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According to a Chinese Proverb, “To learn a language is to have one more window from which to look at the world”…

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According to a Chinese Proverb, “To learn a language is to have one more window from which to look at the world”…

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Being a Second Language Learner | Seongyeon (Yeonie) Heo (Yeonie) Heo | TEDxYouth@ISBangkok

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Becoming a shy kid who was afraid of "sounding stupid"

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A Day In The Life of an English Language Learner

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ESOL Teacher Sheila Majdi: Using Sentence Frames with ELLs

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Rooted Linguistics: Serving Teachers of Multilingual Learners

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Sentence Frames
Sentence frames essentially frame a sentence and students add in some verbiage. Think of a picture frame where you add in a picture. Sentence frames look very much like traditional fill in the blank sentences.

Here are some examples of sentence frames:

The square has ___sides/angles.

The ____has ___sides/angles.

The ___are the same/different.

Based on the experiment, I can infer that the ____will increase and the ____will decrease.

My name is_____ and I am ___years old.

The _____ revolted against the ____.

____ is north/south/east/west of ____.

___have ____, however, ____ have ____.

​Both ____ and ____ have ____.

Sentence frames are scaffolds that may fit the needs of English learners at beginning levels of English proficiency. Some students may also benefit from visuals and word banks.
However, sentence frames can be used with English learners at higher levels of English proficiency to teach specific language structures or to teach mortar words/tier II words.
Sentence Stems
A sentence stem is the beginning of a sentence. Think of the stem of a plant. It's not the whole plant, just the beginning of it. It helps students get their sentence started. Sometimes we use the term sentence starter interchangeably. Sentence stems give students the inertia to get their thoughts going. Then their sentences bloom.

Here are examples of sentence stems:

What surprised me was...because....

I think that...for example

First...then...next...

In my opinion....in addition...

Based on the passage, I can infer that...for example....

I don't understand why....

Based on the pattern, the numbers will...

Sentence stems are scaffolds for English learners at all levels of English proficiency. They are open ended.
Personalizing
By thinking of the end in mind, you can level and personalize sentence frames or sentence stems to help English learners progress in language proficiency.

Beginning-Simple sentence structure: ____and ___ are quadrilaterals.

Intermediate-Comparative sentence structure: ___and ___ are quadrilaterals, however ___has___.

Advanced-Complex comparative sentence structure: Although___and ___ are ___, ___is different because...

Why is it important for us to provide students with sentence frames or sentence stems?
Learning to communicate effectively is important for all of us. I think we can all agree on that. But providing students with vocabulary lists will not achieve that goal.

Backward Design
Let's begin with the end in mind again. What is our over-aching goal? If we want students to, let's say, understand and communicate effectively using domain specific vocabulary (vocabulary of our content area), then how will we get them there?

Students will need to hear the vocabulary in context (from the teacher and peers)

Students will need to use the vocabulary in context (in speaking and writing)

To set English learner up for success, we will provide them with linguistic supports that they may use until they no longer need them. Any student can use them, but English learners especially will benefit as they are learning English and content simultaneously.

We can begin by modeling the language we want students to use. We want students to hear the language structures and vocabulary over and over again.

Then we move to letting them use the vocabulary and language structures with partners. We provide them with sentence frames or sentence stems. They practice verbalizing and hearing a peer multiple times.

Finally, we move to writing. Students are asked to write. Some students will rely on the sentence frames or sentence stems as scaffolds. Others will be able to write independently. Either way, students will have had the opportunity to learn from the teacher, verbalized themselves, and heard from peers.

This model takes students through the Gradual Release of Responsibility or I do, We do, You do model.
How do I think of vocabulary?
Start with your grade level standard. Look at what students need to know. Whether it's Common Core or not, your state standards will reveal vocabulary that is critical for your students to master.

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Well, first and foremost, we should care if we want our students to speak like scholars. If we want our students to be marketable after they graduate. If we want them TO graduate! Then we should...

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Social & Emotional Learning (SEL)

These social and emotional learning strategies won't take a lot of time, but they can have a big impact on middle and high school students.

How do you feel about the phrase soft skills? For me (and for many), skills such as critical thinking, empathy, creativity, and teamwork are not soft skills. These are essential skills or center skills. Decision-making, self-awareness, and self-regulation are at the center of learning and life. We need to start with, build from, and embed social and emotional learning (SEL) into safe, equitable, empowering learning experiences for all students.

Regardless of your teaching and learning situation (fully online, hybrid, or in person), we know that the intentional and explicit weaving of SEL into the fabric of our everyday learning and life is critical. Below are three SEL signature practices from the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) that we need to bring in whenever we come together as a community of learners. Included are examples that are simple, portable, and customizable. Consider your scenario as well as the needs and size of your group when deciding whether to take turns sharing out loud, use the chat, or break into small groups or pairs.

Use opening check-ins to give students an opportunity to identify their emotions (self-awareness). We can provide scaffolding by using tools such as Zones of Regulation or the Mood Meter. We can also use images and word banks to help build vocabulary.

Have a kindness conversation asking everyone to share an act of kindness they have given or received recently (social awareness).

Inspired by Brené Brown, permission slips help us set our intention and focus. Share examples such as, "I give myself permission to make a mistake and try again." Then ask students to create their own permission slip (self-management).

