In Search of Authentic and Adapted Literary Texts in Textbooks for Young Learners of English as a Foreign Language

In Croatia, textbooks play a crucial role in shaping the linguistic and communicative competencies of young English as a Foreign Language learners. Incorporating authentic and adapted literary texts in textbooks is essential for enhancing language development. Authentic literary texts mirror real-world language use, providing learners with genuine language encounters in various contexts. Adapted literary texts, on the other hand, are modified versions of original texts tailored to meet the linguistic and cognitive abilities of the target audience. They serve to bridge the gap between learners’ current language abilities and authentic materials, and thus facilitate language development. Integrating authentic and adapted texts of different forms into textbooks for young English as a Foreign Language learners offers numerous advantages. Exposure to real-life language enables learners to develop their language skills in a meaningful and relevant manner while working at the same time on their communicative and intercultural competencies, as well as visual and multimodal literacies. The present paper analyses textbooks designed for Grade 4 English as a Foreign Language learners, focusing on authentic and adapted literary texts. It explores the range of authentic literary texts (stories, cartoons, dialogues, poems, etc.) and investigates factors such as purpose, cultural relevance and engagement value (follow-up activities). The findings highlight the significance of including authentic materials that reflect learners’ interests and experiences in textbooks. Educators, curriculum designers and textbook publishers can benefit from these insights to create materials that cater to the needs and interests of young English as a Foreign Language learners, fostering their language development in authentic and engaging ways.