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Supporting Language Diversity: Direct Care

Given the large number of languages spoken in the U.S, it is very likely that you will serve children, youth, and families who speak a language that is unfamiliar to you. Your own communication skills and language strengths will be called upon frequently. If you speak a language other than English, this course will help you use those strengths in your work with children. If you do not speak a language other than English, this course will give you strategies to build a language-rich classroom and program.

Promoting Language Diversity in the Early Years and Beyond

Children and youth enter your program with a range of language experiences, and they come from diverse language backgrounds. Child and youth programs have an opportunity to help all children develop strong language skills and healthy cultural identities. This lesson introduces common terms related to language development, describes typical development for multi-language learners, and summarizes the benefits of learning multiple languages in the early years and beyond.

Environments and Experiences to Promote Language Diversity

Child and youth programs are ideal spaces to help children expand their knowledge of languages and cultures. This lesson will describe how you can use your environment, interactions, and planned experiences to nurture language diversity in your classroom or program.

Engaging Language Diversity in Adults: Families, Coworkers, & Communities

Native speakers are the best assets for promoting language diversity in your program. This lesson describes how to build on the culture and language diversity in your program. You will learn how to collaborate with families, colleagues, and community members to build a rich language experience for children and youth.