ELL Resources
Selecting appropriate resources for use in the ELL classroom is an important and complex responsibility. Ideally, substantial thought and reflection should go into the process, since student outcomes are at stake; program and content goals, as well as student instructional needs are factors deserving ample consideration. However, practical or even incidental factors can also influence the selection process, and ultimately the final decision. These may include availability (or lack thereof), time constraints, budget limitations, and personal preferences or teaching style. In this portion of my essay, I will discuss the age appropriateness, cultural responsiveness, ability to enhance content instruction, and linguistic accessibility of eight resources an ELL instructor could select to use in a range of ELL/EL classrooms, and how they may or may not relate to target language or content areas. I will also describe the process of how ELL teachers select and use these resources to enhance their language instruction.
Resources for early to upper elementary students:
1. Starfall.com – Starfall Education
Starfall.com is a fun and engaging website, that teaches early elementary and younger ELL students phonemic awareness, systematic phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension. The website states that Starfall.com was created based on how children use computers, and keeps them motivated by stimulating “the feelings of wonderment and play”. As a multi-level, child-directed tool for young learners this is a great supplement to a well-rounded curriculum. It is linguistically accessible to ELL and struggling students from beginner to high-beginner levels, allowing them to work independently to improve their reading sk...
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...her resources include a competency outline which guides the instructor in placement and progression. The reading subjects are also designed to support the ESL/ABE State Scope and Sequence of Skills for Minnesota. ESL levels Beginning through Advanced are supported, as well as ABE levels Beginning through High Adult Secondary and CASAS levels 200 – 235.
Those learners who are visual and auditory will be best supported by this website, however the timing of individual reading selections and the competitive element of trying to improve one’s score can also be appealing to kinesthetic learners. The topics presented are of interest to adults in the United States, but students who come from other cultures will have the added benefit of learning about our culture through the leveled readings as well. I recommend this resource as part of a well-rounded curriculum plan.
After viewing the panel discussion about how our local school districts have implemented English Language Learning in their school, I am very intrigued. From what I gathered the field of ELL is a growing industry in education, especially in Colorado Springs. We have ELL’s students coming from all over the world. Here in Colorado Springs alone, school districts have to accommodate for over fifty different languages spoken by ELL’s. I can only imagine the challenge that comes with such a diverse group of non- English speakers in our community schools.
...e level.” Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, v. 39, no. 6 (March 1996): 436-445. [E Journal]
I was interested in how ELL teachers connect with their students of diverse backgrounds and cultures. Each said that they try to learn about the students’ cultures. The teachers all felt it was important to make a connection. They suggested taking interest in the student’s native language and home life, or having students share language, holiday traditions and foods. ELL teachers can also try to incorporate the different cultures to enrich their lessons.
Patterson, Marilyn Nikimaa. Every Body Can Learn: Engaging the Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence in the Everyday Classroom. Tucson, AZ: Zephyr Press, 1997.
A culturally responsive classroom creates an environment that is safe and accepting for children of all nationalities. An inclusive environment can include visuals that depict different cultures, inclusion of different cultures in the curriculum, access to bilingual dictionaries, sharing of family artifacts, field trips, and nonfiction picture books to teach key concepts in the content area. Knowing the principles of ELL instruction and characteristics of a successful ELL learning environment will not automatically create a competent ELL teacher. However, this knowledge will contribute to a better understanding of the factors that impact learning for ELL students and prepares the teacher to plan lessons that will result in maximum learning
Tchudi, Susan J, and Stephen Tchudi. The English Language Arts Handbook: Classroom Strategies for Teachers. Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook, 1999. Print.