3 SEL Practices for Every Day

Cocreate shared expectations ahead of time for collaborative work, and revisit regularly to ensure that everyone's needs are being met (relationship skills, responsible decision-making, social awareness).

Design for inquiry with voice and choice to provide opportunities for learners to construct meaning through communication and collaboration with their peers. Using an approach like Discover, Discuss, Demonstrate gives learners opportunities to explore content before direct instruction (relationship skills, responsible decision making, self management).

Incorporate movement breaks to refresh and reset the brain. These brain breaks could be a stretch or a mindful breathing practice. Depending on what suits the situation, the break could be to calm or to energize (self-management).

1. Welcoming or inclusion activities. Rather than jumping right into instruction, starting with brief routines and rituals provides us with interactive experiences that give everyone a voice and connects the community of learners. A few examples:

2. Engaging strategies. There are many SEL opportunities throughout learning experiences where learners are naturally engaged both individually and with their peers. As educators, we often use engaging strategies like breakout rooms/small group discussions, wait time, brain breaks, jigsaw, etc. However, we still need to be explicit with SEL. A few examples:

We can reflect doing a closing check-in on emotions by simply asking something like, "Which one to two words sum up your feelings about our time together?" (self-awareness).

Another way to reflect is through a gratitude practice (social awareness). Ask learners to acknowledge something or someone that they are thankful for. Guide them to think deeply and name the feelings they are experiencing (self-awareness).

The goal of looking ahead is to get us excited moving forward, and it is also an opportunity to hold ourselves accountable through goal setting and organization. Use a planner and/or set a reminder to execute next steps. You could even use a service like FutureMe.org to send your future self a reminder of long-term goals (self-management).

As we plan to use engaging strategies, activities, and protocols, we need to offer both interactive and reflective options. It is also important to make time to debrief these experiences, allowing us to identify and connect what we are doing to SEL competencies and specific skills. Notice that so much of this is also aligned with Universal Design for Learning (UDL).

3. Optimistic closure. The name of this practice often leads to the misconception that we need to end on a happy note. The reality is that what is most important about this practice is the intentional and authentic reflection and understanding of the learning experience. This allows us to both collectively and individually appreciate what we have accomplished and anticipate what comes next. A few examples:

These are just a few ways to implement the three signature practices, and additional examples are available here. The reality is, there are countless ways to use these practices. Collaborate with your learners and your peers to adapt and create practices to meet the specific goals and needs of your community. Your team can even use the "Getting It Down PATT!"-Purpose, Alignment, Transparency, Target (created by Micaela Gerardin-Frey) as a tool to thoughtfully select, adapt, and prepare strategies, activities, and protocols.

Emotions matter, and the research on how emotions impact learning is clear. But it isn't just about accepting SEL's necessity as a means to increased academic performance. Using the three signature practices as part of a systemic SEL approach allows us to create safe, equitable, empowering learning experiences for all, kids and adults.

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3 SEL Practices Teachers Can Use Every Day

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These social and emotional learning strategies won't take a lot of time, but they can have a big impact on middle and high school students.

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Social emotional learning in the classroom has changed the way many teachers approach everything from the primary academic subjects to free time and recess.

Social-emotional learning helps children develop positive self-esteem, manage their emotions, set and achieve goals, show empathy for others, and handle stress.

Nearly 33% of teens age 13 to 18 will experience an anxiety disorder, according to the National Institutes of Health. The number of children and teens with an anxiety disorder has risen in recent decades. Providing children with coping mechanisms through emotional learning may help reduce the prevalence of anxiety, especially if teachers introduce SEL in early childhood.

Many educators view SEL as an essential piece of the puzzle to help students learn the soft skills they need to be productive, successful adults.

Further reading: What is SEL? / Social-Emotional Learning Defined

How to Implement SEL in the Classroom?

Teachers can integrate social-emotional learning into the learning environment side by side with academic curriculum, teach it separately from Math, ELA, and other subjects, or implement it as an overall classroom philosophy.

By teaching parallel, yet age-appropriate, units at all grade levels, students benefit from continuity in SEL lesson plans. Early childhood teaching creates a solid foundation for more advanced SEL concepts.

Districts looking to implement SEL should first decide upon a comprehensive curriculum designed to:

Help students identify their own self-concept

Build self-esteem

Treat others well

Strive for self-improvement in all areas

These seven strategies that can help instructors ensure consistency across all grade levels to achieve the greatest results from teaching SEL.

1. Help students identify their self-concept

A student's self-concept, or self-awareness, stands as a basic tenet of SEL in the classroom. A person's self-concept relates to how they perceive themselves. Interactions with teachers, parents, and peers can shape a person's self-concept.

A person's self-concept relates to their strengths, weaknesses, and self-esteem. Presenting activities that let students get to the heart of who they are, what they believe, and how they feel about themselves forms the bedrock of SEL in the classroom.

Teachers can use activities into other subjects, such as ELA and social studies, or introduce separate discussions and activities that permit students to explore their self-concept.

2. Introduce positive actions for body and mind

Students feel good about themselves when they successfully complete positive actions. Taking even one positive step can set off a cascade effect leading to more positive actions and, ultimately, positive outcomes.

Teachers can easily integrate positive actions for the body into health class, physical education, and, for younger students, on the playground. They can take time out from the school day to let the children play a cooperative sport outside. They can also teach proper nutrition at snack time and hygiene by encouraging hand-washing throughout the day.

