This article seeks to reflect on how L1-L2 relationship has been treated in second language theories, policy and pedagogy, mainly in the teaching of English as a second language (ESL). It is argued that language teaching pedagogy would benefit by paying attention to the use of L1 in the L2 classroom, especially in the case of whole schooling through L2, rather than concentrating primarily on the ideal monolingual model. The scenery that motivated these reflections is an ESL classroom of an English immersion school located in the central part of Brazil