Adaptations/Modifications/

Recommendations

·       Visual and Kinesthetic activities

·       Pictures

·       Charts

·       Graphic organizers

·       Tables

·       Graphs

·       Timelines

·       Number lines

·       Allow for extra time to complete in class and homework assignments

·       Cooperative Activities

·       Active listening and speaking activities

·       Label classroom

TEACHING STRATEGIES

· Use manipulatives, visuals, realia, props, games

· Create climate of acceptance/respect that supports acculturation

·Use cooperative learning groups

· Require physical response to check comprehension

· Display print to support oral language

· Model activities for students

· Use hands-on activities

· Use bilingual students as peer helpers

· Adjust rate of speech to enhance comprehension

· Ask yes/no questions

· Ask students to show/point/draw

·Teach content area vocabulary/terminology

· Simplify language/not content

· Lessons designed to motivate students to talk

· Ask students questions that require one/two word responses: who?, what?,which one?, how many?

· Lessons expand vocabulary

Recommendations for Mainstream Teachers working with English Language Learners

v Learn how to pronounce the student’s name.

v Don’t assume he/she does not speak or understand English…take the time to find out.

v Students who are recent arrivals need time to adjust.

v Increase your knowledge.

Learn as much as you can about the language and culture of your students. Encourage students to express their points of view and opinions on different issues and share information about their culture.

v Families generally speak their 1st language at home.

Encourage your students to continue to speak their 1st language.

v Encourage students to read in their 1st language.

v Focus on vocabulary.

Pre-teach vocabulary and concepts; use realia, demonstrations, visuals, and multiple modalities when teaching. Illustrate, label, explain multiple meaning words.

v Read aloud!

v Cooperative groups are effective! “Buddies” are great for academics, playground, lunchroom, etc.

v Demonstrate; use manipulatives.

·         Whenever possible, accompany your message with gestures, pictures and objects that help get the meaning across. Use a variety of different pictures or objects for the same idea. MODEL, MODEL, MODEL.

·         Write legibly.

Some students may have low levels of literacy or are unaccustomed to the Roman alphabet.

Suggestions for Supporting K-12 Newcomer ESL Students In The Mainstream Classroom

1. Sensitize mainstream students to the newcomers’ challenges.

Prepare English speaking peers for the arrival of a newcomer. Ask your students to imagine that their parents took them to another country to live. Brainstorm with them how they would feel.

2. Be aware of the effects of culture shock.

Children may demonstrate physical ailments or display a wide variety of unusual behavior such as tantrums, crying, aggression, depression, tendency to withdraw, and sleeplessness.

3. Create a nurturing environment.

Give lots of encouragement and praise for what the students can do, and create frequent opportunities for their success in your class. Be careful not to call on them to perform alone above their level of competence.

4. Establish a regular routine for newcomers.

At first, everything will be chaotic to your newcomers. Give them help in organizing time, space, and materials. Give them a copy of the daily schedule. Tape it to their desks, or have them keep it at the front of their ESL notebooks. Send a copy home so that parents can help their children feel more connected to the classroom.

5. Engage newcomers in language learning from the beginning.

Here are some ways to actively engage your newcomers in language learning.

v COPY WORK

Have students copy alphabet letters, numbers, their name, your name, the names of other students in the class, and beginning vocabulary words.  Have them draw pictures to demonstrate comprehension of what they are copying.

v ROTE LEARNING While this is not popular in American schools, it is common in many other countries. Initially, parents and students often feel more comfortable if they can see some kind of end product. You may wish to have students learn sight words, poems, chants, songs, lists, and spelling words through rote learning.

v THE CLASS AUTHORITY.

Each newcomer has many strengths that he or she can share with the class. When appropriate include them as resources so they too can be seen as important members of the group. Areas of expertise might be computers, math, origami, or art work.

6. Recruit volunteers to work with newcomers.

At first, many students will not speak at all. It is critical to provide students with plenty of aural input in order to familiarize them with the sounds of the English language.

7. Use recorded material.

A word of caution about the use of tapes and tape recorders.  The student using headphones is isolated from the rest of the class.

Sources:

·         WIDA Consortium World-class instructional design and assessment:  English Language Proficiency Standards and Resource Guide 2007 Edition

·         ESL/Bilingual Resource Guide for Mainstream Teachers