Educators can introduce positive actions for intellectual health during any subject by encouraging problem-solving and creative thinking.

Emphasizing positive physical and intellectual health as part of emotional learning helps students establish good habits to set them up for a lifetime of success.

3. Teach students to manage their feelings and their resources

If positive thoughts lead to positive actions and positive feelings, students must learn how to manage their thoughts and feelings to help foster positive behavior.

Integrating SEL in the classroom includes teaching students how to manage not just their thoughts, feelings, and actions, but also their:

By doing so, students will gain a sense of responsibility that improves their self-concept and boosts their self-esteem.

Strategies to teach students responsibility could include giving them assignments with multiple components that need to be completed on a deadline, asking questions to get them thinking about their feelings and reactions to events, and even giving them opportunities to handle money in the school.

4. Teach empathy

Teachers from decades ago used to call it "The Golden Rule": Treat others how you would like to be treated. Today, empathy plays a key role in social-emotional learning in the classroom.

Once students learn how to manage their feelings and reactions, they can learn how to treat others with kindness and respect. Teachers can embrace multiple opportunities to teach and demonstrate empathy.

They can reward positive student behavior by offering a small reward when a student performs a good deed. Some teachers put marbles or tickets in a jar or create a chain of paper links. When the jar is full, or the chain touches the ground, the students receive a party or special treat.

5. Teach students to face the truth

Even the best students don't behave kindly all the time. They might make mistakes in their work or lose focus too easily sometimes.

Social-emotional learning can help students recognize shortcomings so that they can improve. Teachers may integrate self-assessments following tests in major subjects. They can also ensure that students take responsibility for their actions by making sure they complete homework assignments.

Group projects give teachers an excellent opportunity to use SEL strategies related to working together, taking responsibility rather than blaming others, and dividing tasks based on each students' strengths and weaknesses.

6. Help students practice self-improvement strategies

Once students recognize their weaknesses and learn to own up to their mistakes, they can focus on self-improvement.

A growth mindset, or understanding that everyone can learn new skills, plays a key role in knowing how to successfully implement SEL.

Teachers at this phase of integrating social-emotional learning in the classroom should help students identify, set, track, and achieve goals. These goals could be related to academics, personal behavior, or physical and mental health.

Self-improvement ties into all the other elements of SEL, as students strive to grasp the soft skills related to their social and emotional development.

7. Review all aspects

As students continue to strive for improvement, teachers should implement a review of these six facets of SEL incorporation, helping students identify their weaknesses and study the areas where they might feel "stuck."

An important thing that teachers should remember is the Thoughts-Actions-Feelings (TAF) Circle. Positive thoughts lead to positive actions, which lead to positive feelings, which, in turn, create more positive thoughts.

Outcomes of SEL Implementation

Social and emotional learning can help create more confident, kinder students who are better poised to face the stress of the outside world.

But you may be even more surprised by some of the positive academic outcomes teachers have discovered. Positive Action outcomes has been shown to:

Reduce bullying - Using SEL at school has been shown to reduce bullying by 51%, according to the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Improve math scores - Students who develop greater self-confidence through SEL may show up to 51% improvement in standardized math tests.

Improve literacy - Students who benefit from an SEL curriculum score an average of 20% better in reading achievement, according to the Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness.

Reduce violence in the school - From a reduction in violence in the classroom to a reduced number of threats, social-emotional learning gives students the tools to cope with their anger rather than resorting to violent words or acts.

Reduce suspensions - SEL implementation led to a 73% reduction in suspensions, indicating students are better behaved and following rules.

Reduce alcohol use - SEL in the classroom has helped reduce alcohol use by students, with the numbers of students who have ever tried alcohol dropping by 29%.

Reduce absenteeism - SEL can substantially reduce absenteeism, perhaps by reducing the number of "mental health" days students take or by instilling a greater responsibility to go to school.

Increase family bonding - Parents and children saw a reduction in family conflict and an increase in family bonding.

Increase overall positive development in early childhood - Based on multiple markers, pre-K students showed an increased positive development in areas ranging from self-esteem to physical health.

Perhaps more importantly, the core SEL competencies that students learn, carry through the graduation and their working years. SEL helps create young adults who are secure in themselves, better able to cope with the daily stresses of life, and more empathetic toward others.

How Positive Action Can Help?

Many different programs promise to teach students the skills they need to become emotionally intelligent adults able to cope with life.

By teaching a program that emphasizes how our thoughts become actions, which lead to positive (or negative) feelings, Positive Action makes social and emotional learning easy to understand and easy to integrate.

We guide you every step of the way with strategies to achieve buy-in from the administrators in the district and gradually deploy the program beginning with the earlier grades, where quick and easy lessons can make a significant impact.

During what we call the "Feeder Effect", teachers will soon be able to recognize those students who used SEL. Seeing the difference between students who did and did not experience SEL encourages buy-in from the rest of the district and prompts secondary education teachers to continue with the program so they can continue to achieve a classroom full of emotionally intelligent, confident, empathetic students.

From Pre-K through secondary education, Positive Action can help you integrate our strategies seamlessly. Want to know more about Positive Action? Contact us.

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How to Integrate SEL in the Classroom? 7 Effective Strategies

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Social emotional learning in the classroom has changed the way many teachers approach everything from the primary academic subjects to free time and recess. Social-emotional learning helps children develop positive self-esteem, manage their emotions, set and achieve goals, show empathy for others, and handle stress.

