter i.
iglesia
aquí
What conclusions can you draw,
or what can you infer?
In Spanish words, the i is always pronounced like
the long e in sleep.
Practice saying the following words.
bicicleta
ciclo
siglo
situación
Think about Spanish words you know
that include the letter o.
ropa
tomate
boca
frijoles
What conclusions can you draw,
or what can you infer?
In Spanish words, the o is always pronounced
like the long o in hope.
Practice saying the following words.
sopa
coco
hombro
boca
Think about Spanish words you know that
include the letter u.
fruta
jugo
What conclusions can you draw,
or what can you infer?
In Spanish words, the u is always pronounced
like the oo in food.
Practice saying the following words.
unidos
útiles
Keep in mind that in Spanish
there is no distinction between
the vowel’s name and the sound it makes.
In English we may say that a long vowel
says its name. Latino children may be confused
by this concept.
a
b
c
ch
d
e
f
g
Spanish Alphabet
h
ñ
u
i
o
v
j
p
w
k
q
x
l
r
y
ll
rr
z
m
s ……….
n
t ………………….
The Spanish alphabet has four letters
that the English alphabet does not have.
Those letters are:
ch
rr
(pronounced like the beginning of check)
ll
(pronounced like the letter y)
ñ
(pronounced like ny)
(pronounced with a trill— “rolling” the r)
Now we’ll look at several letters
of the Spanish alphabet (in order) so that
you can become familiar with nuances.
Some of the patterns will be similar to
what you would expect from English.
For example: c before a, o, and u
makes the hard (k) sound;
c before e or i makes the s sound
(like celery or city).
c
before a, o, or u
c
before e or o
has a hard (k) sound
(like cat, coat, and cut)
has the s sound
(like cent or city)
To make the hard (k) sound before e or i,
the spelling is
que
qui
In Spanish the word que often means “what.”
¿Qué color prefieres?
¿Qué te pasa?
The syllable qui appears in the word meaning
“here”–aquí. Aquí está la mesa.
The syllable qui also appears in the word
meaning “who”—quien. ¿Quién es tu amigo?
g
before a, o, or u
has a hard sound
(like game, goat, or gum)
g
before e or i is pronounced like an h
To make the hard g sound before e or i,
the spelling is
gue
gui
In Spanish the syllable gue
appears in the word guerra.
The name Guillermo is an example
including the syllable gui.
In order to pronounce the syllable “gwe,”
the spelling has to be güe
(for example, vergüenza).
The syllable güi is pronounced “gwee.”
The letter h in Spanish is always silent.
The letter j in Spanish is pronounced like an h.
For example: José, Juan, jefe, jirafa
The letter ll in Spanish is pronounced like a y.
For example: llamar (means “to call”)
¿Cómo te llamas? means “What is your name?
(Literal meaning is “How do you call yourself?)
Other words with ll include:
amarillo (yellow)
cuchillo (knife)
calle (street)
Practice pronouncing each word.
The ñ in Spanish is a separate letter of the
alphabet. It is pronounced like ny.
For example:
niño (child or boy)
Nuñez
pequeño (small)
.
The q in Spanish appears only before u
(not before a, e, i, or o).
An r at the beginning of a word is “rolled.”
The rr is a separate letter of the alphabet.
It is “rolled.”
For example, ferrocarril means “train.”
Accent Rules
How do you know where to place the
emphasis—on which syllable to place the
accent—when pronouncing words in Spanish?
The rules are relatively simple
(with no exceptions).
If a word ends in a vowel, n, or s, the accent is
on the next-to-the-last syllable.
Practice pronouncing several words
that end with a vowel, n, or s.
Remember to place the emphasis on the
next-to-the-last syllable.
casa
sonidos
hojas
gatos
rojo
agua
blanco
pueblo
If a word ends in a consonant other than n or s,
the accent is on the last syllable.
Practice pronouncing several words that end
with a consonant other than n or s.
Remember to place the emphasis
on the last syllable.
pared
ciudad
estar
comer
If a word does not follow these two rules,
the accent mark must be written.
For example:
lápiz
nación
águila albóndigas
Practice pronouncing each of these words.
Notice why each word has a written accent mark.
(Where would the accent be if the accent mark
did not appear?)
Plurals
Plurals in Spanish are similar to plurals in English.
If a word ends in a vowel,
the plural is formed by adding s.
If a word ends in a consonant,
the plural is formed by adding es.
Plurals
Practice making each of these Spanish nouns plural.
casa
gato
pájaro
oso
Plurals
Practice making each of these Spanish nouns
plural (remember to add es).
ciudad
pared
función
(Note: when you make función plural, it will no
longer need the written accent mark—funciones.)
Articles
In English we have only one definite article—
the.
In Spanish there are four: el, la, los, and las
(masculine and feminine, singular and plural).
Articles
In English we have two indefinite articles—
a and an. In Spanish to avoid putting two vowels
together (a similar construction to our using
“an”), the masculine singular article is used
(even though the word is feminine).
For example: to avoid saying la agua, Latinos say
el agua. To avoid saying la águila, they say
el águila. This practice can help in explaining our
use of an before a noun beginning with
a vowel.)
Nuances or Challenges to Keep in Mind
1. What children do: Confuse Sounds
b and v
Children have difficulty distinguishing
between these two sounds.
Why: In Spanish both b and v are
pronounced the same.
What to do: Children will need to look at
your mouth as you emphasize the difference.
They may benefit from looking in a mirror while
they make the sounds.
b and v
Guide children to put their lips together
when pronouncing the b.
