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This is a great website that will help you communicate to parents in their native language. One of the administrators just brought this resource up at a meeting this week. I'm lucky because I speak Spanish but my grammar is horrible. This website would help me to be more accurate.

Reach all your students' families in their home languages, using text messages for Free. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://talkingpts.org/

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TalkingPoints - Improving student outcomes through meaningful school-family partnerships.

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TalkingPoints - Improving student outcomes through meaningful school-family partnerships.

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Kelsey Matuszak- PICTURE: Recognize the AnxietyThis poster is hung in our staff room as a reminder to all teachers what it is like to be an ESL student. I love this because this makes you put yourself in their shoes and it's a great reminder to have extra patience on those rough days.

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Kelsey Matuszak- PICTURE: Recognize the AnxietyThis poster is hung in our staff room as a reminder to all teachers what it is like to be an ESL student. I love this because this makes you put yourself in their shoes and it's a great reminder to have extra patience on those rough days.

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As for a reference, i am not sure where they person found this quote or if they created it themselves. I tried to research the source but could not find the exact poster.

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Kelsey Matuszak- GOOGLE VOICE (From Module 1)

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Kelsey Matuszak- GOOGLE VOICE (From Module 1)

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I have found in the past, communicating with families who do not speak English is extremely tough. I have been in situations where I needed to call home for behavior or academic concerns and can not communicate with any adult on the other end of the phone. Often times, their child is their interpreter and they are still learning the language. In the future, I will try Google Voice. From what I read, Google Voice allows you to send an electronic message to the parents in their language, and they can send it back in English. Google Voice can bridge the language gap between the teacher and home.

Reference

Jurca, L., & J., L. (n.d.). Tech Tip Tuesday: Using Google Voice to Communicate with ELL Families. Retrieved from http://esolodyssey.learningwithlaurahj.org/2016/04/tech-tip-tuesday-using-google-voice-to.html

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Kelsey Matuszak-COMMUNICATE WITH THE ESL TEACHER. (From Module 1)

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Kelsey Matuszak-COMMUNICATE WITH THE ESL TEACHER. (From Module 1)

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Our school is fortunate enough to have an ESL teacher because our population of ESL students is high. It is crucial that teachers keep in communication with any teacher they work with, whether it be learning support, autistic support, emotional support, or English Language teacher.  If teachers are not on the same page with skill being taught, content knowledge, and ways we are assessing all our students. Consistency between all teachers will allow students to be successful. I am always talking to other teachers on ways I can help those students when they are in my classroom. At the end of the day, it is all about student success and growth.

Reference from Module 1

12 Ways to Support English Learners in the Mainstream Classroom. (2018, September 21). Retrieved from https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/supporting-esl-students-mainstream-classroom/

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Kelsey Matuszak- GETTING TO KNOW YOUR STUDENTS

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Kelsey Matuszak- GETTING TO KNOW YOUR STUDENTS

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Have students explain to other students and to the teacher about their traditions, hobbies, and family. Students who are from other countries can share their traditions with other students. This allows not only ELL students to share their traditions, it also lets all students learn about each others different cultures and traditions.

Reference

A. (2018, August 23). Getting to Know Your ELLs: Six Steps for Success. Retrieved from http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/getting-know-your-ells-six-steps-success

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I moved to another country as an older teen and I did not speak the language. Given this perspective changes the way one approaches ELLs. It is important to attempt to understand how they perceive things. They often are dealing with much more than just a language barrier. Although not as obvious to most of us, the differences in culture, losing friends and even different foods impact a child's ability to easily assimilate.

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A video compilation of why ESL students struggle to do well despite their best intentions.

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Find ways for parents to become involved

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Find ways for parents to become involved

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Get creative and find ways for parents of ELLs to become involved in the school. This will provide opportunities to to make connections and support success for not only the student, but for his family. It can also expose other students to the ELLs culture and promote understanding.
"Encouraging and Sustaining ELL Parent Engagement | Colorín ...." http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/encouraging-and-sustaining-ell-parent-engagement. Accessed 9 Oct. 2018.

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I am an ESL teacher and I find that I have the most information about my student's. When ESL teacher's and classroom teachers work together, the ESL teacher can provide a lot of helpful information to the classroom teacher.