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At the start of a new semester, teachers around the world turn their attention to the very first class. With a new group of students to integrate and make comfortable, icebreakers are an activity that are essential to those first days. But what makes a good activity? Ideally, teachers need icebreakers that are low in social risk, matched to your class's proficiency level, and perhaps just a bit silly. A good activity will encourage bonding, participation, motivation, and allow students to relax both mentally and physically. Of course, it's an added bonus if they can be easily adapted as warm ups or speaking activities during the year. Here are 13 adaptable icebreakers that we love...

Moving activities

1. Blobs and lines

This activity is easy, quick, keeps students moving and talking, plus helps them discover what they have in common. The idea is for students to listen to their teacher's prompts and organize themselves in a line (for example, in alphabetical order of last name) or in blobs according to something they have in common (birth month).

Try these prompts:

Line up in chronological order of your birthdays

Line up in order of how many siblings you have

Find those who are allergic to the same things as you

Gather with those who have the same colored clothing as you

Line up in alphabetical order of your fathers' names

Gather in four blobs: those who traveled by car to class, those who traveled by bus, and those who traveled another way

2. This or that

Along the same lines, in this activity students move to a particular side of the room to represent their opinions on a certain topic. To make this icebreaker work, "yes/no", "true/false", or "would you rather X or Y" questions are best. (A quick Google search will reveal dozens of sites with icebreaker questions to use or adapt.) Examples are:

True or false (teacher indicates the sides of the room that correspond to each answer): I had breakfast this morning.

Would you rather be invisible for a day or be able to fly for a day?

Yes or no: Do you speak more than three languages?

Tip: If you want to have questions with multiple answers you can assign each to a specific corner of the room.
3. Signatures

Ask the students to invent a "signature" movement or sound. It can be extremely simple: a clap, cough, turn in a circle, bow, word, mime, or gesture. Show yours first and go around the class (the students' signatures shouldn't repeat). Then it's time to remember them, beginning with yours and going around the circle again.

Mingles

4. Classmate bingo

An oldie but a goodie. Create bingo cards with prompts for students to use to ask each other questions. The idea is to cross off all the squares. Use simple prompts like those below, or try more complicated ones for higher level classes:

5. Who's in your circle?

Ask your students to draw three cocentric circles on a piece of paper. Give them a topic (food, seasons, sports...) and ask them to write it in the center circle. In the second circle students write "love", in the third "like", and outside the circles "don't like". Under the topic, students individually choose a specific example to focus on (e.g., bananas, spring, tennis). Students then mingle and ask their classmates how they feel about the item they have chosen, writing the students' names in the circles that correspond to their opinions. Repeat with another topic.

Small group speaking activities

6. Toilet paper roll

Produce a roll of toilet paper and ask students to take as many sheets as they like, without telling them why. Once the class has their sheets, reveal that each sheet corresponds to a question their small group will ask them. You can also do this with pieces of candy.

7. Two truths and a lie

Students write down three sentences with information about themselves, however, one must be a lie. Other students then ask them follow-up questions to discover which statement was a lie.

_Tip: This is a great way for teachers to give information about themselves on the first day of class. Ask students to think of follow-up questions in pairs.
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8. Three things in common

Small groups must identify three things that they have in common with each other - the stranger, the better. Put prompts on the board if you would like, then give students time to talk. Later, students report back and vote on which group has the strangest three things in common.

Open class speaking activities

9. Time bomb name game

This is a fun, quick activity for students to remember each other's name. Ask your class to form a circle and say their name. Then, throw a tennis ball to one of your students. They have two seconds to say some one else's name and throw the ball to them, before it "explodes" and they are out of the game. Continue until only one student remains.

10. Beach ball toss

Before class, write icebreaker questions over a beach ball in permanent marker. Standing in a circle, students throw the ball to each other. When caught, or when the teacher says "stop", the student with the ball must answer the question closest to their left thumb. Repeat until each student has answered at least one question.

11. Candy pass

Give each student a small handful of colored candy (such as Skittles). Tell the class that a question has been assigned to each candy color. Write these on the board, considering having a mix of serious and more humorous questions such as:

Blue: Would you rather be a tiny horse or an enormous chicken? Why?

Red: What is your ideal job and why?

Green: Tell the class about your house and who lives in it.

Yellow: What are three countries you would like to visit and why?

Students are then told to eat all their candy - except for one piece. In this way they can choose the question they will answer.

12. Sit down if...

With the class in a circle the teacher asks a series of quirky yes/no questions. Students sit down if they can answer "yes" and the last student standing is the winner.

13. Speed dating

This activity allows students to talk to a maximum number of classmates in a short time. To begin, have your class form two concentric circles facing each other. Ask an icebreaker question and tell them they have a minute to discuss it. After one minute, the outer circle rotates counter-clockwise one position - and the activity is repeated with another student and another question. Continue until students have returned to their original partners.

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13 fail-safe icebreakers to use in class today ‹ EF Teacher Zone

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You can never have too many icebreakers up your sleeve. Here's a list of activities to get your class moving, chatting, and interacting in no time...

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Whether at camp, an after-school club, or any group get together, it's great to have a few fun icebreaker activities and games up your sleeve! They're a great way to help kids make new friends and feel comfortable in new settings.

