LANGUAGE FUNCTION EXPLORATION OF BILINGUAL KINDERGARTEN CHILDREN AS OBSERVED IN TWO CLASSROOM INSTRUCTIONAL ENVIRONMENTS

The purpose of this study was to examine the variety of language functions produced by six bilingual kindergarten children. This was accomplished by observing the children's developing literacy in one classroom with teachers holding different theoretical orientations to the teaching of reading; one orientation was identified as a skills model, the other as a whole language model. These orientations were identified by the DeFord Theoretical Orientation of Reading Profile.;Findings indicate that a knowledge of graphophonemics, syntax, semantics, and their interrelationships was evident in all the children. Additionally, the ability of children to identify the purposes of reading and writing was noted. Analysis of the functional uses of language revealed that instrumental and personal language were not overtly produced in the skills instruction. In the whole language instruction, all the languge functions were produced. It was concluded that teachers can promote linguistic growth in personal and heuristic language by allowing time for and by providing activities that encourage such uses of language.;Suggestions for further research as well as implications for the classroom that involve language activities were presented.;Gathering information about the language functions of the six children involved videotaping the children's and teachers' language as well as the contexts of situation in the two instructional environments. Videotaped data were analyzed using Halliday's seven categories of functional language. Children were interviewed to provide additional information about their knowledge of graphophonemics, syntax, semantics, and the linguistic interrelations of the language systems and their concepts of reading and writing.