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This website provides 7,000 videos on a range of educational topics for students.

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Browse over 4,000 smart and educational videos with a growing set of Video Collections on The Kid Should See This: Science, tech, animals, art, and more.

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Here are student writing samples organized by grade level and proficiency level. These samples are helpful for teachers and students to understand what the language expectations for each proficiency level look like.

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This collection of grade-level writing samples provides teachers of English Language Learners with examples of student writing at each proficiency level. Teachers can use these interactive examples to build their understanding of the different writing competencies and levels within the Benchmarks.
Select a writing sample below.

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This collection of grade-level writing samples provides teachers of English Language Learners with examples of student writing at each proficiency level. Teachers can use these interactive examples to build their understanding of the different writing competencies and levels within the Benchmarks. Select a writing sample below.

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How to Use Translations in the Classroom 

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How to Use Translations in the Classroom 

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by Valentina Gonzalez

Primary language support (PLS) is the use of students' first languages to build on the development of their target language. For example, if a child first learned Italian at home and then begins school in America, the primary language of Italian would be used as a leverage to build the English language.

Primary language support is not the same as bilingual instruction. Bilingual instruction differs from PLS because in bilingual instruction, content is taught in the student's primary language. On the other hand, PLS is used in English instruction to make content comprehensible and to lower the linguistic load. Students' primary languages are used as a leverage to support the acquisition of English.

For many decades in the United States, primary language support has been a highly controversial topic in education. Some argue that the use of primary language may delay ELs' English language development. However, Claude Goldenberg states in a 2013 article for American Educator that, "there is an inherent advantage of knowing and being literate in two languages."

Primary language support benefits English learners because it promotes an assets-based stance. PLS views students from a strengths-based lens and makes us ask, "What literacy do students come to us already having? How can we use their primary literacy in order to grow literacy in a new language?"

PLS also lives under the premise that language is tied to a student's identity. And if we believe that, then we honor students' identities by making room for all of their native languages. We make connections to their linguistic repertoire and teach them how to do the same.

Primary language support is easily given when a teacher or paraprofessional speaks the same language as the student. However, it can still be provided if you don't speak the languages your students speak. As an ESL teacher, I had students who spoke various languages including Spanish, Russian, Portuguese, Korean, Mandarin Chinese, Urdu, Telugu, Egyptian, Japanese, and many others. There's a common misconception that, when you have many students that speak a variety of languages, it's too difficult to use primary language support. Here are some ways to use PLS even when you don't speak your students' primary language.

1. Bilingual Dictionaries: Bilingual dictionaries can be an excellent resource for students who are literate in their primary language and are able to use them effectively in mainstream classrooms. However, for students who have difficulty reading in their primary language, they are of little use. It's important to find out how well your students listens, speaks, reads, and writes in their primary languages. You can find out by asking the children, asking parents, and making observations. If you have access to a book in the child's primary language, ask him or her to read to you. Even if you can't understand the language yourself, you can make observations about the student's reading and speaking. Does the student sound fluent or are they reading word for word? Are they sounding out words and getting stuck? Are they pointing to the words? Do they seem to be exhausted by the text? If they selected the text, does it look age appropriate? All of these observations will help you determine if a bilingual dictionary will be an appropriate PLS for your student.

2. Label the Classroom: Label the room in English and in the students' primary languages. Students can help with this. The labels are a great source for reading materials during transition times of the day, such as lining up for lunch or recess or at the end of class. Teachers point to the labels and students chorally read or echo read the words in English. Some teachers play reading games with the labels, such as asking students to find the object in the room that ends with "ER." The primary language support provided by the labels in students' primary language helps make the new vocabulary comprehensible.

3. Encourage Primary Language Use: Encourage students to continue reading, writing, speaking, and listening in their primary language at home. , Goldenberg asserts that many experimental studies show that "learning to read in their home language helps ELs boost reading skills in English." Sometimes parents will ask if they should speak English at home with their children, and it is recommended that parents communicate with their children in the language they feel most comfortable with. According to Wayne Wright , "reading or being read to at home in the home language promotes literacy development and allows parents to participate in their child's education." One way to support students with primary language literature is to begin purchasing it for your classroom or school library. Many popular books come translated in various languages. When you have extra funds, start buying books that reflect your students. They will love seeing their language represented.