So if you're on the hunt for the perfect getting-to-know-you activity for your next event, check out this ultimate guide to icebreakers for kids. These have been vetted by the fun experts at iD Tech, and I can speak from personal experience that there's something for every age group, energy level, time frame, and supply list here.

Please note, some of these activities can be easily adapted for a virtual environment, while others are best kept in our back pockets until federal, state, and local safety guidelines give the green light for in-person gatherings.

(For more virtual-friendly icebreaker questions for kids, chec out our 57 open-ended questions to ask kids and teens!)

Icebreakers & Get to Know You Games for Kids

These time-tested icebreaker games are great for elementary and early middle school kids. They'll get your group laughing, moving, and having a blast!

Alphabet Name Game

Make a circle facing one another. The first player must state an adjective that has the same first letter as the first letter in their first name, followed by their first name (ex. Preposterous Pete). The next player states their name combination and then all of the combination names that preceded them. After completing the circle, all of the players have a chance to show off their ability to perfectly recite the names in order.

Stay in the circle and pay attention! A great twist is having the players rearrange themselves and try to remember all of the names!

Elephant Giraffe Unicorn

Arrange your students into a circle with one student in the middle. The person in the center acts as the Pointer, and they will call out an animal and point to any individual in the circle. The person that is pointed at, as well as the person on each side of him/her will have to coordinate their actions and make each animal as described below:

Elephant: center person will stick both arms out in front of their "nose" to form a trunk. The persons on the left and right will form the "ears" by placing one hand near the center person's hip and the other by their head.

Giraffe: center person will place their hands directly over their head to form the tall "neck." Outside persons will lean over and touch the middle person's toes, forming the "legs."

Unicorn: center person will make a horn on their head with their finger. Outside persons will arch their arms to form a rainbow.

Each group has until the count of five to get into positions. If they are unable to do so, the last person to get into position will become the Pointer.

On-the-Spot Story

Get those creative juices flowing! Sit with a small group and spend 10 minutes creating a story on the spot. Each person contributes one sentence of the story, and the only rules (aside from only adding appropriate content) is that the story must continue for the allotted amount of time. The story can be silly, adventurous, or go wherever kids' imaginations take them!

Who am I ?

To play this game, every player is given a note card with a word (a celebrity, movie/book character, be creative!) on it. This word is their new identity. No one can look at their own card. Every player tapes the card, or just holds it to his or her forehead to prevent peeking.

All the players may then mingle and ask 'yes or no' questions to all the other players about themselves. You can change the 'yes or no' rule so long as no one asks 'what am I?' The other option is that they have a short conversation with each other player, addressing them as though they are the thing on their card to give them hints. (This is better with older players who are more crafty with their word choice.)

You can't ask more than one question to anyone until you've asked everyone else at least once. Once everyone thinks they know who they are or until enough time seems to have passed, the game ends and players can volunteer to say who/what they think they are. Finally, they can look at their cards and have a good laugh!

Look up/Look down

This is a short fun way of mixing up the group a bit. All of the players stand facing one another in a circle. When they make full eye contact with a person across the circle, they scream/make a dramatic reaction, and they're out. Continue until there are two victors!

Trust Walk

Ask group members to pair up and then explain the trust walk: one partner will shut their eyes or be blindfolded. The other will be their guide, and lead them with verbal instructions around the space. Encourage them to explore unusual areas where the air might feel different. Have all pairs return after a specified time and switch roles.

Helium Stack

For helium stack, participants will work as a team to move the object (slow and steady finishes this game!).

A Hula Hoop or Wooden Pole is placed at the center of the group, and every player puts a single finger on the bottom of the object. The game begins once the object is above the groups' heads, and players need to carefully lower the object to below their knees and back above their heads without having a single finger leave the object.

Once a player's finger leaves the object - even for a moment - the game starts completely over again. After a group gets the hang of it, try timing them to see if they can beat their own score.

Quick Picks

This is a simple competitive activity that will really get kids thinking. The players stand in a circle facing inward with one player as "It" in the center. "It" is given a category from the facilitator and must come up with as many items that fit that category as possible. While the one who is "It" is listing items, the group passes a soft sphere around the circle as quickly as possible. Once the soft sphere has completed one revolution, "It" must stop and the score is tallied. The category is changed and a new "It" is chosen until everyone has had a chance-who can score the highest?

The Wild Wind Blows If...

For this one, everyone stands in a circle with one person in the middle of the circle. That person says a fact about themselves, such as "The wild wind blows if you have a sister." Then, everyone in the circle who has a sister/the stated fun fact applies to them runs to find a new spot in the circle. The person without a spot shares the next fact!

Icebreakers for Teens

This age group can be a little hesitant to jump in with activities, but never fear; these icebreakers for teens are eye-roll proofed, age-appropriate, and so much fun!

Blind Draw

The organizer must draw on a sheet of paper various shapes and designs; not too complex but not too simple either. The sheet should have 5-10 various objects drawn on different points on the page. It's best if they are abstract: circles, squares, zig-zags, etc. This should be done twice-two different sheet designs, one for each person on the team.

Arrange the group into pairs of two with teammates sitting back to back. One teammate looks at the paper with various drawings, shapes, and designs on it, then dictates drawing instructions to the other teammate who has a blank page and pencil. The teammates work together to try and replicate the drawing as best they can only use verbal instructions.