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It is so important to involve your EL's parents! My district has an ESL Back to School night each September where we invite our students and their families. There are light refreshments and the ESL teachers spend time explaining how the program works for our building. Then several representatives from community programs (including La Comunidad Hispana) come and offer support for our families. The last two years we've also have the building tech coach come and we help parents sign up for Schoology so they can stay involved with their child's school.

Home. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2018, from https://lacomunidadhispana.org/

K. (2018, August 16). Encouraging and Sustaining ELL Parent Engagement. Retrieved October 8, 2018, from http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/encouraging-and-sustaining-ell-parent-engagement

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Patient Testimonials

I was homeless and hopeless. LCH saved my life. They gave me the care I needed to begin to manage my diabetes and depression. And they guided me through the system to help me find a stable home.

Diana, LCH Patient

I was in and out of health insurance coverage for a number of years, and really struggling to find work that could pay for my mortgage and my living expenses. No matter what my situation, LCH saw me and took care of me.

John, LCH Patient

I have been going to LCH for almost fifteen years. I am so happy with the growth of LCH. Now they can help even more people.

Hilda, LCH Patient

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Patient Testimonials I was homeless and hopeless. LCH saved my life. They gave me the care I needed to begin to manage my diabetes and depression. And they guided me through the system to help me find a stable home.

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As an ESL teacher in a K-2 building, I spend the first five-ten days of school meeting kindergarten students. My ESL team and I screen each student that has a language other than English spoken in the home. We use the Listening and Speaking portions of the WAP-T. Depending on how the students perform, we will give the Reading and Writing portions if necessary.

Kindergarten W-APT. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2018, from https://wida.wisc.edu/assess/kwapt

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My biggest struggle as a content teacher is making sure to reach every student. I found this article very validating of my current feelings and struggles and an excellent resource to use as I go forward. I like the idea of creating language objectives as a means of supporting my ELL students in the classroom.

Resource:

A. (2015, December 01). Language Objectives: The Key to Effective Content Area Instruction for English Learners. Retrieved from http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/language-objectives-key-effective-content-area-instruction-english-learners

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We do not have access to Culturegrams in our library. We do, however, have a few resources that I found will be beneficial to help my ELL students when we have to complete research. Our students have access to Cavendish Square Digital, which gives them access to resources they can use for research projects. An important feature for the Cavendish Square Digital is that it can translate the information into a student's native language. Students also have access to Country Reports where they can login and learn about information pertaining to countries all over the world.

http://cavendishsquaredigital.com/%3Bjsessionid=26262E901E12B91D60237DE5BF34CF42

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CountryReports provides over 35,000 pages of online content on the cultures and countries of the world. With unique content from around the world, our members rely on us to keep our database concise and current.

K-12 students, kids, libraries, business and tourists appreciate CountryReport's ability to meet their needs.

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CountryReports provides over 35,000 pages of online content on the cultures and countries of the world. With unique content from around the world, our members rely on us to keep our database concise and current. K-12 students, kids, libraries, business and tourists appreciate CountryReport's ability to meet their needs.

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Being this is my first year with ELL students in my class, I find it quite overwhelming adapting every lesson to meet all of the students needs. I want to make sure that I am challenging every student in my room but I also do not want to overwhelm them or have unrealistic expectations for them. I found the WIDA Can DO Descriptors to be extremely helpful. I feel more confident looking at my lessons and creating realistic activities my ELL students can complete.

Resource:

MPLS-ESL-tools-student-friendly-can-do-descriptors.pdf. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Dfx99oeIBSJM5FicAUBuJCDVxG5Pgixe/view

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This is the first year I have had ELL's in my classroom. I also started off this year on maternity leave and did not begin the school year until a week ago. I am in the process of getting to know all of my students.  So far, I have received information about who my ELL students are and their levels from the ESL teacher . I have also had conversations with her about expectations for each student and what type of accommodations I should make for them in the classroom. Other than that, I have tried my best to communicate with my students and ask them questions about themselves. For my level 1 and 2 students, I have used student translators to communicate for me or I have used Google Translate. We usually share a good laugh when I try to speak in their native language.

