Culturally Sustaining Language and Literacy Practices for Pre-K–3 Classrooms

Literacy educators are often unequipped to help young children contend with the world we inhabit, where linguistic, literate, and cultural pluralism are not always valued or sustained. In fact, educators are routinely bombarded by programs that position literacy as a simple, one-size-fits-all practice. This resource will help pre-K–3 teachers create and interpret literacy teaching processes, practices, and spaces that honor and extend children’s fullness. It is coauthored by three teachers from ethnically, racially, and linguistically diverse schools who share vivid examples and everyday stories from their own classrooms. Grounded in an accessible discussion of the value of culturally sustaining pedagogy (CSP) and its potential to promote equity in elementary teaching, this book can be used as a practical introduction to CSP practices for early childhood teachers and teacher candidates.

Book Features:

• Focuses on the capabilities of young children and their families, rather than perceived deficits.
• Showcases a theoretical model, key definitions, and an interpretive framework of culturally sustaining early literacy practices and processes.
• Offers concrete examples and stories that educators can use in their own settings.
• Contains user-friendly features to help readers visualize the processes and practices described in the book, including artwork and other artifacts from classrooms.

Kindel Turner Nash is an associate professor of early childhood education at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Alicia Arce-Boardman is a bilingual early childhood educator at Northern Parkway School in Uniondale, New York. Roderick D. Peele is an early childhood educator at Northern Parkway School in Uniondale, New York. Kerry Elson is an early childhood educator at Central Park East II in East Harlem, New York.

“Offers a much-needed contribution to the field of early childhood education. Written with preservice early childhood educators in mind, the book is a powerful companion for those looking for ways to honor and sustain their students’ cultural ways of being while helping them to achieve complex understandings of language and literacy.”

—Journal of Early Childhood Literacy

“The book describes, in joyous detail, the practices that these teachers use to create a caring space. In this space, children feel they are known, they belong, and they are free to express their diverse identities and cultural practices.”

—Illinois Reading Council Journal

“This book is an incredibly supportive, accessible, comprehensive, and real look at day-to-day life in classrooms where educators build students' literacy proficiency because their teaching is anchored in commitments to children's brilliance and humanity. In this engaging and deeply loving volume, we walk right into the classrooms of inspiring teachers who share a complete spectrum of instructional practices in support of literacy education. Perfect for preservice, novice, and experienced teachers!”
—Susi Long, professor, University of South Carolina

“Culturally Sustaining Language and Literacy Practices for Pre-K–3 Classrooms invites educators to recognize the fullness that Children and Families of Color bring into our educational spaces. Posing the larger question, In what ways is culture central to literacy learning?,the authors illustrate effective and engaging literacy practices that build on the wisdom and beauty that Children of Color bring to school.”
—From the Foreword by Gloria S. Boutte, associate dean and Carolina Distinguished Professor, University of South Carolina

2023 Literacy Research Association's Edward B. Fry Book Award Finalist