Towards a multimodal dialogic understanding of early writing development in school

This article presents a theoretical framework for understanding early writing development by integrating Bakhtin’s dialogism and Halliday’s social semiotics. Together, these perspectives illuminate how children’s writing emerges as a dynamic, contextually responsive process within a multimodal framework, where linguistic and non-linguistic modes interact to fulfill communicative purposes. Highlighting the complexities of children’s writing in today’s media-rich environment, the article advocates for a nuanced perspective on literacy development that goes beyond traditional, alphabetic approaches. Multimodal dialogism emphasizes writing as a dynamic, contextually responsive process that incorporates visual, auditory, and alphabetic modes, allowing children to draw upon a range of voices, genres, and social influences in schools. It is furthermore the argument of this article that a metalanguage that encompasses multimodality and the interrelations between modes is vital to fully interpret and engage with the entirety of children’s compositions. This conceptualization underscores, through key Bakhtinian concepts, the inherently social nature of writing, where children’s engagement with varied modes reflects their communicative intentions and the contexts in which they operate. This framework not only broadens our understanding of literacy but also suggests classroom practices that support diverse forms of expression, preparing children to navigate the multifaceted communicative demands of a digital world.