4. Preview-Review: In its essence, Preview-Review is done with a teacher or paraprofessional who speaks the same language that the student speaks. You begin by previewing a lesson with the student in his/her primary language. Then the lesson is taught in English. Finally it is reviewed in the primary language. So what if you don't speak the students' languages? You can modify Preview-Review by offering students an avenue to explore the content ahead of time in their primary language. Then teach in English. And finally express themselves (orally or in writing) in their primary language for the review. Some teachers share upcoming units of study with parents and recommend that parents talk to their kids about the topics in their primary language before they are taught in class. This is another way to modify Preview-Review.

5. Cognates are words that are related in two languages. For example, (English) and (Serbian). Whenever possible, explicitly teach cognates. Even though cognates may seem obvious to us, for some students they are not obvious. As students begin to see the relationship between the two languages, they will become attuned to cognates.

It is not uncommon to hear teachers say that they want students to only speak in English during their class period. Often they are well intentioned. They want students to learn English. They want them to practice English. They want them to be successful not only in their class but in their future, too. However, if we acknowledge that language is central to our identities but we tell someone they can't use their native language, then what message are we conveying? Keeping in mind that learning happens when we feel that we belong - that we are safe, that we are valued - how can we convey a message that creates a safe, comfortable, accepting environment?

There is no way to turn off a language that is already within someone. If you were a second language learner in a classroom, your primary language would be there whether your teacher allowed you to use it or not. By inhibiting students, we are blocking their cognitive ability to grow as learners and thinkers in the content area. This also breeds assimilation rather than acculturation. Assimilation is the process of becoming like everyone else, similar, and erasing one's identity. Assimilation a subtractive approach, while acculturation honors both cultures and represents bicultural living, an additive approach.

As you move forward from here, think of where you are in using PLS with students. Perhaps you were on the fence about it before. Maybe you used to think that it wasn't an option in an ESL setting, or you didn't think it was important. Think about what your next steps will be from here. How will you support English learners as they continue to acquire language and content without losing their own native language and culture?

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Primary Language Support in General Education Classrooms

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by Valentina Gonzalez What is Primary Language Support? Primary language support (PLS) is the use of students' first languages to build on the development of their target language. For example, if a child first learned Italian at home and then begins school in America, the primary language of Italian would be used as a leverage...

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These strategies include step-by-step guides, ideas for differentiation, tips for connecting to students' home languages, and resources such as videos and practical examples.

While these strategies were compiled with English language learners (ELLs) in mind, they can be used to support academic language development for all students.

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Colorín Colorado is a national multimedia project that offers a wealth of bilingual, research-based information, activities, and advice for educators and families of English language learners (ELLs). Colorín Colorado is an educational service of WETA, the flagship public broadcasting station in the nation's capital, and receives major funding from the American Federation of Teachers and National Education Association.

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Success for Students with Interrupted Formal Education

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Success for Students with Interrupted Formal Education

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Preview/Review Strategy for ELs with First Language Literacy Skills

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Preview/Review Strategy for ELs with First Language Literacy Skills

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ESL/ELL 3-minute tips. Video #3. Using Primary Language to teach Newcomers

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Get access to files anywhere through secure cloud storage and file backup for your photos, videos, files and more with Google Drive.

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Setting up Technology for Subtitles and Read Aloud

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Setting up Technology for Subtitles and Read Aloud

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Modifications and Online Links: The Best Collection of Online Resources!!

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Modifications and Online Links: The Best Collection of Online Resources!!

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Unite for Literacy provides free digital access to picture books, narrated in many languages. Literacy is at the core of a healthy community, so we unite with partners to enable all families to read with their young children.

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Starfall Education: Kids Games, Movies, Books & Music for K-5 and above

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At Starfall, children have fun while they learn - specializing in reading, phonics & math - educational games, movies, books, songs, and more for children K-5 and above.

