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As learners begin to study their heritage language in a formal context, numerous emotions, identity questions, and perceptions can arise. A key to helping learners maneuver these feelings, both positive and negative, is engagement with one's heritage community. The interviews can be done in the language that learners are studying or in a different common language, depending on the level of the learner.

Objective: To interview members of the heritage community about a topic of interest.

Resources: Interview Resource Sheet

Procedure:

1. Pre-interview: Work with learners to highlight questions they might be interested in asking members of their hertigage community. This brainstorming session can also be used to sensitize learners to engagement in the heritage community and any issues that might arise.
2. Interview: Have learners interview two people from their heritage community.
3. Reflect: Ask learners to compare the perspectives of each of the two people they interviewed and reflect on the overall experience.

Note: As is often the case in language classes, you may have heritage and non-heritage learners. In these cases, a number of modifications can be made to this activity. First, the learners can work in pairs to do the interviews, with non-heritage learners partnering with their heritage peers. In addition, all can interview someone in their home about the target language or non-heritage learners can also interview someone from the target language community. Choices about this context will be highly dependent on the local context.