Preschool children learning to write in two languages in a bilingual school in bogota

Abstract

This document is an attempt to explore and understand preschool students writing in two languages and to observe the process they followed in order to master the writing system of English as a foreign language. Three main fields illustrate the literature review: language learning, early literacy and writing development in bilingual children. Data collected through class observations, field notes, interviews with students and students´ writing samples permitted an analysis and interpretation of data. Four categories emerged from the data analysis: creativity in children´s writing, children as inquirers, balance between invention and convention, and children intrinsic knowledge of writing as a system and as a tool to communicate with an audience. The findings show that children early writing describes how they perceive the world around them and that the activities that encourage children autonomy as writers and inquirers promote writing in two languages.