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Instantly access over 40,000 of the best books & videos for kids on Epic

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My ENL (English as a New Language) Page  - GREAT RESOURCES!

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My ENL (English as a New Language) Page  - GREAT RESOURCES!

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My ENL Page - Beginner/ Newcomer Resources

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What ELLs Need on the First Day of School Starting Newcomers on the Right Foot All About Me Printables First Week of Back to School Activities Blog - A World of Language Learners Back to School Ideas Welcome to School Video for ELLs Scaffolding

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English Language Development Standards - Resource Hub

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English Language Development Standards - Resource Hub

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Great resources for integrating content and language instruction!

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Go To Strategies - Great for ELs and ALL Students!

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Go To Strategies - Great for ELs and ALL Students!

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ELL Newcomer Classroom Preparation Checklist.pdf

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https://forms.gle/yitfL8e2C1Q9eGbg9

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Click below to hear how to scaffold your lessons for newcomers:

Schools across the United States are welcoming a record number of ELL students who are new to the country and new to the English language. When you're working with newcomers, it's really important that you take time to get to know them so they feel welcomed and comfortable in the classroom environment. I talk more about this in Episode 3, so if you haven't listened, be sure to check it out.

It's also important to gather background information about each newcomer so that you can understand how to best support them and their language needs. There is a big difference in how you approach learning for a newcomer that has a foundation of literacy in their native language and a newcomer who doesn't.

If you've welcomed newcomers to your classroom and you're wondering what to do next to get them excited and engaged with learning, you are going to love today's episode. I'm laying out step-by-step what to do once you've welcomed your newcomers and you are ready to scaffold your lessons to meet their needs.

I'll be sharing specific things to think about when planning your lessons that are both practical and easy to implement, even if you've never had a newcomer in your classroom before. Trying just one of these ideas for the next 2-3 weeks can have a big impact on the learning experience for your newcomers. I'd love to know which one you're going to try first!

If you're feeling overwhelmed with your newcomers or intermediate ELLs, we are here to help! Come join us inside the Equipping ELLs Membership, where we provide monthly lesson plans for both newcomers and intermediates, plus all the resources that go with those plans. We have coaching calls, and we have the best community of amazing and passionate educators of ELLs!

Topics discussed in this episode:

Why even experienced ELL teachers may need to shift their approach with recent newcomers and simple tips you can use to scaffold for them

Scaffolds that work well for homeroom teachers so newcomers feel involved, safe, and excited about learning

Where to spend your time when it comes to working with newcomers, whether you're a homeroom teacher or an ESL teacher

Why collaboration between homeroom teachers and ESL teachers is so powerful for students

How to encourage and empower newcomers so they can build their confidence when it comes to language learning

5 easy but effective ways to scaffold your whole group lessons so students unlock content at their language level, keeping them engaged and excited while building their knowledge base

Related resources:

Related episodes and blog posts:

Connect with Beth:

More about Equipping ELLs:

We all know that teaching isn't easy, but it doesn't have to be this hard. Equipping ELLs is a podcast for both ESL specialists and homeroom teachers who are looking for effective and engaging ways to support their English Language Learners without adding to their endless to-do list. Tune in each week to hear tips, strategies, and inspirational stories that will empower you to better reach your ELL students, equip them with life-long skills, and strengthen relationships with colleagues and parents.

Your host, Beth Vaucher, is the founder of Inspiring Young Learners. She is an ESL certified homeroom teacher with over 10 years of experience teaching in the US and internationally. Her background of M.Ed in ESL and Curriculum and Instruction combined with her experience has led her to develop a bestselling newcomer curriculum that has sold in over 90 countries around the globe. She brings a different perspective to teaching ELLs from her years teaching and living abroad and working with ELLs from around the world. You will walk away from each episode with the ideas and tools you need to transform your experience as a teacher and cultivate a thriving and welcoming environment for your ELL students.

