The Hybrid Literacy Practices of Young Immigrant Children: Lessons Learned from an English-Only Preschool Classroom

Abstract

This qualitative case study examines the literacy practices of an emerging bilingual child in a preschool classroom comprised mostly of recent Mexican immigrant students. It describes how political pressures after the passage of Proposition 203 in Arizona alter the language of instruction in the classroom, even when preschools do not have to conform to this mandate. Data collection included video and audio recordings of students' literacy practices during one school year, field notes, students' work samples, and interviews with students, teachers, and parents. Findings reveal that despite school-sanctioned English literacy practices, emerging bilingual children find ways to draw on hybrid practices and multiple literacies across two languages in student-centered social spaces. The paper concludes with the implications of the study on the education of young immigrant children.