Once the pair is done, they then switch roles and use the second drawing to replicate the game. You'll need:

Pens/Pencils: one per person

Clipboard/Hard Surface: one per group of two

Blank white paper: one per person

Game Paper: one per person

Human Bingo

The game organizer must create custom bingo cards for each participant-a 5x5 grid with various personal qualities on them.

Examples: 'has a dog' / 'loves cheese' / 'met a celebrity' / etc.-get creative!

These cards are given to each player, along with a marker.

The players then go around 'interviewing' the other players and trying to find out specific qualities, with the goal of marking off each square on their card, a person can be on a card more than once.

This game gets the group to get to know each other on a personal level and allows for individuals to find common ground and similarities.

Build a Leaning Tower

Divide the group into teams of three to six players. Participants are to build the highest tower that they can, using only the paper given (or whatever other materials you'd like to use). Nothing else can be used, and the tower cannot lean on or be supported by anything. After 10 minutes, see who has the highest, free-standing tower!

Surprise Party

At this party, you never know who is going to show up! Have one player volunteer to be the party host. This player should leave the room, or go to an area where they cannot hear the prep.

When the host leaves, pick four or five other players out of the group to be party guests (depending on how many players you have). Then have the other people shout out character ideas for each of the party guests (these can be personality quirks or celebrities/fictional characters). Once you are sure each of the party guests are clear on their characters, call the host back into the room.

Let the party begin! The host starts his or her party (it's up to them what kind of party it is) and one by one the guests start arriving. Each guest should allow just a few minutes before entering.

The goal is for the host to guess what each person is supposed to be. If they guess right, that party guest can leave.

Rock Paper Scissors Entourage

This epic Rock Paper Scissors game starts with each player finding a partner and playing a single game of RPS. The loser of the game becomes the personal cheerleading squad of the winner! The group must then find another similarly sized group and continue until only two groups are left. The groups face off in a best two out of three match with all of the non-playing members cheering on their leader!

Photo Scavenger Hunt

For this one, the game organizer must create a custom list of things for the teams to scavenge for. This should be tailor made for the specific setting. A scavenger hunt sheet is given to each group, (split up so there is at least four to five groups), and each group heads out with a leader and searches for the things on the list. Once found, the group takes the photo with the object or place.

Once all teams have completed their list, the photos can be shared, providing a good way for the players to get to know each other and work towards a common goal.

Birthday Lineup

The players must line up in order of birthday without making a sound (or writing anything down). Depending on the size of the group, give the players just enough time to finish with nearly perfect accuracy!

Tic-Tac-Toe Relay

For this game, create a Tic-Tac-Toe board. You can use a pad of paper, hula hoops, or draw one with chalk outside.

Put the board at one end of the playing field, and have the two teams stand on the other end. One team is X's and the other is O's. You can use colored items as well such as blue and yellow rags or a white board marker. Each team only gets three of their item to make it extra challenging!

Team members have to run to the board and place their item in a spot before running back to tag their next teammate in line. After all three of a team's items have been placed, the next team member has to move one item to an open spot to try and get three in a row. The first team with Tic-Tac-Toe wins!

Break the ice this summer with Virtual Tech Camps!

Fun, right?

You should also know that our Virtual Tech Camps are back and better than ever. We are excited to bring all the magic, fun, and unique aspects of our in-person programs to screens at home this year.

Kickstart the fun and get started today: browse courses here!

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20 Fun Icebreakers for Kids & Teens | Get to Know You Games & Activities

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Whether at camp, an after-school club, or any group get together, it's great to have a few fun icebreaker activities and games up your sleeve! They're a great way to help kids make new friends and feel comfortable in new settings.

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Icebreakers can ease everyone into interacting with each other and create some great memories..."Remember when we had to screech like Pterodactyls?" In a youth group setting, that's a great way to start building the spiritual community your students are craving. Pick a few of these to get your group going.

1. Quick Change Artist
Bring two people up to the front. Each player is to observe his or her partner's appearance. Then, the players turn around back-to-back and make three changes (mess up hair, take off a shoe, untuck shirt, take arm out of sleeve). When they face each other again, each partner must identify the changes made by the opponent. This game can be repeated several times by changing partners and increasing the number of changes made until a winner is declared.

2. Three In Our Crowd
Have group split off in groups of three and find three things in common (besides the obvious gender or hair/eye color) such as: favorite holiday, season of the year, hobby, phone app, movie, etc. One person then introduces the group and shares the three things they have in common. Depending on your group, you can make it a bit silly by asking the person who does the intro to use a voice like a talk-show host.

3. Pterodactyl
This one is for pure laughs. Students get in a circle and go around the circle trying to say "pterodactyl" without showing their teeth (putting lips over teeth like a person without their dentures in). Students may switch the direction of the game by looking at the next person and doing their best pterodactyl impression (maaach!), again without showing teeth/smiling. Those who crack-up or smile are out.

4. Quick Line-up
Have the group make lines of 8-10. If you have more than one line, they can race to line up in order of:

5.