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5 Ways to Scaffold Your Lessons for Newcomers

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Schools across the United States are welcoming a record number of ELL students who are new to the country and new to the English language. When you're working with newcomers, it's really important that you take time to get to know them so they feel welcomed and comfortable in the classroom environment.

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Microsoft Translator is a free, personal translation app for more than 70 languages, to translate text, voice, conversations, camera photos and screenshots. You can also download languages for offline translation for free to use when you travel.

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Microsoft Translator is a free, personal translation app for more than 70 languages, to translate text, voice, conversations, camera photos and screenshots. You can also download languages for offline translation for free to use when you travel.

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View this online tutorial to discover great tips for newcomers! Although this tutorial was created during our time of remote learning, the strategies are perfect for teaching ELs face-to-face!

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Copy of Teaching Newcomers During Remote Learning.mp4

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Grading Guidelines for Novice English Learners

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Duolingo is the world's most popular way to learn a language. It's 100% free, fun and science-based. Practice online on duolingo.com or on the apps!

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Visit the elearning resources to find a program called Transparent Languages.

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This course is designed for anyone who wants to learn Spanish pronto. You'll learn 6 easy recipes for gluing Spanish words together to form sentences.

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Ways to Modify Assessments for Newcomer ELs

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Using Informal Assessments for English Language Learners

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Informal assessments (also called authentic or alternative) allow teachers to track the ongoing progress of their students regularly and often. While standardized tests measure students at a particular point in the year, ongoing assessments provide continual snapshots of where students are throughout the school year.

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If you are a classroom or content-area educator trying to figure out how to teach English language learners (ELLs), you are not alone! You are off to a good start by looking for ways to support your students!

There are many things you can do that will make a big difference to ELLs, and they often prove helpful for other students in the class as well.

Here are some ideas to help you begin. Look for a few ideas you can try and one or two topics where you would like to learn more information.

Note: This article also includes some research-based recommendations offered by Dr. Diane August in her 2018 American Educator article, Educating English Language Learners: A Review of the Latest Research.

Getting Started

1. Get to know your students.

ELLs are a tremendously diverse student group. In order to serve your students effectively, it will be helpful to:

In addition, it's helpful to know more about their home language, literacy skills in that language, prior schooling, and current levels of English proficiency (keeping in mind that students' levels may have changed during the pandemic since the last time they were assessed).

You don't have to do this all at once and it's best not to overwhelm students or families with a lot of questions at the beginning, but taking some small steps early on can make a big difference throughout the year. Learn more from the following:

Videos: Why building relationships with ELLs matters

2. Be mindful of your communication.

In order to communicate effectively with your students:

Speak clearly and naturally, without going too quickly or slowly.

Simplify language without "dumbing it down."

Be mindful of your body language.

Encourage your students through positive body language and expressions, especially when they make mistakes.

Be patient and encourage classmates to do the same if needed.

Encourage students to raise their hand if they don't understand a word.

Avoid slang and idiomatic expressions.

Video: Why positive body language matters when working with ELLs

3. Create a language-rich environment.

ELLs will benefit from increased exposure to print and language. A print-rich environment will include access to books and reference materials, labels (in students' languages and English) and posters, and student work on bulletin boards. Word walls are also a great support for ELLs, and may be organized around a number of concepts, including:

the alphabet and phonetic sounds

new vocabulary words

sight words

grammar rules

conversational phrases

writing structures.

Video: Using sentence frames with ELLs

4. Learn how to plan lessons that incorporate best practices for ELLs.

Take a look at our article on lesson planning for ELLs for ideas on how to:

identify background knowledge needed to understand the lesson

connect content to students' experience

identify content and language objectives

identify key vocabulary and academic language needed for the lesson

scaffold and differentiate instruction

incorporate peer learning into your instruction.

Video: Teaching ELLs the names of all 50 states

Language and Literacy Instruction

5. Learn some basic information about how students acquire a new language.

A good place to start is a basic overview of the process and stages of language acquisition. It's also important to learn about the four key domains, or skill areas, of language: speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Students need instruction and practice all four of these domains.

