English Learners 101 is a series of articles about how to support English learners with appropriate academic content instruction. Between 2004 and 2008 I served as the English Language Development Support Teacher at an extremely diverse elementary school in the San Francisco Bay Area. During this time I also completed a significant review of research and literature on how to best support science instruction in the classroom. While my literature review investigated English learners and science instruction, most of the instructional strategies and information are relevant to anyone teaching academic content to English learners.
Academic English
While there is a need for continued research and discussion in order to come to a wider consensus about what constitutes academic English, it is generally understood to be a significant factor in the academic achievement of English learners. The fact that English learners often lack meaningful learning contexts and connections burdens these students when they attempt to learn academic English.
Academic English is generally thought to be different from standard or social English language. It is comprised of a broad range of language skills such as discipline-specific vocabulary and language functions. Common words or phrases that have specialized meaning in academic disciplines are considered discipline-specific vocabulary. For example, words such as power or table have a specific meaning in mathematics that differs from the common definition. Analyzing, classifying, defending a position, or giving oral presentations are discipline-specific language functions considered to be academic English. Click to continue reading…
This is the outline of my Saturday, February 6, 2010 workshop, “Using Technology to Improve Home School Connections,” that I am presenting at the East Bay CUE Cool Tools for Learning VI Conference.
Learn how to use free and inexpensive tools to improve home-school connections, increase parent involvement, and boost student achievement. See how WordPress, FeedBurner, YouTube, Twitter, Google Docs, iMovie and a camera can enhance your teaching. Create, set-up and use a free and powerful website and create video tutorials and video messages for your students.
Opening
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This is the introduction to an ongoing series of articles titled English Learners 101.
English Learners 101 is a series of articles about how to support English learners with appropriate academic content instruction. Between 2004 and 2008 I served as the English Language Development Support Teacher at a diverse elementary school. During this time I also completed a significant review of research and literature on how to best support science instruction in the classroom. While my literature review investigated English learners and science instruction, most of the instructional strategies and information are relevant to anyone teaching academic content to English learners.
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On Saturday, February 6, 2010 I will be presenting a workshop at the East Bay CUE Cool Tools for Learning VI Conference.
East Bay CUE is a professional organization of educators dedicated to supporting the use of technology in education. East Bay CUE is a local Computer Using Educator (CUE) affiliate representing Alameda and Contra Costa counties in California.
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Last year I began using The Sisters’ (Gail Boushey and Joan Moser) process of teaching balanced literacy to my fourth grade students: Daily Five Reading and Literacy CAFE. Periodically I will post information, videos, or examples of how I am implementing this balanced literacy structure.
Daily Five Reading and Literacy CAFE
Daily Five Reading is just one more way to organize your balanced literacy instruction. It is very similar to what some people call “Reading Workshop” or “Reader’s Workshop”. Personally, I love how Daily Five Reading is structured around current reading and brain research and how it builds student independence. The Daily Five is a structure that helps students develop the daily habits of reading, writing, and working independently for a lifetime of literacy independence.
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This simple, yet powerful project allows students to share a little bit about themselves at the beginning of the year. At the same time it allows students to jump into some simple audio recording and editing using GarageBand.
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Throughout the year I give students homework assignments that include making small, foldable books. I call these books B3 (B threes) or Beanie Baby Books. (My former partner teacher came up with this name because it is the size of a book that a Beanie Baby would read.)
I use these books for all subjects (math, science, social studies, reading, writing) at one time or another. I like Beanie Baby Books because they open the door for kids to creatively demonstrate and share their learning in meaningful ways. I will often add these books to our class library or we will give them to another class as a “learning gift”. For example, my students just created Beanie Baby Books of our Read to Self behavior expectations. A few primary classes at my school are trying Daily Five, so our books will give them another avenue to think about their own behavior expectations. On top of that, my student authors are doing authentic work creating products for an audience outside my classroom!
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