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ESL Newsletter Archive: Everybody's Kids. Center for Schools and Communities. Retrieved from https://newsletters.center-school.org/esl-newsletter-archive/

Udovitsch, A. (2018). ESL/ELL Resources to Succeed in School: Helping English Language Learners Succeed in School and Beyond. Community for Accredited Online Schools. Retrieved from https://www.accreditedschoolsonline.org/resources/esl-ell-resources-for-teachers-parents-and-students/

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This is a resource that I am going to share with my colleagues that they can sign-up for to help them to access more information and strategies to help EL students in their classrooms!

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Everybody's Kids is an e-newsletter for all Pennsylvania educators of English learners, including administrators, content-area and classroom teachers, and ESL specialists.

Each quarterly issue highlights:

Upcoming professional development opportunities

Helpful research and resources

Timely topics in the field

Read Everybody's Kids

Read the latest issue of Everybody's Kids (PDF) or browse previous editions, in the left sidebar, of the newsletter online.

To subscribe to Everybody's Kids, please complete the form below, and click the applicable button.

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Everybody's Kids is an e-newsletter for all Pennsylvania educators of English learners, including administrators, content-area and classroom teachers, and ESL specialists. Each quarterly issue highlights: Upcoming professional development opportunities Helpful research and resources Timely topics in the field Read the latest issue of Everybody's Kids (PDF) or browse previous editions, in the left sidebar, of the newsletter online.

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We currently do not have Culturegrams in my district. Our resources to help EL students can be very limited at times. However, I am going to share this program with our ESL department and administration!

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I am currently a Spanish teacher, so the EL students that I usually receive are native Spanish speakers. When I have an EL student coming, our ESL teacher in the building sends out an email containing information about their current level of proficiency and different strategies that we can use in the classroom. I also have them fill out an "About Me" sheet to access a glimpse of their proficiency in their native tongue and to learn more about them. My hope is that I can learn additional strategies to take back to other teachers in my building to help them!

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This seems like a comprehensive site that includes a lot of great resources and information to access when you have ELs in your classroom!

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ESL/ELL Resources to Succeed in School | Accredited Schools Online

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English Language Learners (ELL) have a wealth of resources available to help them succeed in school. Find guidance for teachers, parents, and students here.

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Himmele, P., & Himmele, W. (2011). Total participation techniques: Making every student an active learner. Alexandria, Va: ASCD.

Pillars, W. (2018, June 27). A Quick-Start Guide for Teaching English-Language Learners. Retrieved from https://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2017/09/06/a-quick-start-guide-for-teaching-english-language-learners.html

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We do not have access to Culturegrams. Our resources for ELL’s are greatly limited. The ELL teachers which are brought in to help our students are from outside organizations and typically have never worked with a student as low functioning as ours, which can be frustrating.

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To get an understanding of academic needs, I usually start with math. Math is the universal language. I start with counting and work towards more complex addition and subtraction to get to know where students are academically. I use picture schedules to help students identify wants and needs within the classroom, such as going to the bathroom. I really like how one of the goals from “A Quick Start Guide for Teachers” mentions asking yourself what is essential for the students to get from today’s lesson. It’s how I do a lot of teaching with my students!

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My students come to me and sometimes are nonverbal. A good way to find out about them is to have them draw pictures, allow them to have access to colorful paper, colored pencils and other items. They draw things like family, friends, where they live and you can use that information to get to know them. Every student wants to communicate, so the student will use any knowledge they have to communicate effectively.

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Have the students write something for you in their native language. This gives a really good baseline of what level they are in their current language.  Look for sentences, grammar, and punctuation. Even though the language isn’t the same you can see how advanced their writing is from the grammar.

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Pérsida Himmele and William Himmele Table of Contents

Video | About the Authors

About This Book

Here are 51 easy-to-use, classroom-tested alternatives to the "stand-and-deliver" teaching techniques that cause so many students to tune out or drop out. Teachers report that these techniques motivate students to participate in learning, as they build confidence and are supported by compelling and safe ways to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of lessons.

Refined through years of classroom experiences and supported by updated research, this 2nd edition delivers a dozen new techniques to engage K-12 students in active learning.

The authors provide detailed descriptions of the Total Participation Techniques (TPTs) with step-by-step instructions-plus reproducible blackline masters for student response cards as well as posters to remind you to use the techniques. They also suggest how you can adapt and personalize the techniques to fit your context and content.