Show children how to put their upper teeth
on their lower lip to pronounce the v.
These sounds are especially important
for the months.
b and v
In Spanish many of the months are similar
to the months in English;
however, the pronunciation of the b and v
will be challenging for some students.
You may use songs, raps, or rhymes
to practice.
January – enero
February – febrero
March – marzo
April – abril
May – mayo
June – junio
July – julio
August – agosto
September – septiembre
October – octubre
November – noviembre
December - diciembre
For example, you can sing
(in English and then in Spanish—
to the tune of “Are You Sleeping?”)
Children repeat each phrase after you:
Today is Wednesday. (children repeat)
February 8th, (children repeat)
Two thousand twelve, (children repeat)
Is the date. (children repeat)
For example, you can sing
(in English and then in Spanish—
to the tune of “Are You Sleeping?”)
Children repeat each phrase after you:
Hoy es miércoles. (children repeat)
El ocho de febrero, (children repeat)
Dos mil doce, (children repeat)
Es la fecha. (children repeat)
Nuances or Challenges to Keep in Mind
What children do: Confuse Sounds
b and p
One of my students confused bush/push,
bet/pet, bull/pull, etc.
What to do: To practice this distinction, hold a
small strip of paper vertically in front of your mouth.
When you are pronouncing a word beginning with p,
air will make the paper move.
b and p
A child can hold the paper when saying the
word. If the paper moves, p is needed.
If the paper does not move,
the consonant is a b.
(I had thought the student was
“flipping the letter”—the way students do with
magnetic letters. However, the issue was not
the appearance of the letters themselves but
distinguishing between the two sounds.)
Nuances or Challenges to Keep in Mind
What children do: Confuse Sounds
d and th
Why: In Spanish the d and th are almost
interchangeable.
What to do: You may need to
overemphasize the pronunciation
of each of these sounds.
d and th
When you show a child a particular word,
such as think, suggest that the child
“take a picture of the word” in his mind.
Encourage children to remember
what the word looks like in books they read.
d and th
Guide children to look at you
while you pronounce a word beginning with d.
A child may benefit from using a mirror
to check the position of his mouth, lips,
and tongue when producing the sound.
Guide the student to place his tongue
between his upper and lower front teeth
when making the th sound (as in think).
Nuances or Challenges to Keep in Mind
What children do: Confuse Sounds
dr and jr
When children are writing, they may begin
dr words (such as drink, draw, dragon) with jr.
Why: The production and sounds are quite
similar.
What to do: Guide children to watch your
face when you pronounce dr words.
(Emphasize the initial d.)
dr and jr
Children enjoy word sorts. You can prepare
games that include words beginning with br,
dr, pr, and tr so that children can make the
distinction visually and auditorially.
(For example: break, brick, brown, and brush; drink,
drop, dress, and dragon; pretty, project, print, and
prance; trash, tree, trip, trout, and truck.)
Nuances or Challenges to Keep in Mind
2.
Pronouns
There is no subjective pronoun equivalent
for “it” in Spanish.
To say, “It is raining,” is simply “llueve” or
“está lloviendo.” There is no pronoun at the
beginning of the sentence.
We may say, “It was fun.”
“It was a warm day.” “It was raining.”
“It was difficult.”
The Spanish equivalent would begin with the
verb. Children need to be taught explicitly
appropriate use of the subjective pronoun it.
“When transferred, first-language
metalinguistic insights―morphological
awareness, in particular―serves as a
filter through which second-language
print input is analyzed and categorized
. . .”
Koda, Keiko. “Impacts of prior literacy experience on
second-language learning to read,” Learning to read
across languages, 2008.
Onset and Rime in English
cap
flap
map
nap
rap
sap
snap
tap
bat
cat
fat
hat
mat
pat
rat
sat
back
black
pack
rack
sack
stack
tack
track
Sílabas en español
ca
da
fa
ma
pa
ra
sa
ta
za
ce
de
me
ne
pe
re
se
te
ve
ci
di
fi
li
ni
ri
si
ti
vi
co
do
lo
mo
no
po
so
to
vo
cu
du
fu
gu
lu
nu
pu
ru
su
tu
Common Words in Spanish
Palabras comunes en español
cada
cara
casa
dama
fama
mapa
masa
para
pasa
saca
taza
vaca
mesa
techo
tema
cita
dime
fino
libro
Lima
risa
tira
vida
como
copa
cosa
goma
loca
nota
poco
poso
rosa
sopa
toca
toma
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Resources
Fu, Danling (2009). Writing between languages: How English language
learners make the transition to fluency. Heinemann, Portsmouth: NH.
González, N, Moll, L.C., & Amanti, C. (Eds.). (2005). Funds of knowledge:
Theorizing practices in households, communities, and classrooms. Mahwah,
NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Koda, Keiko. “Impacts of prior literacy experience on second-language
learning to read,” Learning to read across languages, 2008.
Perfetti, C. (2003). The universal grammar of reading. Scientific Studies of
Reading, 7 (1), 3-24.
Prater, Kathryn (2009) “Reading comprehension and English language
learners. In S.E. Israel and G.G. Duffy (Eds.), Handbook of research on
reading comprehension (pp. 607-621). New York : Routledge.
Reyes, M. and Halcón, J. (eds.) (2001). The best for our children: Critical
perspectives on literacy for Latino students. New York, NY: Teachers College
Press.
Valenzuela, A. (1999). Subtractive schooling: U.S.-Mexican youth and the
politics of caring. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.