Chapter 7: Yolanda: Cultural Differences as a Resource for Literacy Learning

Yolanda is a bilingual fifth-grader who was born in Mexico. She, along with her parents and two older brothers, immigrated to the United States when Yolanda was 6-years-old. Yolanda received all-English instruction from the time she began first grade. Yolanda has always enjoyed going to school although she had trouble communicating at first. Like many culturally and linguistically diverse learners, Yolanda initially went through a silent period that lasted for a little over half of her first-grade year where she made few to no attempts to speak. However, she actively listened and engaged in hands-on activities, group work, and games.