its programs were considered multilingual learners( OHS 2022). Research shows that children who become fluent in both their home languages and English experience long-term cognitive, academic, and social benefits. Yet this requires an effective and well-designed curriculum that supports and scaffolds their language interactions( NASEM 2024).
Preschool is the time to build a literacy foundation for all learners, including those who are bi- or multilingual( NASEM 2024). To promote the biliteracy of emergent bilingual learners— or the development of their receptive language, oral language, and reading and writing skills in English and their home languages— educators must connect children’ s awareness of vocabulary and language structures across content areas. This requires instructional approaches“ that offer immersive and compelling encounters in both languages”( NASEM 2024, 300).
In 2021, María( the first author) helped to create an interdisciplinary biliteracy sequence that ties children’ s concrete experiences to their language development and content learning( see“ Further Resources”). The sequence has been adopted in several early childhood settings in Texas that María has worked with and includes three phases:
› Direct experience › Writing about the experience › Reading about the experience
The idea to focus on the intersections of dual language and nature-based education was inspired by a trip that we( the authors) took to Finland to visit early childhood classrooms and learn ways in which young children explore the outdoors while advancing academically( see“ Learning from Finnish Educators’ Focus on the Outdoors” on page 8). Following our trip and reflecting on the implementation of the interdisciplinary biliteracy sequence in Texas, we added a fourth phase: Applying literacy, language, and other content knowledge to a caring or empathetic action to extend learning. This addition brings all phases full circle and infuses relevancy and purpose as children develop language and construct knowledge in interconnected ways.
Our approach aligns with scholars’ assertions that hands-on, sensory-based activities— like those found in the outdoors— support emergent bilingual learners to build background knowledge while gaining content-specific vocabulary and language structures they will encounter in subsequent writing and reading tasks( Beeman & Urow 2013; Alanís et al. 2021; Arreguín et al. 2023). In this article, we outline the benefits of nature-based learning and its robust relationship to a biliteracy approach. We then showcase the preschool class we have worked with to illustrate how educators are melding nature explorations with the biliteracy sequence’ s four phases. Finally, we offer strategies for how educators can apply these practices in a variety of settings with children in preschool through the primary grades.
Nature as a Springboard for Learning
A high-quality early childhood curriculum integrates multiple opportunities to interact with the natural world. This has benefits across domains, including physical, cognitive, and language development( NAEYC 2020; NASEM 2024). Nature-based education comprises a holistic form of learning with the goal of enhancing the overall well-being of young children( Ardoin & Bowers 2020; Arreguín 2021).
Nature can include a variety of settings, both inside and outside of a learning program’ s physical space. These include school or program grounds, city parks, and natural landscapes( Beate Remmen & Iversen 2022). We propose that educators can capitalize on elements such as gardens, rocks, sticks, insects, and water in both complex and simple outdoor environments.
Nature-based learning is not a specific methodology or approach; rather, it includes a variety of practices designed to foster children’ s development and learning( Dyment & Potter 2015; Skea & Fulford 2021). One of the main advantages of outdoor activities and materials is the experiential component: Children learn through hands-on explorations and multisensory engagement within local contexts( Ballantyne & Packer 2009; Mann et al. 2021). Their fascination with the natural world has been explained through theories such as biophilia, which is the spontaneous attraction humans feel toward elements in nature that entice our curiosity and sense of wonder( Wilson 1993). By directly interacting with nature, children are positioned to discover, think, and examine what they see( Kellert 2002; Trott
Summer 2025 Young Children 7