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How can I better relate to my students who may have a totally different upbringing/background/life experience than I have? 

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How can I better relate to my students who may have a totally different upbringing/background/life experience than I have? 

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- many of my students have come from war-torn countries and have had a childhood in which they did not go to school. This is a lot different from my gentle Canadian upbringing where I attended a kindergarten full of toys, and had a rather loving school environment to grow up in. How can I better understand my students who are coming from such different places?
-  It can be difficult to ask the "right questions" - I have never liked to pry or ask questions that are uncomfortable - it is best to let your students come to you and let them give you whatever information they want to give. I think the best way to do this is to let them express themselves creatively, and allow for them to show their identity. I have a great opportunity to do this with FSL - one of the curriculum expectations is that students should be able to write/speak about familiar topics - what better familiar topic than themselves and their identity.
-  https://www.colorincolorado.org/article/accessing-students-background-knowledge-ell-classroom I liked this article alot. - It emphasized the benefits of understanding your students' background knowledge and using that to create relevant content for them. I think that this goes also with understanding the upbringing that they've had and being sensitive to what that may mean for them, in and out of the classroom.
- Encourage my students to ask questions: I want my students to know that it is okay to ask questions, and that no question is too silly. Something that I may take for granted, such as that when the bell rings one class leaves and another arrives, may be a new concept for my student who has never been to school before.
- Always allow spaces for my students to share their stories, traditions, ideas with myself and their class.
- Encourage parental involvement and get to know parents whenever possible- collaborate with homeroom teacher/esl teacher to contact parents and make sure that family knows what is going on at school - encourage family to come visit school or take part in classroom volunteering if ever possible

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How can I enforce that first language learning/knowledge is important and useful to classroom learning in english/french?

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How can I enforce that first language learning/knowledge is important and useful to classroom learning in english/french?

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- Share with my students the notion that all languages are equally complex - drawing on my own linguistic knowledge from my own studies. Share with my students that even though a student may be struggling to speak English, they have a whole world of knowledge in their own first language.
- Share this book with my students https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/books/hello-world-by-manya-stojic/ "Hello World" - gives greetings in 42 languages - a start to show eachother that all languages are useful - look how many ways people say hello
- encourage students to share their native languages - continue to have "word of the day" - each day a student gives a word to the class in their native language and we translate it to french
- encourage students to use their native language to brainstorm/create first drafts if this is helpful to them

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This year I have the opportunity to serve my school as an English as Second Language (ESL) teacher for the first time. This privilege allows me to support students in Primary, Junior and Intermediate grades as they navigate the landscape of school and English language acquisition. But to be honest, I have alway been an ESL teacher. Since my very first year of teaching, my classes have always had students for whom English was not their first language. In this way, we are all ESL teachers regardless of if we have the designation or not. Similarly, if we take the notion of learning English literally, all of our students are English Language learners because they are constantly being introduced to new vocabulary and are learning the nuances of academic language for oral communication, reading and writing. In Ontario, however, the term English Language Learner or ELL, is defined as a student "born in Canada or newcomers whose first language is other than English or is a variety of English significantly different from that used for instruction in Ontario schools" (Many Roots, p. 51). Knowing this, how might classroom teachers tweak their practice to make their classrooms ELL friendly? I offer 4 easy teacher practices that will support ELLs in any classroom.

1. Keep expectations developmentally appropriate.
The ways we view our students determines the kind of learning we invite them to. This sentiment is particularly important to understand when designing programs that address the learning needs of students for whom English is a new language. Learning a new language, by any account, is a task of both perseverance and determination. As such, we need to be mindful that our English language learners have a multitasked learning situation. Focusing on the skills they bring from their native language as opposed to the limitations they have as they acquire English nurtures an asset based approach to engaging students as capable learners. When we embrace this mindset towards teaching English language learners, we can maintain high expectations for all students. Valuing the prior learning of all students, including ELLs in imperative in building upward to new understandings. Inviting students to share what they already know about a topic is always a great starting point for learning. Students who are English language learners have prior knowledge and this knowledge may or may not exist in their native Language. Regardless, valuing students' prior knowledge solidifies the difference between cognition and language acquisition as two separate and distinct processes. For the most part, English language learners are developmentally ready for the learning that their peers are engaged in - they simply need to acquire the English skills to make the thinking that is already taking place in their minds visible in English.

2. Value students' first language.
Nurturing an inclusive classroom community lets students know that they are both valued and respected as learners. Inviting students to continue to use and develop their native language is another way not only to accommodate ELLs but also to keep the learning expectations high. When students are able to use their native language to demonstrate their understanding and thinking in tasks that invite cognitive demand, the transition to English does not lower the expectation but rather accommodate the student's opportunity for engaging deeply with ideas. The English language is further acquired when students translate their thoughts into English rather than the other way around. Valuing students' first language can also be demonstrated by creating dual language or multilingual learning resources. With the partnership of students who are also native speakers of additional languages, parent volunteers, colleges and community partnerships, teachers can prepare translated learning resources for all students to use.