Alphabetical by mom's first name

Height, shortest to tallest

Month of birthday, starting with current month

After area code, first three numbers of phone number, least to greatest

Number Crunchers
Divide into teams of 8-10, up to 20. Have students stand in order between two lines that are 18 inches apart. On the signal, person #1 changes places with #10 without moving outside the lines. Next #2 swaps with #9, #3 swaps with #8, etc. Be sure that #2 and #9 don't move until #1 and #10 have made it to their new places, and so on until all have been switched. First team to finish yells "Crunch!"
8. Human Rock-Paper-Scissors
You can use lots of themes for this game and make up fun poses for the three characters. (How about " Wizard beats Giant - Giant beats Elf - Elf beats Wizard" or "Spiderman beats Batman - Batman beats Superman - Superman beats Spiderman"?) After the poses are decided, break students up into pairs or into two teams. If played as a large group, the team will need to agree on one of the poses for each round (everyone on the same team will need to do the same pose). Give each team a few minutes to strategize. Once the teams have their poses ready, a leader will have them, on the count of three, jump around and do the pre-determined pose. You can play however many times you'd like. Best out of five rounds is a good number for a medium-size group.
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11. Can I Come In?
Students get in a circle with one person in the middle. That person goes around the circle asking "Can I Come In?" Most people answer "No" unless they want to be in the middle. While this is happening, other people in the circle use non-verbal communication to run and switch places (but no shimmying - which means trading places with the person next to you). The object is for person in the middle to catch two people switching and move into an empty spot, thus leaving another person in the middle to ask "Can I Come In?"

16. "Luke I am your father."
One student is blindfolded and goes to the front of the group. Other students take turns trying to disguise their voice and say a predetermined phrase like "Luke, I am your father" or "Hey there, what's my name?" The blindfolded student tries to guess who it is. If they are successful at guessing who is talking, they get to keep going. If they fail, then the student who disguised their voice takes their place. Play until you have a voice recognition champ!
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21. Song Scramble
Before the meeting, write out the first 5-6 lines or phrases from several popular songs, only one line/phrase per card. Make sure that only enough cards are used to cover the number of people present. The cards are then scattered on the floor. To start the game, each person grabs a card and tries to find whose holding the other cards that complete the verse or section of the song. The winning group is the first one to correctly assemble and sing their song.

28. Web of 20 Questions
Gather kids in a circle. Using a ball of yarn, hold on to one end and throw the ball to someone. They then choose a question from 1-20 to answer (project this list up on a screen or have a copy to pass around). Adapt for your group. Eventually this creates a web as well as learning about people in the group.
Ideas for Questions:

29.

What are the top 3 songs on your playlist?

If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?

What three things would you save if your house were burning?

What would be your dream concert to attend?

Art Collector
Give everyone a piece of paper and a pencil. In 5 minutes, each must draw a picture that conveys who he or she is without writing any words or numbers. At the end of five minutes, collect the pictures. Show them to the group one at a time and have them try to guess who drew it. The person who guesses the most correctly gets to be the "Master Art Collector!"
You may have played some of these under a different name or variation, but tried-and-true icebreakers are a great way to bring kids out of their shell and get the fun started.

Julie David is married to a worship pastor and after 20 years in ministry together with three daughters, she is still developing the tender balance of thick skin and gracious heart. She currently leads a small group of high school junior girls.

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Icebreakers can ease everyone into interacting with each other and create some great memories..."Remember when we had to screech like Pterodactyls?" In a youth group setting, that's a great way to start building the spiritual community your students are craving. Pick a few of these to get your group going.

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100 Common Spelling Mistakes that Even Native English Speakers Make

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You love listening to their music and watching them in films and TV shows, but did you know that English isn't the only language of some of your favourite celebs? Check out our list of multilingual celebrities and prepare to be impressed!

Afrikaans

A bona fide Hollywood superstar, Charlize Theron is actually a native South African whose mother tongue is Afrikaans. And if you were curious about the correct pronunciation of her name and what she sounds like speaking her language, check it out here:

Albanian

Spoken in just a handful of countries, the second language on our list is spoken by none other than Rita Ora! You may love her music and her style, but you probably didn't know she spoke Albanian! Born in the former Yugoslavia to Albanian parents, it's no surprise that she's bilingual.

Danish

In addition to speaking perfect Spanish in the film Alatriste, this actor of Lord of the Rings fame grew up speaking English and Danish. Viggo Mortensen may have been born in New York, but with a Danish father, it's clear that he speaks the language as well as a native!

French

You may know her for her role as Clarice in the legendary film, Silence of the Lambs, but did you know that Jodie Foster not only speaks French, but speaks it well enough to dub her own films? She attended a French school growing up which accounts for her flawless French.

Another celeb that speaks French? Hollywood heartthrob, Bradley Cooper. Check out his skills speaking French on a press junket for one of his films!

German

If you're a fan of the romantic comedy, you definitely know and love this actress. Sandra Bullock was born to a German mother, and made an acceptance speech at a German awards show while showing off her impressive language skills:

Another A-lister who speaks German? Leonardo DiCaprio himself!

Italian

It would be hard to find a celebrity more typically British than Colin Firth, but just have a listen to him speaking Italian to shake up your preconceived notions of the actor! And the reason why he speaks it is super romantic... he learned it for his Italian wife.

Sports fans might be shocked to learn that one of the world's most famous basketball players, Kobe Bryant, also speaks fluent Italian! He actually lived in Italy from ages 6 through 14.

Japanese

A notoriously difficult language to learn, you won't believe the two multilingual celebrities who count Japanese among the languages they speak. The first is Napoleon Dynamite himself, actor Jon Heder, and the second is Oscar-nominated actor, Edward Norton. Heder was once a Mormon missionary in Japan, while Norton actually worked for a Japanese company in Osaka after graduating from Yale University.

