ABSTRACT
How do children talk with those closest to them (in age, in status) – their siblings? People use language differently, and these distinct ways of speaking are key elements of social reproduction (Bourdieu & Passeron, 1970). Based on an ethnography among four 4-year-old children, this chapter revisits Lareau’s (2002, 2011) analysis of language by moving the viewpoint, 20 years later, away from parents and toward children. In all families, older siblings take the reins and guide younger siblings in play. However, depending on social class, they act either as secondary language guides or as primary language partners for their younger siblings.
