Making Sense of a Puzzling Activity: Awakening to Languages in an English as an Additional Language Classroom

According to Fidler, the pluralistic approach known as awakening to languages (AtL) holds the potential to positively impact metalinguistic awareness (MA) among young additional language learners. However, a deeper exploration of the effects of this pluralistic approach on metalinguistic engagement is needed to offer insights for the effective integration of pluralistic methodologies into language classrooms. To address this gap, an AtL puzzle was devised and completed as part of seven pedagogical interventions in an English as an additional language classroom with fourteen plurilingual participants aged 12 to 13, living in Barcelona, Spain. Qualitative data collection included an initial questionnaire, audio recording that captured the participants’ engagement with the AtL puzzle, a written survey administered after the activity and a subsequent focus group interview conducted post-activity. Participants expressed the use of awareness spanning orthographic and pragmatic dimensions. Furthermore, their metalinguistic strategies were illuminated, encompassing cognitive and metacognitive learning strategies such as selective attention and planning. These findings collectively contribute to a more nuanced comprehension of the potential advantages conferred by pluralistic approaches within the domain of additional language education, emphasizing the positive impact that they may have on the cultivation of MA and the development of metacognitive strategies among young language learners.