Drs. Andrea Honigsfeld and Maria Dove include "interaction" in that list for the helpful acronym SWIRL:
Image credit: Input and output in language development. WelchEducation.com. Used with permission.
Keep in mind the following:

Students are assessed in the four language domains each year through their English language proficiency (ELP) assessment, although that assessment may have been disrupted or done under difficult circumstances during the pandemic. Your ESL colleagues should have access to that data and you can check your students' proficiency levels across different domains.

Students may be stronger in one domain than another.For example, a student may be more proficient in speaking than writing.

ELLs need explicit language instruction, scaffolding, and modeling in across all four domains.

Related resources

6. Teach academic oral language skills.

Oral language skills are an essential part of a student's language and literacy development. Students will need guided practice and modeling to develop the academic language needed for classroom discussions and presentations. You can see more ideas for how to do so in the resources below:

In order for ELLs to access grade-level content, they may need additional literacy support and instruction. Here are a few initial steps to take; much more information is available in the links below.

Learn more about students' literacy skills in their home language and in English. If students need to develop their foundational skills, work with an ESL teacher and reading specialist together to identify some helpful strategies and resources to use.

Provide students with opportunities to engage more deeply with grade-level text. Some strategies for doing so are available in the resources below, but you may wish to request additional training for staff in this area since it takes some practice.

Give students numerous opportunities to write across content areas and for a variety of audiences. Ideas for scaffolding ELLs' writing follow below.

To see some related strategies in action, take a look at our Classroom Video library. Many of these videos and classroom materials were developed as part of our Common Core and ELLs project developed with Dr. August.

Related resources

8. Try only one new thing at a time.

Teaching multiple new things at the same time often doesn't work! When introducing new material, remember the following:

If you are teaching new language, use old content.

If you are teaching new content, use old language.

Video: Try one new thing at a time

Students' Home Languages as a Resource

9. Draw upon students' home languages as a resource.

Students' home languages are a valuable resource. Even if you don't speak those languages and are not working in a bilingual setting, there are way to tap into them to support instruction.

For example, Dr. August shares a number of research-based strategies that draw upon the home language such as the following:

using bilingual glossaries

providing background information in students' home languages

peer work in students' home languages

explicit instruction in how to use cognates or build on their own skills in their home language.

Related resources

Learn more about what using students' language can look like in this related series from Larry Ferlazzo on Education Week, this resource guide on translanguaging, and these recommendations from Tan Huynh.

Monitoring Student Progress

10. Use informal assessment on a regular basis.

It's important to use informal tools to monitor student progress in addition to more formal measures. That might mean something like quick comprehension checks during a lesson or exit tickets. You may also wish to use tools such as graphic organizers. More ideas are available in the resources below.

Coming up with a correction/feedback policy

While it is difficult to know when to correct students, constructive and effective feedback is essential to student progress. Nevertheless, it is important to balance between encouragement and error correction. One way to do this is to focus on one or two concepts at a time when listening to or reading student work. Let students know what you will be focusing on so that they in turn can focus on those particular concepts in the assignment.

Another strategy is to circle errors in writing assignments, and have students try to figure out what the mistakes were. Most of the time students are able to correct their own writing errors once they focus on the circled area. If they are still stuck, try giving them the answer and asking them to explain why it is correct. If they don't know the answer, ask them to consult with a classmate. If no one else knows the answer, review the structure as a group.

Related resources

Video: Assessment for ELLs

11. If a student is struggling, proceed with care.

If a student is struggling, it's important to proceed carefully and in collaboration with colleagues. Discuss your concerns with an ESL teacher to identify some targeted areas of instruction and ideas for progress monitoring. (Dr. August shares some ideas towards the end of the her research review for this kind of monitoring.) In addition, talk with the student's family to determine whether there is any important information you should know about factors that might impact the student's learning.

Keep in mind the following:

Nationwide, ELLs are both over-identified and under-identified for special education. Over-correction in one direction can lead to misjudgments in the other.

There is no single checklist or factor that can determine when a student needs extra support and what kind of support that might be, which is why it is imperative to work in close collaboration with ESL educators, family members, special educators, and reading/speech specialists if you are reviewing a student's situation.