Mandarin

The brilliant mind behind Facebook also speaks Mandarin Chinese! If there's anyone up for a challenge, it's Mark Zuckerberg, but it also doesn't hurt that his wife is Chinese-American.

Russian

This popular actress may have got her start as an all-American girl in That 70's Show, but Mila Kunis was actually born in the former Soviet Union and still speaks flawless Russian today.

Spanish

With her blonde locks and impressive ability to nail a British accent (she's American), Gwyneth Paltrow actually speaks quite good Spanish. Check out the video of Gwyneth explaining how she learned the language in a little village near Toledo:

Swedish

Finally, the latest actress to take on the role of Lara Croft in the Tomb Raider reboot, Hollywood starlet Alicia Vikander was born in Sweden. In addition to her native tongue, Swedish, she also learned to speak Danish for one of her films. In the video below she'll teach you a little Swedish slang:

If these multilingual celebrities have mastered more than one language, anyone can!
Become a language all-star

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The world's most famous multilingual celebrities | ESL

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You love listening to their music and watching them in films and TV shows, but did you know that English isn't the only language of some of your favourite celebs? Check out our list of multilingual celebrities and prepare to be impressed!

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9 Famous Bilingual People Who Are More Successful Thanks To Language

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If you study the lives and habits of successful people, you might be able to identify a number of common traits. One, they're hardworking and tenacious. Two, they don't let failures and setbacks deter them. Three, a decent number of them know more than one language.

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This list contains information about celebrities who learned English as their second language, loosely ranked by fame and popularity. Several famous people are bilingual and those on this list learned ESL. Many celebrities who learned English later in life are also fluent in several other languages.

Which celebrities learned English as a second language? Sofia Vergara tops this list. She was born in Barranquilla, Colombia and learned English at Marymount School Barranquilla, a private bilingual Spanish/English school. Mila Kunis was born in Chernivtsi, Ukraine, SSR. She spoke Russian while living in Chernivtsi, but her family moved to the U.S. in 1991. She can speak both Russian and English fluently.

Ricky Martin was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He grew up speaking Spanish and later learned to speak fluent English. Andy Garcia was born in Havana, Cuba. His native language is Spanish, but his mother, who was an English teacher, taught him to speak English at an early age.

Do you think it would be difficult to learn English as a second language? Share your thoughts in the comments section.

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31 Celebrities Who Learned English as a Second Language

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This list contains information about celebrities who learned English as their second language, loosely ranked by fame and popularity. Several famous people are bilingual and those on this list learned ESL. Many celebrities who learned English later in life are also fluent in several other...

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Why positive body language matters when working with ELLs

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EL Coordinator May Mosallam: Why building relationships with ELL matters

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SIOP Lesson Plans and Activities

Our collection of SIOP lesson plans and activities includes exemplary SIOP lesson plans developed by teachers who were involved in the foundational SIOP research study, as well as new updates from our current research and professional development projects. We invite you to read these lesson plans and activities individually or with your colleagues in order to learn more about the SIOP Model. You may want to discuss why these lessons are effective for English learners or how to incorporate the SIOP strategies these teachers used in your own lessons.

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Spotlight

CAL was a partner in the Center for Research on the Educational Achievement and Teaching of English Language Learners (CREATE). CREATE researchers developed curriculum to build the language and literacy skills of English learners in the middle grades. Lesson plans and materials were infused with instructional features of the SIOP Model including language objectives, explicit vocabulary instruction, student interaction, building background knowledge, and comprehensible input.
Learn more.

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Our collection of SIOP lesson plans and activities includes exemplary SIOP lesson plans developed by teachers who were involved in the foundational SIOP research study, as well as new updates from our current research and professional development projects. We invite you to read these lesson plans and activities individually or with your colleagues in order to learn more about the SIOP Model.

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What Is the SIOP Model?

The Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) Model is a research-based and validated instructional model that has proven effective in addressing the academic needs of English learners throughout the United States.

The SIOP Model consists of eight interrelated components:

Lesson Preparation

Building Background

Comprehensible Input

Strategies

Interaction

Practice/Application

Lesson Delivery

Review & Assessment

Using instructional strategies connected to each of these components, teachers are able to design and deliver lessons that address the academic and linguistic needs of English learners.

Who benefits from SIOP instruction?

As the number of English learners increases in schools across the United States, educators are seeking effective ways to help them succeed in K-12 ESL, content area, and bilingual classrooms. Research shows that when teachers fully implement the SIOP Model, English learners' academic performance improves. Learn about the SIOP Model research base.

In addition, teachers report that SIOP-based teaching benefits all students, not just those who are learning English as an additional language.

SIOP instruction also benefits students learning content through another language. CAL has conducted research on adapting the SIOP Model for use in two-way immersion (dual language) programs.

To learn more about working with CAL, email the CAL SIOP team.

Spotlight

CAL collaborates with schools, states, and districts to design and conduct SIOP professional development programs that meet their particular needs. Informed by CAL's ongoing research, our experienced SIOP team can provide a range of services, including SIOP workshops, coaching, site visits, and technical assistance.

Learn more about our services.

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The Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) Model is a research-based and validated instructional model that has proven effective in addressing the academic needs of English learners throughout the United States.