Sister to Sister: Becoming Literate in Relation

Authors

  • Amy Barnhill
  • Don Halquist

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.20360/G2QP4D

Keywords:

literacy, siblings, literacy events, literacy development

Abstract

The interactions between siblings holds potential for creating and sustaining literacy learning (Goldfarb, 2000; Gregory, 2001; Volk, 1999). In this paper, we examine three literacy events that take place between a school-aged child and her younger sibling to reveal how the sisters’ interactions and relational practices support and extend the literacy abilities of both children. The findings reveal how the older sister, through her use of questions, her modeling of literacy strategies, and her support of her sibling’s growing literacy abilities, serves as a teacher to her sibling through her implicit and explicit modeling. The younger sister, through her use of questions and her engagement in the three events serves as a trigger to further her older sister’s understanding and use of authentic and emerging literacy skills and strategies. The findings also highlight how play provides a context that is mutually beneficial to and supportive of the sisters’ literacy development.

Author Biographies

Amy Barnhill

Amy Barnhill teaches in the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Houston-Victoria.  She teaches literacy courses at the undergraduate and graduate level and is the field director for student teachers in the Houston area.  Her research interests include family literacy as well as technology and literacy development.

Don Halquist

Don Halquist, PhD, is an assistant professor in the Department of Education and Human Development at the College at Brockport State University of New York where he teaches courses in literacy, diversity, and qualitative research methods. His current research interests focus on pre-service teacher identity development and the use of critical incidents as means to explore lived experience.

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Published

2010-12-02

How to Cite

Barnhill, A., & Halquist, D. (2010). Sister to Sister: Becoming Literate in Relation. Language and Literacy, 12(1), 165–174. https://doi.org/10.20360/G2QP4D

Issue

Section

Articles