The types of support that students receive in special education are different than those that students receive in ESL classes. Referral to special education is not a silver bullet where students will "at least get some help." A special education referral is a step that should only be taken after careful progress monitoring and targeted instruction (in the absence of an immediate and obvious need for services) and in consultation with a team that includes ESL educators and the student's family.

Related resources

Video: Having enough data to look at progress over time

Tips for Collaboration

12. Reach out to your ELL colleagues for ideas.

Don't hesitate to reach out to ELL colleagues in your building or district (they may have a wide range of titles). They are experts in supporting ELL instruction. Even if schools have not made formal collaboration time a priority, you can start with small steps. A concrete question or example is often a very good place to start collaboration.

If you find the collaboration helpful, share your successes with colleagues and administrators - you may be able to advocate for more collaboration time in the future! While it may be difficult to find time to meet on a regular basis, increased collaboration among all of the educators working with ELLs will improve their chances for success.

Video: Collaborating to support an ELL with special needs

Closing Thoughts

There is a lot of information here, but remember that it's ok to start with small steps. And when something doesn't work, don't hesitate to go back to the drawing board! Make some adjustments and try again, and if it still doesn't work, move on to a new strategy. You will soon find what works for your students and will come to appreciate the privilege to be a part of their journey.

Video: When new strategies don't work

Discussion Questions

What are some strategies that you can try here on your own?

What are some topics you would like to learn more about in professional development?

What is an example of a lesson you might teach differently in the future?

What are some ways you can try collaborating with your other ESOL or bilingual colleagues?

Recommended Resources

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Supporting ELLs in the Mainstream Classroom: 12 Strategies for Language Instruction

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If you are a classroom or content-area educator trying to figure out how to teach English language learners (ELLs), you are not alone! You are off to a good start by looking for ways to support your students!

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Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.

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This website will translate pdf documents for free.

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Free, Online Document Translator which translates office documents (PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OpenOffice, text) into multiple languages, preserving the original layout. Supported file formats: Word: doc, docx; PDF: pdf; Excel: xls, xlsx; Powerpoint; ppt, pptx; Text xml, txt.... This translator supports: English, Afrikaans, Albanian, Arabic, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Basque, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Catalan, Chinese, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Filipino, Finnish, French, Galician, Georgian, German, Greek, Haitian Creole, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Indonesian, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Malay, Maltese, Norwegian, Persian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swahili, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese, Welsh, Yiddish

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Differentiating Instruction: A Guide for Teaching English-Language Learners

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Listen to this post as a podcast:
A note on terminology: The acronym ESL is used less often now in schools than it used to be, because we recognize that many students who are learning English already speak several other languages, so English would not be a "second" language. I use it several times in the post because schools sometimes refer to the teachers as ESL teachers, and the term is still widely used as a search term for this topic. My intent in using the acronym is to make this post easier to find online.

You have a new student, and he speaks no English. His family has just moved to your town from Japan, and though he receives English as a Second Language (ESL) support, he will also be sitting in your room every day to give him more exposure to his new language. How can you be a good teacher to someone who barely understands you?

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, an average of 9 percent of students in U.S. public schools are English Language Learners (ELLs); that number is closer to 14 percent in cities. Although many of these students start off in high-intensity, whole-day English programs, most are integrated into mainstream classrooms within a year, well before their English language skills would be considered proficient.

How prepared are you to teach these students? If you're like most classroom teachers, you have little to no training in the most effective methods for working with English language learners (Walker, Shafer, & Iiams, 2004). So that means we have a problem here: Lots of ELL kids in regular classrooms, and no teacher training to ensure the success of that placement.

Below, three ESL teachers tell us what they know about the things regular classroom teachers can do to improve instruction for ELL students. These 12 strategies are simple, they are not very time consuming, and best of all, they will help everyone in your class learn better:

1. Make it Visual

"Avoid giving instructions in the air," says Melissa Eddington, an Ohio-based ESL teacher. "ELL kids have a harder time processing spoken language." So instructions - even basic directions for classroom procedures - should be written on the board whenever possible. Challenging concepts should be diagrammed or supported with pictures. And modeling the steps of a process or showing students what a finished product should look like can go a long way toward helping students understand. "Sometimes showing our students what to do is all they need in order to do it," Eddington says. Not only will this kind of nonlinguistic representation improve comprehension for ELL students, it will help all of your students grasp concepts better.

