how does my bilingual child start Writing in both languages?

Gone are the days where children are taught to write in a Vaelipilla (Sand Tray), which is now merely a part of the cultural tradition of Akuru Kiyaweema (First Letter Reading Ceremony). It is believed that this ceremony should be held early, i.e., when a child is 2-3 years old, which makes it evident that writing letters have always been important to in Sri Lankan culture. As parents, you may have a lot of questions about the process of writing in Sinhala or English and the ideal age to start writing, etc.

So let's go ahead and try to understand!

WHAT IS THE PERFECT AGE FOR YOUR CHILD TO START WRITING LETTERS?

Studies show that, a child is most likely expected to start acquiring letters from 3 years onwards. Conventional writing in Sri Lanka starts when a child learns to write the Sinhala, Tamil or English alphabet. However, remember that this depends on the environment surrounding the child. For example, a child could start learning letter writing at home or in a pre-school. If your child has not started writing even though the others have, understanding this is vital. Your child MUST prioritize writing, but it does not necessarily mean that parents should be alarmed by a delay or reluctance to write.

What is Biliteracy?

Biliteracy is the ability to use two languages proficiently to read and write. Parents worry about the delay in biliteracy. This is understandable, as biliteracy in Sri Lanka is equally important as bilingualism, because a child who has the skill to read and write in Sinhala/Tamil and English is considered very competent.

Does your child use One language more than the other?

If you are parents who want your child to be fluent in both Sinhala/Tamil and English, you might discover that your child can write letters in one language more than the other even though you introduced both the writing systems simultaneously. Sometimes it could be that the only thing your child writes in both languages is their name. This IS NOT a bad sign! Despite some beliefs, for children, learning to read and write in one language is neither an advantage or disadvantage in learning the other. This is merely a myth now debunked by researches done on biliteracy.

Does 'BILITERACY' MEAN THAT children SHOULD be equally proficient IN both languages?

It is natural for children to have different proficiency levels when writing in two languages. According to linguists, the proficiency of languages cannot be neatly categorized to strictly mark biliteracy. After all, children are in the initial stages of learning, which makes it too early to come to conclusions if they are ‘good’ or ‘bad’ at learning a specific language. It is not fair to expect them to be equally proficient because different languages have different writing systems.

However, parents can use the following ways to attempt to reduce the gap between the two languages their child is learning to write.

How can you bridge the difference in proficiency levels between the two languages?

As parents who are interested in biliteracy, it is your responsibility to pay attention to these factors:

1. Practice daily to ensure equal input.

Ensure that your child gets equal input in both languages. For example, when your child is at pre-school or school, they could mostly be exposed to writing the community language or a majority language. Therefore, parents should make writing the other language their priority at home. You can encourage scribbling, make sure that they see you writing in both languages, and write together with them.

2. Use creative ways to write the Sinhala/Tamil and English alphabets

We should admit that, in terms of the shapes of the letters, it is easier to write the alphabet in English than in Sinhala or Tamil. Particularly because of the simple strokes the English letters have, while the Sinhala or Tamil letters are much more curvy and complex.

It is also easy for parents to teach their children to write English letters while singing the creative Alphabet Songs which are extremely popular and attractive to children.

Now, we have songs for local languages too, such as the Sinhala Hodiya (Sinhala Alphabet). It may not be as popular as the ‘ABC songs’ but these are interesting learning materials to help the parents. It is up to you to personalize it so that your child finds the whole process of writing fun!

3. Be patient!

As much as it is advantageous for children to learn to write in both languages as early as possible, you SHOULD NOT force them to do both. Children will reject the language they find difficult and it might lead them to have a long-lasting negative attitude towards that specific language. It is best to encourage your child when you feel they are ready to start learning a second language.

The key fact you should remember is, depending on a good learning environment that reinforces positive attitudes towards the languages, your child will grow up to be a bilingual who is also a biliterate - fluent in BOTH Sinhala/Tamil and English.