Packed with examples from authentic classrooms, Total Participation Techniques is an essential toolkit for teachers who want to present lessons that are relevant, engaging, and cognitively challenging.
See the book's table of contents and read excerpts
Share This Page

Aboutthe Authors

Pérsida Himmele has served as an elementary and middle school teacher, a district administrator, an English language learner program consultant, and a public speaker on issues related to student engagement and teaching in diverse classrooms.
Read more

William Himmele has served as an ESL teacher and a Speech Pathologist, a higher education administrator, an international consultant and a speaker on issues related to increasing student engagement and teaching English language learners.
Read more

teaching

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ASCD Book: Total Participation Techniques: Making Every Student an Active Learner, 2nd ed.

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Pérsida Himmele and William Himmele Table of Contents Video | About the Authors Here are 51 easy-to-use, classroom-tested alternatives to the "stand-and-deliver" teaching techniques that cause so many students to tune out or drop out.

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While I don't have culturegrams, (and am certianly going to look into getting it for my district) I am able to use GRW to learn more about the culture of my EL to better prepare me with any sensitivities or accommodations needed.

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I think this is a great "reminder" resource for making our ELs feel welcome in our classrooms as well as our school.

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Chances are that your English language learners (ELLs) come from a culture with traditions and family values that differ from mainstream American culture. These young children not only have the challenge of learning a new language, but also of adjusting to an unfamiliar cultural setting and school system. Imagine what it would be like to step into a foreign classroom where you didn't understand the language, rules, routines, or expected behavior.

On a daily basis, ELLs are adjusting to new ways of saying and doing things. As their teacher, you are an important bridge to this unknown culture and school system. There are a number of things you can do to help make ELLs' transitions as smooth as possible.

Stages of cultural accommodation

In the same way that ELLs go through stages of English language learning, they may also pass through stages of cultural accommodation. These stages, however, may be less defined and more difficult to notice. Being aware of these stages may help you to better understand "unusual" actions and reactions that may just be part of adjusting to a new culture.

Euphoria: ELLs may experience an initial period of excitement about their new surroundings.

Culture shock: ELLs may then experience anger, hostility, frustration, homesickness, or resentment towards the new culture.

Acceptance: ELLs may gradually accept their different surroundings.

Assimilation/adaptation: ELLs may embrace and adapt to their surroundings and their "new" culture.

Classroom strategies: helping your ELLs adjust to new surroundings

Although there are no specific teaching techniques to make ELLs feel that they belong in a new culture, there are ways for you to make them feel welcome in your classroom:

Learn their names

Take the time to learn how to pronounce your ELLs' names correctly. Ask them to say their name. Listen carefully and repeat it until you know it. If a student's name is Pedro, make sure you do not call him /peedro/ or Peter. Also, model the correct pronunciation of ELLs' names to the class so that all students can say the correct pronunciation.

Offer one-on-one assistance when possible

Some ELLs may not answer voluntarily in class or ask for your help even if they need it. ELLs may smile and nod, but this does not necessarily mean that they understand. Go over to their desk to offer individual coaching in a friendly way. For convenience, it may be helpful to seat ELLs near your desk.

Assign a peer partner

Identify a classmate who really wants to help your ELL as a peer. This student can make sure that the ELL understands what he or she is supposed to do. It will be even more helpful if the peer partner knows the ELL's first language.

Post a visual daily schedule

Even if ELLs do not yet understand all of the words that you speak, it is possible for them to understand the structure of each day. Whether through chalkboard art or images on Velcro, you can post the daily schedule each morning. By writing down times and having pictures next to words like lunch, wash hands, math, and field trip, ELLs can have a general sense of the upcoming day.

Use an interpreter

On-site interpreters can be very helpful in smoothing out misunderstandings that arise due to communication problems and cultural differences. If an on-site interpreter (a paid or volunteer school staff position) is not available, try to find an adult - perhaps another parent who is familiar with the school or "knows the system" - who is willing to serve this purpose. In difficult situations, it would not be appropriate for another child to translate.

ELLs can make unintentional "mistakes" as they are trying hard to adjust to a new cultural setting. They are constantly transferring what they know as acceptable behaviors from their own culture to the U.S. classroom and school. Be patient as ELLs learn English and adjust.

