Diverse books are a vital part of any classroom. This is especially true when there are English Language Learners in the room. Students need access to books that have characters that look like them and come from similar backgrounds as them. They also need to read about places and characters that are different from them. Take a look at these lists of diverse books for ELLs. If you need help obtaining these books take a look at my ideas for…
Speak then Write: Supporting ELLs Writing through Listening and Speaking For many children learning a new language they go through a similar progression of language acquisition. Listening skills come first, then speaking, then reading, finally writing. With this information in mind, I find it helpful to integrate language skills. This also has the added benefit of helping students generate ideas in multiple ways and helping children that learn in different ways to be successful. Here are some ideas to help…
Summer Books Around the World: Kids & Customs Travel around the world this summer with children’s literature. Here is a collection on books about diverse kids from around the world. For more ideas about helping children read over the summer check out my Summer Reading Tips for ELLs. Fiction Summer Books Around the World: Kids & Customs Ada’s Violin– Ada Ríos grew up near a landfill in Paraguay. First a music teacher came to her town and helped to create…
Whether you are a summer school session, your school year is still going/already started, or you are looking for ideas to give to families to continue learning over the summer here are some summer learning tips to help you out. Summer Learning Tip- STEM Activities The summer is a great time to incorporate more hands on learning. STEM activities are engaging and great for language development. Stick Fort Building– Try using twigs and having students build forts for dolls/action figures…
Summer Reading Tips for English Language Learners One of the best ways to improve reading comprehension and vocabulary development is to READ. The summer is the perfect time for students to read for pleasure. The challenge is convincing reluctant readers to pick up a book when they are not in school. Library Summer Reading Program Many public libraries have a summer reading program. Children record the title of the books that they read and then turn in the list for…
How to Use Donors Choose to get Materials from Teachers Pay Teachers Over the years I have received many wonderful teaching materials through Donors Choose. Recently I discovered a way to use this site to obtain materials from Teachers Pay Teachers. If you are not familiar with Donors Choose, it is a crowdfunding site where people donate to projects that teachers post. As a teachers you describe your classroom and a student need. The easiest way to get materials is…
Academic Language Teaching Ideas for English Language Learners Academic language is the language of school. Tier 2 vocabulary words that are found across different subject areas are components of academic language. For English language Learners it is particularly important to develop their academic language. For English Language Learners that are new to the country, it can take from seven to ten years for them to learn academic language. Johnson (2012) stats that “for ELL’s Academic language is a third language…
Teachers Appreciation Day & Teachers Pay Teachers Sale Happy Teachers Appreciation Day! Teachers work so hard throughout the year. Thank you to all the teachers for their hard work! Today (May 8th) and tomorrow Teachers Pay Teachers is having a site wide sale. I am setting my store on sale. Use the code THANKYOU18 to save 25%. I just finished the summer set of Parts of Speech Color by Code sheets . Get them as a part of the Parts of Speech…
Diverse Books about Mothers and Families for English Language Learners Here is a collections of books about mothers and families from diverse cultures and backgrounds. Some can be used as read alouds for newcomers and students learning about family. Most celebrate different ways that mothers are special. My Mom Is a Foreigner, But Not to Me– This rhyming book highlights moms from around the world. It tells how they moved, things they do that are different, special, and unique. Mango,…
Comparing and Contrasting with ELLs Comparing and contrasting is a higher order thinking skill and an important component of reading comprehension. It is also a great way for students to practice language skills and build academic language. When students compare they look for things that are the same. When they contrast they looks for items that are different. Doing these activities helps to expand their vocabulary and gives them practice using academic vocabulary. Comparing and Contrasting with Pictures Show students…