ELL Training
for
Intermediate Teachers
October 21, 2015
Reflection on Language Learning
Experiences
Reflect on the questions about your first language
and foreign language learning experiences.
1. In what order did you acquire your first
2.
3.
4.
5.
language?
How was foreign language taught when you
were in high school or college?
Was it an effective way of learning a new
language?
What language domain/skill was the hardest to
learn?
Which language domain/skill was retained
over the years?
Acquisition vs. Learning
Acquisition
(case of first language)
Learning
Subconscious process
Conscious process
Unaware of grammatical
rules
Result of direct instruction of
rules
“Feel” for what is and isn’t
correct
Language production is not
emphasized
Emphasis on function, not
form
More emphasis on form
(grammar)
Judie Haynes, everthingESL.net
Factors that Affect
Second Language Acquisition
Motivation and attitude
Anxiety level
Access to the language (e.g. immersion, EFL)
Personality and learning style
Age and 1st language development
Quality of instruction (meaningful and authentic?)
Cognitive ability
Cultural background
Acculturation to the new culture
BICS vs.CALP
Elementary
ELL Student Profiles
Island Park: 48 students
(19 new / 29 continuing students)
West Mercer: 27 students
(19 new students / 8 continuing)
Lakeridge: 9 students
(3 new students / 6 continuing)
16 languages spoken
(Mandarin, Korean, Japanese, Cantonese,
Russian, Spanish, French, German, Dutch,
Portuguese, Hebrew, Vietnamese,
Tegulu, Tamil, Malayalam, Icelandic)
ELL Program Goals
To develop ELL student’s
proficiency in English so he/she
can participate more fully in the
regular classroom setting
Help new students adjust to the
new school environment
(academically, emotionally, socially)
Program Model:
Supportive Mainstream
Students are in mainstream classrooms most
of the day
ELL teachers provide supplemental English
language support (push-in or pull-out)
Use of specific strategies to foster English
language development and making gradelevel content meaningfully accessible
ELL teachers collaborate with classroom
teachers
Support Time and Delivery
Amount of service and delivery of support
are determined by:
Student proficiency level
Grade level
Classroom teacher observations/assessments
ELL teacher observations/assessments
Self assessment by the students
Grading & Conferencing
If ELL student doesn’t meet grade level
standards due to limited English skills,
please include a comment.
Katie will attend as many parent
conferences as her schedule allows
Email interpreter request to Kristin
Mission of the State
TBIP Program
English language learners will meet state
standards
and develop English language proficiency
in an environment where
language and cultural assets are recognized
as valuable resources to learning.
Native Language Use
“If you talk to a man in a language
he understands, that goes to his
head. If you talk to him in his
language, that goes to his heart .”
Nelson Mandela
Celebrate Native Language
and Culture
Many words in English are borrowed from other languages.
Can you guess the origin of these words?
o
Algebra, spinach, cotton, coffee, magazine, sherbet
o
Essay, table, opinion, family, quarter, bacon, waste
o
Alphabet, cinnamon, apron, cider, sapphire, aloe
o
Coconut, zebra, cougar, breeze, junk, embarrass
o
Canoe, chocolate, tomato, plaza, canyon, patio, coyote
o
Snack, wagon, bundle, sketch, roster, waffle, dollar
Double Challenge
ELLs must simultaneously learn how to
acquire enough of a second language to
participate in an academic setting
while
gaining an understanding of the knowledge
and skills in multiple disciplines through that
second language.
