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• Select the questions you would like to be asked. Choose two out of the four questions listed.

• Interview each other guided by your partner’s selected questions

Tip: In the classroom, you can use this partner discussion activity to support students to apply both their developing academic vocabulary knowledge and their developing content knowledge about the cycle’s big idea.  In each cycle, the interview questions feature the target words and the scenario for the interview relates to the shared text.  To promote word analysis, sometimes the target words take a different morphological form (e.g., a prefix or suffix is added).

https://tinyurl.com/CISEKCwhiteboard

• Find a word/sentence/phrase that you think is really important.

• Number off 1-4.

• Person 1 shares (just the word/sentence/phrase). Everyone takes 1 minute saying what they think about the sentence that was shared.

• Person 1 then has “the last word” and summarizes what everyone has said, and tells what they’re thinking now.

• Repeat with everyone else in the group.

Question #1: How do we document progress in speaking and listening?

Response #1: Have you come across language development portfolios? They're essentially curated samples of student learning like writings, recordings, art, photos, and notes. The idea is to visually document multilingual learners’ growth, making language and student thinking visible for teachers, families, and students. For more information, see this link.

Question #2: How do we bridge between a number of languages in a classroom with diverse languages?

Response #2: I would focus on the following:

(1) Comprehensible input

• Graphic organizers

• Visuals (e.g., Picture Word Induction Model)

• Short videos under than 5 minutes

(2.) Quality output

• Provide many opportunities for talking and writing through "We do" and "You all do" tasks (e.g., process grid and collaborative strip paragraph routines). Multilingual learners thrive when there are structured spaces for practicing their new language across all domains (i.e., SWIRL = Speaking, Writing, Interacting, Reading, Listening).

• Set up purposeful partnerships. For example, initially pair a newcomer student with a peer who shares the same home language but who speaks English at a higher level. During turn-and-talk, the newcomer student can orally rehearse in his/her home language, while the partner can report out in English. (Note: Ensure there are already strong language scaffolds in place, as some "language model" peers might feel frustrated from always having to be the "teacher.")

• Preview and review content in the home language, with ELL team support. During the lesson, STAY in English to encourage productive struggle. The alternative-- constant, on-going translations and interpretations-- can accidentally allow bilingual/multilingual learners to bypass language learning.

Question #1: How can we effectively teach vocabulary in class?

Response #1: Teach vocabulary in context. I'd recommend quality over quantity: focus deeply on a smaller set of words. As a general ballpark, this would be about 5-10 vocabulary words every 2-4 weeks. For a more detailed breakdown, see page 5 of the linked document (i.e., "Vocabulary" section of the "EAL Strategy Menu" tab).

Question #2: How can we educate parents and students on the value of oral language development?

Response #2: Oral language development is the foundation of literacy. I am so happy to read this is an area of emphasis for you and your team. To further educate families, here is a resource that has been translated into multiple languages. In addition, it might be illuminating for parents to have access to a language development portfolio (described in the Grade 1 section) and/or the ability to further engage on Seesaw (described in my response below).

Question #3: How can parents engage with student work? What will this look like?

Response #3: This is a great question! Just curious, what is the reason for the current settings in Seesaw? I can see parent engagement increasing, if the settings were modified for them to be able to respond to student work through likes and comments (e.g., audio, written, in whichever languages they prefer).

Question: How do you link the reading to a writing task for UOI?

You can link the reading to the writing task by:

• Curate text sets that build the background knowledge needed for writing tasks. For example, during a UoI on body systems, gather texts at different difficulty levels to help them explore and research the related lines of inquiry they’ll later write about.

• Select mentor texts that model the kind of writing you want students to produce. For example, when teaching narratives, choose a story with a clear problem–solution structure and map it together on a graphic organizer as a class to boost comprehension and set the stage for writing. In Writers’ Workshop, co-plan and co-write a class story—thinking and writing aloud—so students can see how to lift features from the mentor text. Then, students can try planning and writing on their own.

Question #1: How can we get a balance between enough information and overloading students?

Response #1: Great question! Let your central idea and lines of inquiry guide what you teach—if something isn’t essential, consider saving it as an optional “Webquest” resource. Check if students have enough input by looking at their output during “We do,” “You all do,” and “You do.” Use your observations to adjust. For example, if in a natural disasters newscast students lean too much into fiction, they may need reminders to include facts you’ve already taught or they may simply need more input, perhaps revealing a potential a gap in your sequence of lessons.

Question #2: Practically, how can we implement all of this in our context?

Response #2: Keep the big picture of “comprehensible input” and “quality output” in mind, focusing on the highest-leverage strategies for teaching both content and language. BeGlad, a team working with multilingual learners in California, recommends 5 key strategies you can find here: https://begladtraining.com/blog/give-me-5/. An alternative method is "core learning tasks" that Lesaux & Harris (2015) suggest as integral to knowledge-building learning cycles for multilingual learners: see "Core Learning Tasks" in the "EAL strategy menu" tab.

Whether BeGlad or Core Learning Tasks (which you likely already do in some form already!), the idea is to shoot for structured spaces for input and output. I highly recommend picking the routines that resonate with you and using them consistently- when you repeat the same routines from unit to unit, students can then shift their working memory from learning the routine to learning the new content alongside new language.

Question #3: How do we practically integrate key concepts in both UOI and literacy?