Invite their culture into the classroom

Encourage ELLs to share their language and culture with you and your class. Show-and-tell is a good opportunity for ELLs to bring in something representative of their culture, if they wish. They could also tell a popular story or folktale using words, pictures, gestures, and movements. ELLs could also try to teach the class some words from their native language.

Use materials related to your ELLs' cultures

Children respond when they see books, topics, characters, and images that are familiar. Try to achieve a good balance of books and materials that include different cultures. Browse these bilingual books from our sister site Colorín Colorado.

Label classroom objects in both languages

Labeling classroom objects will allow ELLs to better understand their immediate surroundings. These labels will also assist you when explaining or giving directions. Start with everyday items, such as "door/puerta," "book/libro," and "chair/silla."

Include ELLs in a non-threatening manner

Some ELLs may be apprehensive about speaking out in a group. They might be afraid to make mistakes in front of their peers. Their silence could also be a sign of respect for you as an authority - and not a sign of their inability or refusal to participate. Find ways to involve ELLs in a non-threatening manner, such as through Total Physical Response activities and cooperative learning projects.

Involve ELLs in cooperative learning

Some ELLs are used to working cooperatively on assigned tasks. What may look like cheating to you is actually a culturally acquired learning style - an attempt to mimic, see, or model what has to be done. Use this cultural trait as a plus in your classroom. Assign buddies or peer tutors so that ELLs are able to participate in all class activities. Also, check out these cooperative learning strategies you can use with ELLs.

Help your ELLs follow established rules

All students need to understand and follow your classroom rules from the very beginning, and ELLs are no exception. Teach them your classroom management rules as soon as possible to avoid misunderstandings, discipline problems, and feelings of low self-esteem. Here are a few strategies that you can use in class:

Use visuals like pictures, symbols, and reward systems to communicate your expectations in a positive and direct manner.

Physically model language to ELLs in classroom routines and instructional activities. ELLs will need to see you or their peers model behavior when you want them to sit down, walk to the bulletin board, work with a partner, copy a word, etc.

Be consistent and fair with all students. Once ELLs clearly understand what is expected, hold them equally accountable for their behavior.

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Creating a Welcoming Classroom Environment

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Chances are that your English language learners (ELLs) come from a culture with traditions and family values that differ from mainstream American culture. These young children not only have the challenge of learning a new language, but also of adjusting to an unfamiliar cultural setting and school system.

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12 Ways to Support English Learners in the Mainstream Classroom. (2018, September 21). Retrieved from https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/supporting-esl-students-mainstream-classroom/

A. (2017, January 11). Creating a Welcoming Classroom Environment. Retrieved from http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/creating-welcoming-classroom-environment

WIDA Screener. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://wida.wisc.edu/assess/screener

Get the Global Edge. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.globalroadwarrior.com/

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One way I check for my EL's language ability is by using the WIDA screener.  If they have never been in ESL before, this helps all teachers have an idea of their English Language Proficiency.

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WIDA Screener is an English language proficiency assessment given to new students in Grades 1-12 to help educators identify whether they are English language learners (ELLs). It is a flexible, on-demand assessment that can be administered at any time during the school year. WIDA Screener is available in two formats - online (U.S.

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This is one of my favorite blogs/podcasts. I keep it in my PD presentation each year!

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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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12 Ways to Support English Learners in the Mainstream Classroom

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Advice from three ESL teachers on the things regular classroom teachers can do to help English language learners thrive in mainstream classrooms.

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Tech Tip: How to Add Audio, Video, and Picture Notes to Padlet Walls

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Tech Tip: How to Add Audio, Video, and Picture Notes to Padlet Walls

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Ed Tech Leader, Richard Byrne, demonstrates how "Padlet makes it easy to collect multimedia notes from students. In this video you'll learn how to use the latest Padlet feature, audio recording, as well as the tried and true video and picture note options."

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How to Add Audio, Video, and Picture Notes to Padlet Walls

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Our district does not have this resource but it sounds very informative and beneficial. I work in a district that has predominantly Spanish-speaking ELs. Approximately 95% of our ELs are from either Mexico or Guatemala. We discuss both countries and use the Spanish language if needed. I'm very lucky that I can speak Spanish because it usually helps my newcomers feel more comfortable.

Bienvenidos Illustrations & Vectors. (n.d.). Retrieved October 10, 2018, from https://www.dreamstime.com/illustration/bienvenidos.html