Code-Switching As a Channel for Expanding the Russian Vocabulary of a Bilingual Child Aged 4–6 in an Uzbek–Russian Family: The “Lexical Bridge” Model

Abstract

The article examines an understudied mechanism by which the Russian vocabulary of a bilingual child expands: code-switching (CS) in the family discourse of an Uzbek–Russian family. A working “lexical bridge” model is proposed, according to which a Russian word becomes consolidated in the child’s active vocabulary if it is first presented within an Uzbek syntactic frame and accompanied by situational or visual support. The sources of Russian vocabulary formation are described and classified, and the methodology and data-coding scheme for empirical testing of the model are presented.