2. Build in more group work.

"Kids aren't just empty glasses that we pour stuff into and then at the end of the day they dump it back onto a test," says Kim, an ESL teacher who was the subject of my very first podcast interview. "If you really want the kids to learn, they've got to be engaged." That means less teacher-led, whole-class instruction, and more small groups, where students can practice language with their peers in a more personal, lower-risk setting. And if ELL students attend your class with a resource teacher, make use of that person: In most cases the resource teacher doesn't have to work exclusively with the ESL students; they can work with smaller groups that happen to contain these students, helping to improve the teacher-student ratio and give kids more time to practice.

3. Communicate with the ESL teacher.

Mary Yurkosky, a former ESL teacher in Massachusetts, credits much of her students' success to the strong relationship she had with the regular classroom teachers. "The classroom teachers were always talking to me about what they were doing in their classes," she says. "They made it so easy for me to support them: If a teacher was going to be doing a unit on plants, I could make sure we used some of that same vocabulary in the ESL class."

Ideally, this could be systematized, where ESL teachers could regularly get copies of lesson plans or collaborate with regular classroom teachers to build solid back-and-forth support, but "it doesn't have to be that much work," Yurkosky insists. "Just talk to each other. Talk about what's going on in your classrooms, invite each other to special presentations, share what your students are learning, and the words will naturally find their way into the ESL class."

4. Honor the "silent period."

Many new language learners go through a silent period, during which they will speak very little, if at all. "Don't force them to talk if they don't want to," says Eddington, "A lot of students who come from cultures outside of America want to be perfect when they speak, so they will not share until they feel they are at a point where they're perfect." Just knowing that this is a normal stage in second language acquisition should help relieve any pressure you feel to move them toward talking too quickly.

5. Allow some scaffolding with the native language.

Although it has been a hotly debated topic in the language-learning community, allowing students some use of their first language (L1) in second-language (L2) classrooms is gaining acceptance. When a student is still very new to a language, it's okay to pair him with other students who speak his native language. "Some students are afraid to open their mouths at all for fear of sounding stupid or just not knowing the words to use," Yurkosky says. "Letting them explain things or ask questions in their first language gets them to relax and feel like a part of the class."

And this doesn't only apply to spoken language. If you give students a written assignment, but the ELL student doesn't yet have the proficiency to handle writing his response in English, "Don't make them just sit there and do nothing," Eddington says. "Allow them to write in their first language if they're able. This allows them to still participate in journal writing or a math extended response, even if you can't read what they write." There has even been some evidence that allowing second-language learners to pre-write and brainstorm in L1 results in higher-quality writing in L2 in later stages of the writing process (Yigzaw, 2012).

6. Look out for culturally unique vocabulary.

"For most of these kids, their background knowledge is lacking, especially with things that are unique to American or westernized culture," says Eddington. It's important to directly teach certain vocabulary words: "Show them videos of what it looks like to toss pizza dough, show pictures of a juke box or a clothing rack - things that are not common in their own language."

One way to differentiate for ELL students is to consider the whole list of terms you're going to teach for a unit, and if you think an ELL student may be overwhelmed by such a long list, omit those that are not essential to understanding the larger topic at hand.

7. Use sentence frames to give students practice with academic language.

All students, not just English language learners, need practice with academic conversations. Sentence frames - partially completed sentences like "I disagree with what _________ said because..." - show students how to structure language in a formal way. Keep these posted in a highly visible spot in your classroom and require students to refer to them during discussions and while they write.

For this kind of language to really sink in, though, Kim says it has to become a regular part of class. "They won't do it if it's not the norm in the class, because they'll be embarrassed to use it among their peers," she says. "But if they can put it off on the teacher and say, Oh, well, you know, Miss Kim makes me talk like this, then they don't look as hoity-toity as they would otherwise."

