Supporting the first Language

The article by Cary is something that is a big issue in teaching English as another language, which is how to support a student's first language when you don't speak the language.  I thought it was interesting to find that students who are placed in a bilingual program, with first developing a strong foundation for their first language, will out perform students who are placed in ESL classes which are all English.  However, I think that bilingual classes are more of a luxury because I feel like it's rare to get a group of students who all speak the same language, all live in the same area, and that area happens to have a teacher who speaks that language to make a bilingual class.  This is something that is common with Spanish, but can be really difficult for other languages.  The article also talked about parent involvement with the classes, with an emphasis on encouraging the use of primary language at home, such as writing and reading stories.  I think that parent involvement is extremely important when children are in younger grades, and with students whose parents' do not speak English, this can be very difficult for schools and teachers to get those parents involved.  The article mentions oral and written translations in the classroom.  In the article, Dolores learned to say simple things such as "please", "thank you", and "good morning" in a dozen languages, and I think that this is a very simple way to show parents and students that you care and want to help.  Through getting support from a wide variety of bilingual helpers, she was able to make a big difference in her classroom.