Abstract
Despite a well-established body of literature focusing on school-based Spanish and English bilingualism of Latino children in the United States, the biliteracy development and literacy practices at home have received little attention by the educational research community. Addressing this gap is important because educators can then use the knowledge related to home language and literacy resources to inform the school curricula and better serve the needs of a linguistically and culturally diverse student population. We contribute to this endeavor by exploring two Mexican immigrant families and their language and literacy practices in their home milieu. Findings from this study suggest that family interactions, as well as the more general home context, are crucial factors in supporting children's development of both oral language and literacy in Spanish and English. An important and recurrent observation is the scaffolding that parents use in Spanish as part of their literacy practices. In addition, children act as agents in their own learning of Spanish, and in making connections to their knowledge of English
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