8. Pre-teach whenever possible.

If you're going to be reading a certain article next week, give ESL students a copy of it now. If you plan to show a YouTube video tomorrow, send a link to your ESL students today. Any chance you can give these students to preview material will increase the odds that they'll understand it on the day you present it to everyone else. "That kind of thing is wonderful," Yurkosky says. "The kids feel so empowered if they've had a chance to look at the material ahead of time."

9. Learn about the cultural background of your students...

Our second-language populations grow more diverse every year. Taking the time to learn the basics of where a child comes from - exactly, not 'somewhere in the Middle East/South America/Asia/Africa' - tells the student that you respect her enough to bother. Kim remembers one time when she had to set the record straight about the diverse South American population at her school: "I was listening to the teachers talking about the 'Mexican' kids in our building," she says, "and I was like, 'We don't have any Mexicans.'" Not taking the time to at least correctly identify a child's country of origin, much like not bothering to pronounce their name correctly, is a kind of microaggression, a small, subtle insult that communicates hostility toward people of color. Make a commitment to be someone who bothers to get it right.

Once you have the country straight, take things up a notch by learning about students' religious and cultural practices. If he is a practicing Muslim, he should be told if one of the pizzas you ordered for the class party has sausage on it. If she comes from a culture where eye contact with adults is viewed as disrespectful, you'll know not to force her to look you in the eye when she's talking.

10. ...but don't make a child speak for his entire culture.

In her podcast interview, Kim shared a story about watching a teacher ask a new Iraqi student how he felt about the war in his country, right in the middle of class. "That's not cultural inclusiveness," she explains. "I've seen teachers do this and then pat themselves on the back. The students' English is limited so they can't express themselves very well, and they don't want to 'represent'; they just want to be there." If you anticipate a theme coming up in your class that's going to be relevant to one of your students, have a conversation with them in advance, or check with your ESL teacher to see if they think it's appropriate for in-class discussion.

11. Show them how to take themselves less seriously...

By modeling the risk-taking that's required to learn a new language, you help students develop the courage to take their own risks, and to have a sense of humor about it. "I tried to say the word 'paint' ( pinta) in Portuguese and instead I said the word for 'penis' ( pinto). They all roared with laughter while I stood there with a What?? look on my face," Yurkosky says. "When they explained what I'd said, I laughed so hard! I told them that laughing was fine because sometimes mistakes are really funny, but ridicule is never okay."

12. ...but always take them seriously.

One of Kim's pet peeves about how teachers interact with English language learners is the way they often see students' efforts as 'cute,' missing the whole point of what the student is trying to say. "A student will be desperate to communicate, and the teacher will get distracted by the delivery and miss the message," she says. "That's painful for me to watch." It bothers her when teachers mistake a lack of language for a lack of intelligence or maturity. When a child can't express themselves as well as they would in their native language, it's far too easy to assume the concepts just aren't in their heads.

"It breaks my heart when I hear teachers say (ELL kids) don't know anything," says Eddington. "These are brilliant kids and they know a lot. They just can't tell us in English yet." Make a conscious effort to see past the accent and the mispronunciations and treat every interaction - every student - with the respect they deserve.

"They're doing twice the job of everybody else in the class," Kim adds, "even though the result looks like half as much." ♦

Further Reading

The ESL/ELL Teacher's Survival Guide is one of the highest-rated books on teaching English-language learners available. In addition to offering an overview of the research on second-language learners and best practices in teaching ESL, it also includes a whole section on teaching ESL in the content areas and another specifically geared toward teaching ELL students in mainstream classrooms.
References:
Walker, A., Shafer, J., & Iiams, M. (2004). "Not in my classroom": Teacher attitudes towards English language learners in the mainstream classroom. NABE Journal of Research and Practice, 2(1), 130-160.

Yigzaw, A. (2012). Impact of L1 use in L2 English writing classes. Ethiopian Journal of Education and Sciences, 8(1), 11-27.

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