Students are invited to participate in collaborative learning experiences by expressing their ideas using their first language

Dual Language posters translated in traditional Chinese to support English Language learners in my class.

3. Develop new vocabulary in context with the help of online resources.
When students are invited to continue to use and development their fluency of their native languages, teachers can employ many new technologies that can support English acquisition while yet maintaining native language fluency. Using tools such as Google Translate can serve as a bridge between a student's first language and English. Similarly, introducing new vocabulary in context makes both social academic learning more meaningful in English. An idea or word may not be unfamiliar to a student learning English in that they may already have an understanding of the concept in their native language. When this happens, using tools such as Google Images and YouTube can serve as a bridge to comprehension of and acquiring English words. Word walls are also useful resources for students in all grade levels and for all subject areas. It is a tool to support students as they acquire new vocabulary in the context of their learning. In this way, all students can be viewed as English language learners as they engage in expanding their academic vocabulary. The inclusion of students' native language on word walls is a simple accommodation that goes a long way to supporting student learning. The gesture speaks to the value for the student's native language and a respect for the process of learning English. Native English speakers can also benefit from the dual language approach in that they can be exposed to the languages of the world and additional ways of knowing.

I asked my students to add Chinese translations to our Math word wall. This highlighted the relationships between numbers, as the ideas of addition and multiplication are embedded in the ways Chinese numerals are written.

This is a screenshot of what a Grade 2 student, a stage 1 ELL, wrote as she was communicating an idea with me. I used Google Translate to take a picture of her writing and was able to translate and further communicate with her.

4. Embrace inclusive practices when communicating with parents.
When a student is an English language learner, it is important to also be aware of their parent or guardian's experience with English as well. Whenever possible, supporting parents in the journey of their child's language acquisition should be considered. Using resources mentioned above in addition to school-board translators and parent volunteers when communicating with parents is also crucial when English is also being acquired by parents. Ensuring that partnerships between students, teachers and parents is essential for the success of all children. We should be mindful to support parents who are English language learners in the context of the kind of communication that goes home, the necessary accommodations in place for parent-teacher meetings and the information needed for navigating the Ontario school system are essential in order to leverage the playing field for success.

The first page of a presentation to the parents of my students during Curriculum Night.

An assessment report sent home as communication to parents about student achievement.

Teachers in Ontario school are all ESL teachers and our students all, English language learners. Designing classroom spaces and learning opportunities with the principles of universal design will support English language learners but also enhance the learning experience of native English speakers. Keeping learning expectations high for all students, valuing students native languages and inviting parents as partners are essential ingredients to providing an enriched learning experience for English language learners. For more information check out the ministry document Many Roots Many Voices:Supporting English Language Learners in Every Classroom A Practical Guide for Ontario Educators https://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/document/manyroots/manyroots.pdf.

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Suggestions for Making Your Classroom ELL Friendly

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This year I have the opportunity to serve my school as an English as Second Language (ESL) teacher for the first time. This privilege allows me to support students in Primary, Junior and Intermediate grades as they navigate the landscape of school and English language acquisition.

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Supporting English Language Learners in FSL - FSL

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Le Français Sans Frontières: Teaching Core French to a Diverse Classroom in Windsor

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Can you imagine the excitement with which students greet the opportunity to take part in a French language treasure hunt through the school for objects that stimulate the five senses? How about the fun of reading the daily announcements in French two to three times a week to the whole school or creating a multicultural marketplace where students and community members participate in oral comprehension?

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- The "Supporting ELLs in FSL" mentions that teachers/parents should be speaking to students in "elevated language" - this goes with Krashen's input hypothesis that the input should be one step above their proficiency
- Get to know my learners, be fully aware of other languages spoken at home, value these languages and traditions
- Ensure classroom environment reflects my learners- tailor the learning to my specific groups of students
- Keep expectations realistic
- encourage ELLs to share their language and background with other students
- co-create list of topics of interest that we can learn about together as a class
- use gestures, actions, visual supports
- encourage the use of students mother language to frame ideas and learning - it can be easier to create a mindmap or write thoughts in first language, and then transfer those ideas over into another language, rather than getting stumped off the bat by trying to use the second language

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- need to reinforce to all my learners that all of their language knowledge is beneficial and important
- frame it to my ELLs that they are making huge successes in learning english, and that their learning is valued in the FSL class - remind them that we are all in the same boat here, we are all on this french learning journey together and most of us are starting at the same level
- present to my students the benefits of learning a new language, and the benefits of knowing french in canada - cognitive benefits, travel, exchange, jobs etc
- make sure they see themselves in the learning
- teaching french beyond the scope of Canada - many many people speak French worldwide in countries all over
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How can I best support my ELL students so that they feel motivated and confident to participate in my FSL class? -- I am still new to teaching and find that many students, not just ELLs lack motivation to learn core french. This is my big question - how can I best support and motivate my learners and create an environment where they feel high motivation and low anxiety so that they can succeed?