1. Plant a tree. 2. Build a nest.
3. Design a poster to tell others how important trees are.
Working in pairs, the children talk about what they can do, plan the scope of their work, and verbalize attainable goals, which Ms. Gutiérrez writes down. Luca and John decide to build a nest.“ We are going to make it big for the birds,” says Luca.
“ Yo necesito un baggie.( I need a baggie),” adds John, who closely observes as Ms. Gutiérrez places nest-making materials at a station.
During Phase 4, children come full circle linguistically and academically by applying what they know in meaningful, action-oriented ways. This phase connects children’ s new understandings to their own worlds, both in school and at home. Equipped with new knowledge and skills, they are ready to think critically and to engage in transformative actions( Freire 1970; Shih 2018).
For young emergent bilinguals, the element of choice during this phase is essential. Research has shown that when children have agency in their learning contexts, they are able to expand their cultural, linguistic, and embodied experiences. Agency also enhances children’ s knowledge, skills, and sustained learning engagements in ways that allow them to show care, advocate for one another, and balance their individual needs with those of a community( NAEYC 2019; Payne et al. 2020; Jones et al. 2023). With agency, children demonstrate ownership of their learning. They also demonstrate responsibility for each other’ s well-being and for an environment that reflects and honors multiple ways of being and learning( NAEYC 2019; Baker et al. 2021).
All caring actions should position children as active participants who are ready to articulate the rationales behind their choices and take steps to complete their tasks, fully understanding the immediate impact of their actions( Noddings 1992). Young children tend to mirror adults’ empathetic and respectful behaviors and actions toward organisms and elements in the natural world( Acar & Torquati 2015; Trott 2020). The advantage of nature-based learning and play is that children find multiple opportunities to engage in prosocial behaviors as they transition to Phase 4. These experiences provide rich opportunities for language use, as children describe their observations, collaborate with peers, and engage in storytelling, all of which are foundational for biliteracy development. By taking actions to help care for the natural world, children can expand their vocabulary and practice language in meaningful, context-driven ways that can transfer across languages.
Conclusion
As educational settings become increasingly culturally and linguistically diverse, early childhood educators must systematically provide supports that take into account the ways in which emergent bilingual children learn( NASEM 2024). Instructional approaches that link to the senses through the context of nature allow children to directly experience phenomena, organisms, and objects that pique their curiosity and sense of wonder. This exposure motivates them to narrate their experiences, helping them understand that lived experiences can be represented symbolically as teachers capture their thinking through modeled writing. Equipped with background knowledge and a view of themselves as authors of their own stories, children are then ready to find mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors in other authors’ stories. With new information and skills, they are empowered to adopt caring behaviors that support the environment( Fraser et al. 2015; Trott 2020).
Educators who would like to adopt a nature-based approach to strengthen literacy instruction for emerging bilingual learners can do the following:
› Assess outdoor learning areas. Space allotted for nature-based learning does not need to be elaborate. Educators can design a corner inside or outdoors where children can interact with natural materials like pinecones, soil, and plants. Providing labels and activity prompts in both children’ s home and second languages will encourage vocabulary building, storytelling, and curiosity-driven learning.
› Incorporate nature-infused literacy centers. Besides using bilingual, nature-based books to introduce vocabulary and concepts during large-group read alouds, educators can integrate nature into literacy centers for small-group and
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