Communicative Belonging in Early Literacy: Who Is Heard, Whose Literacies Matter, and Who Belongs

ABSTRACT Early literacy teaching and learning shapes whose voices are heard, whose ways of communicating are valued, and who belongs in school. Yet, early literacy classrooms are often governed by white, monolingual norms that marginalize multilingual and multidialectal children, positioning linguistic difference as a problem. This article advances communicative belonging as a justice‐centered framework that reframes literacy from gatekeeping to a relational practice grounded in listening, affirmation, and care. We articulate four interrelated commitments—intrapersonal, interpersonal, organizational, and communal—and illustrate how teachers can activate communicative belonging by listening for meaning, inviting translanguaging, and affirming diverse literacies in everyday teaching, learning, and assessment. When early literacy is designed for belonging, it becomes a shared practice of agency, dignity, and connection.