To determine the literacy skills of American adults, the 1992 National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS) used test items that resembled everyday life tasks. The NALS classified the results into five levels that are now commonly used to describe adults’ literacy skills. In Level 1 almost all of the adults can read a little but not well enough to fill out an application, read a food label, or read a simple story to a child. Adults in Level 2 usually can perform more complex tasks such as comparing, contrasting, or integrating pieces of information but usually not higher-level reading and problem-solving skills. Adults in levels 3 through 5 usually can perform the same types of more complex tasks with increasing length and subject matter (Knox 37).
According to McArthur, Konold, Glutting and Alamprese (2010), many adults in the United States have difficulties with basic literacy. A solution to this situation has been the founding of adult basic education (ABE) programs by the U.S Department of Education which helps and serves more than 2 million adults annually (U.S Department of Education, Division of Adult Education and Literacy, 2002, 2006). Mellard and Patterson (2008) found that ABE students differ in skill from zero or minimal reading skills to reading simple stories, books and descriptions on familiar subjects so new vocabulary can be determined by context. According to Mellard and Pattersen (2008) ABE literacy program is divided in to four levels which range from “beginners” to “high intermediate”. Scaffolding theory provides a promising method of providing support to students with learning challenges, e.g. dyslexia and short term memory deficit. As stated by Larkin (2001) the main purpose of scaffolding is to support students and slowly reduce help until they are able to apply the new skills and strategies independently. Students receive support to complete particular task and eventually demonstrate task mastery.
When observing and studying ELLs, there are many advantages and disadvantages in a classroom and school for these students. In the classroom, ELL students have many individual opportunities to develop their literacy, especially in small reading groups. English learners also, are pulled aside by an ESL teacher during class hours to focus on reading and writing skills of English. According to Netten, Droop, and Verhoeven (2010), reading is “an activity which benefits from practice” (414). Many of these students struggle to become literate at a young age, but the more practice they receive the better they will become when focusing on developing literacy. Also, ELL students have an advantage when learning two languages because this makes them bilingual. The goal of bilingual education is to develop
The purpose of this assignment is to explain the impact of English language learners in the classroom. As a foreign student, English language learner in the United States faces multiple challenges for achieving academic success. To successfully complete a task, they need to master both English as a language and how it is used in core content classes especially when they are an adult. When trying to assist in instructing English language learners, they usually have many concepts and language abilities that they need to master, as do the teachers that are trying to teach them. With the incorporation of the concepts and approaches to identify and assess the issues and concerns that we have learned in our classroom instruction, such as lesson preparation,
We as educators must first develop reading skills for our ELL students so that they will get in the habit of reading and writing. We must also look at different avenues to increase their literacy skills. We must work on the strengths of our ELL students. When we work on what our ELL students already know then we can help build upon students learning from multiple languages. We can even have the ELL students share their native language with other students. This can help make learning interesting when they share their cultural background.
Highland Park Elementary School places high emphasis on English Language Arts (ELA). The Kindergarten classes at this school use ELA standards such as CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.K.1, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.K.2, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.2, and CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.K.1 to drive instruction. The district requires them to use materials such as Fountas and Pinnell leveled books and assessments. They have also created their own list of sight words that students should know in each grade level based on Dolch and Fry sight word lists. The district also places high emphasis
Clark, D. 2008. Visual, Auditory and Kinesthetic Learning styles (VAK). Available from : http://nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/styles/vakt.html [ Accessed 29th November 2010]
The styles of learning whether auditory, visual, or kinesthetic vary from client to client. Designing an educational program should entail the consideration of the range of problems in the population and the differences in learning abilities. Client
Becoming a Language Teacher is a valuable tool, which provides a practical guide to the skills and knowledge needed by teachers to address the diverse needs of language learners. Today, mainstream classroom teachers work with learners with a diverse range of backgrounds and therefore teachers face multiple challenges; they need to teach content-area curriculum while at the same time supporting students ' language development. Thus, what makes the second edition of the book stands out is that it addresses both the academic and language needs of language learners, and it supports novice language teachers at the beginning of their teaching careers. Its goal is to help teachers become creative, competent, supportive and up-to date language teachers