Translanguaging in elementary science

Abstract

ABSTRACT In a phenomenon known as translanguaging, multilingual learners draw freely from their repertoires without regard for language boundaries. Although multilingual learners live their lives between languages in their communities, science education is just beginning to acknowledge the important role of their hybrid language practices for learning. This study investigated one translingual science event in a fourth grade multilingual classroom focused on electrical phenomena. Expanding our prior study of a soil sample lab (Lemmi et al., 2021) this paper documented eight talk types that took place during the translingual exchanges during a snap circuit activity: (1) making comparisons, (2) asking and answering questions, (3) explaining, (4) giving directions, (5) making observations, (6) agreeing, (7) exclaiming, and (8) affirming. Our findings suggest that students’ translingual participation serves valuable academic and social roles in the classroom and should be considered an important contribution to science learning. This work has implications for the ways in which teachers can support meaningful translingual learning spaces in science through the use of manipulatives and explicit invitation of hybrid languages practices. It also calls for expanding the field understanding of the purpose of translanguaging in science education to disrupt monolingual norms.