Michele Regalla, Ph.D.
Ohio Dominican University
regallam@ohiodominican.edu
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They are the language demands of the
academic content.
They are school vocabulary used to perform
functions that display content knowledge such
as summarize, discuss, compare, etc.
They include the language structures teachers
expect students to use in order to communicate
comprehension of content (write a paragraph,
use the past tense, etc.)
They are specific and measurable!
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Key vocabulary – technical terms and other words
related to the lesson
Language functions – the way language is used in the
lesson (compare, describe, etc.)
Language skills – listening, reading, writing, and
speaking
Grammar or language structure – language that must
be used to communicate content (using the past tense,
prefixes, comparisons, etc.)
Lesson tasks – language necessary to complete a task,
such as taking notes
Language learning strategies – metacognitive language
tasks such as rereading, making predictions, outlining,
etc.
Identify your content objective
 Study the task(s) students must perform in the
lesson
 Isolate key vocabulary and sentence
patterns necessary to perform those tasks
 Incorporate at least one of the 4 language skills
 Write an observable, measurable objective
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Summarize
Retell
Identify
Define
Write
Create
Choose
Diagram
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Label
List
Match
Illustrate
Compare/contrast
Contrast
Categorize
Organize
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Know
Understand
See
Learn
Appreciate
Be familiar with
Be aware of
Content
Language: vocabulary & patterns
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One consequence of ________is ____________
_______ leads to/causes _____________.
_______ increases the risk of ______________.
______ are more likely to ___________ than
__________.
Effects of environment
CONTENT
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Complete a timeline
listing the events
leading up to the
Revolutionary War.
LANGUAGE
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In the reading,
highlight the colonial
action in blue and the
British reaction in red.
Explain to a partner
your timeline. Use the
words first, second,
then to show
sequence.
Describe the structure of plant and animal cells to a
partner using the comparative form.
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Both plant cells and animal cells contain _______.
A plant cell contains a nucleus. An animal cell also contains a
nucleus.
Plant cells contain vacuoles, whereas animal cells often do not have
vacuoles.
Plant cells contain vacuoles. Animal cells, however, often do not
have vacuoles.
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1.
2.
CONTENT
Order numbers from
least to greatest.
Use <, >, or = to make
each sentence true.
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LANGUAGE
Explain to a partner why
your statements are
true using a number
line. Use these
sentence patterns:
 x is {greater / less }
than y.
 x is equal to y.
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Echevarria, J., Vogt, M.E. & Short, D. (2004).
Making Content Comprehensible for English
Language Learners: The SIOP Model. Boston, MA:
Pearson
http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/t3sis/state/north
carolina/