from Framework for ELP Standards Summary
General Strategies for
Comprehensible Input
Speech appropriate for proficient level
Enunciate clearly
Slow your speech
Take frequent pauses
Simplify sentence structure
General Strategies for
Comprehensible Input
Gestures, body language
Visuals, graphics, realia
Model processes and tasks
Demonstrations
Hands-on activities
Multimedia/technology
Chunk information into smaller bits
Graphic organizers
General Strategies for
Comprehensible Input
Clear explanations of academic tasks
Step-by-step instructions
Provide a model or example
Think-alouds
Match oral directions with written ones
Check for comprehension (re-phrasing)
General Strategies for
Comprehensible Input
Use of multiple modes of communication
Verbal (give instructions)
Visual (show what you mean)
Vocal (let students process/talk about it)
Color coding to make concepts/directions
clear
Create flow charts or graphic organizers to
conceptualize thinking
Challenges as Listeners
Requires active processing of the sounds, stresses,
intonations, grammar, and meaning of the message
being conveyed
One of the more difficult demands of learning a new
language
Listening is used nearly twice as much as speaking, 4-5
times as much as reading and writing
Listening is exhausting for newcomers
Difficult to listen while trying to copy from the board
when words are just symbols, not meaningful
Listening Strategies
Point out purpose for listening (e.g. listen for
main idea, listen for the character’s feeling)
Seating arrangement (student facing the front
of room)
Demonstrate rather than explain
Total Physical Response (TPR) - demo
Give a copy of the notes afterward so students
can focus on listening rather than copying from
the board
Challenges as Speakers
On-demand production of language
Sentence structure
Limited vocabulary
Pronunciation
Translation in the head first
Oral Language Practice
Spoken language and literacy are inextricably linked
You cannot write if you don’t have the language to express
Oral rehearsal should precede writing on paper
Instruction must be interactive and the focus must be on
listening and speaking
Many opportunities to test the rules of language with
scaffolding provided by supportive adults
from Mondo’s Let’s Talk About It! and
Ballard Tighe’s Strategic Oral Language Instruction in ELD
Speaking Strategies
Use pair or small group work to increase student talk time (10/2 rule)
Consistently give sufficient wait time
Provide explicit oral language practice
Respect the silent period and know they are taking in language
Create a relaxed, non-threatening environment where risk taking is
encouraged
Teach functional/content language
Use sentence frames/starters
Don’t overcorrect in speaking and give students the chance to correct
themselves
Correct promptly for accuracy and afterwards for fluency
Model correct grammar; provide correct input in response
Chants for Oral Fluency and
Concept Reinforcement
GLAD chants (Google “pasco chants”)
http://www.psd1.org/site/Default.as
px?PageID=253
Challenges as Readers
Vocabulary deficit
Phonics vs. sight words
Multiple meanings
Fluency vs. comprehension
Too many new words make the text impossible
Word Knowledge
Word knowledge includes mastery of the word’s:
Meaning (multiple meanings and connotations)
Written form (spelling)
Spoken form (pronunciation)
Grammatical behavior (occurrences of patterns)
Collocations (words that come before or after)
Register (formal or informal context)
Associations (relation to other words)
Frequency (commonly or rarely used)
Word Knowledge Rating
How well do you know a word?
1. I have never seen the word
2. I have seen the word but don’t know its meaning
3. I know the meaning but can’t explain it well
4. I know the meaning and can articulate it well
sophomoric
petulance
urbane
Reading Strategies
Use of learner’s dictionaries
Merriam-Webster Learner’s Dictionary www.learnersdictionary.com
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English www.ldoceonline.com
Translator apps (e.g. Google Translate, Speak and Translate)
Memory aids: word cards
Vocabulary notebooks
Vary the way you explain words
Link words grammatically as well as thematically
Record words together which occur together
Word knowledge indicator cards
Challenges as Writers
Spelling
Writing process (prewriting, draft, revising, editing, and final)
Generating own ideas for writing
“Writing in your words” or paraphrasing is difficult
Show, not tell
Different types of writing: narrative, expository (informational),
persuasive (opinion), how-to
May come from cultures where plagiarism is somewhat
acceptable (individual ownership of words or ideas is not well
understood, especially info on the internet)
Research and scientific writing
Different cultures organize essays in different ways
Writing Strategies
Sentence frames/starters
Word bank
Oral rehearsal
Graphic organizer/mind map
Signal words
Specific questions to ask for research
Interactive writing
Cloze sentences/passages
Reading aloud of writing for editing
Color-coded sentence structure
Challenges in Content Areas
Math is not a universal language (different
symbols, algorithms), story problems, explain
answers
Science – scientific method, designing/writing
up experiments, academic vocabulary,
cognitively demanding
Social studies – long texts, academic
vocabulary, cognitively demanding, context
reduced
Strategies in Content Areas
Math
Organize key info through drawing
Act out math story problems
Science
Create charts for each step of scientific method
Provide pictures for academic vocabulary
Provide copies of teacher’s notes
Social Studies
Provide pictures for academic vocabulary
Paraphrase key points
Graphic organizers/flow charts
Library Research Resources
(with translation/
text-to-speech features)
World Book Online
Tools > Translate this text
Tools > Hear text read aloud
eBooks
EBSCO (Kids Search and Explora)
Choose language > Translate
How Can We Support You
Monthly workshops focused on different ELL topics
K-5 ELL website with students resources and teacher
resources
Collaboration: planning units of study with grade level
teachers
iPad apps/support materials
Translated books – give two week notice to search and
order (if available)
Easier non-fiction books in content areas
Writing Strategy Brainstorm
Scenario: During independent writing, my
ELL student doesn’t do anything or just
copies instead of producing original work.
*What strategies can you use in your class
that would support your ELL writer?
Use the post-its at your table to record some
strategies.
Post the notes on the chart.