On two recent Professional Days at ISB, groups of teachers have taken a session called Translanguaging: What and Why. There has been growing interest in translanguaging in ISB classes. So what is translanguaging?

This article for parents offers some answers. Simply put, translanguaging means using all of students’ languages in class when it helps their learning. Languages other than English need not be silenced, if other languages can support learning. 

Translanguaging does not mean chaotic classrooms, but rather designing instruction to involve students’ languages, which are part of their identity.  

It can also be a way to give multilinguals more practice with their languages for academic purposes. 

Keen to learn more? Here is the publicly available Preface (PDF) to the The Translanguaging Classroom, a book of interest at ISB. This is stocked by our Learning Design Center, which also offers books on multilingual parenting.