Response #3: To integrate UoI and literacy, make sure that your inquiry, reading, and writing units fit together well for transdisciplinary learning—it saves time and deepens understanding. For example, in a natural disasters unit, students could gather facts from anchor texts during reading, write newscasts in writing, and run hands-on experiments in inquiry (e.g., oreos for plate tectonics, volcanic eruptions, etc.). This way, students aren't spending writers' workshop reading texts or trying to grapple with key concepts from UoI, but on writing down their own unique ideas.

You likely do this already, but make sure your selected writing genre aligns naturally with both reading and UoI, otherwise your units might be competing against one another for time and attention.

Question #1: What are other teacher identities in regards to “warm demander”?

Response #1: Great question! Have you heard of Diana Baumrind's work on parenting styles? Although her work is from the field of psychology, it gives us a general framework for reflecting on our teacher identities. Admittedly, I find I imperfectly move around on the above grid, although my aim tends to be "authoritative." Here is an article for more information.

Question #2: How do we structure lessons around both oral language and reading/writing with limited time in the classroom?

Response #2: Hats off to the upper grades for recognizing the key role of oral language for student learning, particularly for multilingual learners who are learning new content and new language at the same time. As James Britton (1976) said, “Reading and writing float on a sea of talk.” Back to your question. I must say that we as educators truly are both artists and scientists when it comes to structuring lessons that balance talking, reading, and writing. There’s no single formula; we have to feel and test it out through cycles of iteration. To set the foundation, however, I’ve found that transdisciplinary learning is the most efficient way to meaningfully and practically connect the language domains (i.e., SWIRL: Speaking, Writing, Interacting, Reading, Listening). Similar to my responses to Grade 4, make sure your UoI, reading, and writing units are aligned. That way, they’re complementing and supporting—not competing with—each other. When we intentionally plan for student talk, we actually set them up for deeper reading and writing. . . and, in the long run, that saves time.

Question #3: We don’t have physical, in-depth text sets it seems. How do we grow literacy with just DRA books, EPIC, picture books?

Response #3: Excellent point. Text sets are key for deep inquiry and literacy. This is definitely worth bringing to your leadership team. In early childhood, the Reggio Emilia approach calls the classroom the “third teacher”—and in upper elementary, that’s true too. Quality materials really matter!

Question #4: What are some other books for further reading?

Response #4: Great question! In the first column of our Padlet, under “Our Stack of Resources,” you’ll find several books on building knowledge while growing language. If you have a specific topic in mind, let me know—I’m happy to recommend something!

Question #1: How can we really prep all those great visuals?

Response #1: Great question! Here’s my quick thought process: Start by reviewing your grade-level repertoire and prune what’s not working to make room for new ideas. Then, be clear on what didn't work and start to consider what might work instead. With common student challenges in mind, start to redesign, grounding your ideas in your central idea and lines of inquiry.

With time constraints in mind, I'd pick just one strong visual to start. Try to pick something that ties your UoI, reading, and writing together. For example, if I am teaching urban development, I'd maybe choose a clear map that highlights a community need. As the unit unfolds, I'd add to the map alongside students, perhaps surfacing a connected series of community responses, including perhaps failures with unintended consequences (i.e., community ideas that didn't work!). Together, examples and non-examples can pave the way for deeper comprehension during reading and more cogent arguments during writers' workshop.

Sometimes when I'm unsure what to do with visuals, I find it helpful to see what's going on in the grade above and below me. I've found it helpful to look at the free, curated resources from Fishtank. The short answer to your question is that, as we know, it takes time to build a strong repertoire of resources. Be purposeful. Less is more.

Question #2: How do we build conversations between children in a way that promotes authentic sharing, particularly with our range of languages?

Response #2: I really love seeing the push for rich conversations in the upper grades— the need is there, especially with such dense, complex content! In a multilingual setting, talk is tricky but essential. My quick answer: leverage and structure transdisciplinary learning, so that you are using English to teach English, amplifying language in digestible chunks for students. For a longer answer, see my responses above to Grade 5 and Grade 4. Given oral language seems to be a common throughline in the upper grades, it might be worthwhile to raise with leadership—maybe even as a future training topic.

Question #3: Translanguage vs translate? How?

Response #3: Great question! In our context, “translate” means giving the home language definition for a new English word, while “translanguage” means using the home language to build on English learning. The pitfall is conflating the two—too much translation can let students bypass the learning process, and we know productive struggle is key for both content and language growth. (Relatedly, this might be an interesting, connected fun fact: in the technical sense, "translate" refers written language, while "interpret" is oral language. Sometimes, when students are "translating" for one another, they're actually "interpreting.") Back to your question. If I wanted to dive deeper into translanguaging, I’d work with our ELL team or explore CEB/FEB examples. Otherwise, I’d focus on teaching English through clear English, using the approach of “I do, we do, you all do, you do (*in any order*)” to amplify language.

Question: How can we incorporate and use the visual timeline to develop more grammatical understanding (not UOI linked)?

Response: To build grammatical understanding, I’d suggest a sentence-level routine—have you tried Sentence Patterning Charts (SPC)? They’re a great way to teach grammar in context. Early in the year, you might start with fewer columns than the example.

Although the explicit focus is on language, you might consider weaving in UoI-related nouns and verbs. Teaching grammar in the context of UoI not only supports reading comprehension, but also equips students with the language to express complex ideas.