If you are a teacher, you will eventually need to have resources to help you teach students who are English Language Learners. Here'...

Tips for working with english language learners and how to best support ELLs them in your classroom!

Looking for esl task cards to use with your english language learners? Try these picture cards that are perfect for quick and effective language practice!

Check out the best ESL reading comprehension activities and games, along with worksheets & lesson plans. Teaching reading can be fun!

Tips to Help Your English Language Learners If you have English language learners in your classroom you already know that teaching reading for this group can be a challenge. Many teachers simply have not had much exposure to the kinds of strategies that can help these kids learn. Just like all other students teachers serve, English language learners have varying abilities and reading levels. What makes it complicated is when students arrive with no language skills other than maybe knowing the words hello and my name is.... Because of this challenge to the homeroom teachers in my building, I created this free resource as a kind of guide to help direct their instruction. I hope it is a help to all the teachers who feel they are helpless with the immigrant students. They need advocates and we, the teachers, are the ones to do it. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Five-Stages-of-Language-Acquisition-Made-Easy-2402804

This resource is #1 for a reason! I almost always use graphic organizers to teach reading comprehension. I find them to be highly effective because they are

Teaching phonics is an important aspect of a literacy program. This is especially true for ELLs. Phonics is the relationship between sounds and the letter or letters used to write them. Phonics connects sounds with letters and combinations of letters. In the English language, there are 26 letters and 44 sounds (called phonemes). A grapheme

This resource is #1 for a reason! I almost always use graphic organizers to teach reading comprehension. I find them to be highly effective because they are

Is Your Classroom ELL-Friendly? Deb Hanson shares 8 practical strategies you can implement right away to ensure that your classroom supports English Language Learners.

This resource is #1 for a reason! I almost always use graphic organizers to teach reading comprehension. I find them to be highly effective because they are

This resource is #1 for a reason! I almost always use graphic organizers to teach reading comprehension. I find them to be highly effective because they are

Check out these 5 fun game ideas to teach comparative and superlative adjectives to English language learners. With FREE resources and games for your lesson.

Do you set academic goals with your students? What about language goals for your English learners? I compare goal setting with creating a road map. We are at point A and need to get to Point B. So, we identify and target an area of need, then systematically work towards improving that area, tracking progress along the way. For students, this "road map" provides purpose. They know WHAT they need to do AND identify specific steps for getting there. Let's look at how setting specific language goals can help get ELs to the next level in their language acquisition journey. Where to Begin Before we start setting goals, we need to know our students. What are their current levels in each language domain? I work in a state that uses the WIDA ACCESS to annually assess language proficiency with English learners. At the end of the school year I receive a report that lists each student's scores in the four language domains: listening, reading, speaking and writing. So, the first step I take in setting goals is to analyze my students' score reports. If your state uses a different assessment, then you’d use your own state/district scores. I then make a list of all of my students current scores in each domain, as well as, their scores from the previous year, if available. I can then see trends, areas of weakness and domains that need additional attention. These will be the areas to target. It is good practice to also conduct your own assessments, such as a writing prompt, reading assessment, oral interview and listening skills activities. Once you have a good idea of where your students are currently, and what they CAN DO, the next step is to determine where they need to be by a given time. My timeline is generally the end of the school year, and I typically set goals to improve one whole level up in a given domain. For example, if a student is a level 2 in writing, and this is a weak language domain for him/her, I am going to set a writing goal to get him/her to a level 3. Student names covered for privacy. Generally, I set one or two main goals with my students. If a student is progressing at an appropriate rate in reading and listening, but is weaker in writing and speaking, my focus with that student will be to create a writing and speaking goal for the year. Of course we will still work on reading and listening skills, but the goal is to measurably increase the weaker skills. If they are progressing in all areas but one, then they’ll have just one language goal for the year. If I set two goals for a student, then I usually split the goals up focusing on one goal during the first half of the year, and the other during the second half. I have many small groups that I meet with throughout the week, and most are grouped according to need, so I find that setting a "group goal" can be more practical in the sense that the goal setting process is simplified and goes much quicker because everyone is working towards a similar goal. I still track individual student progress, but the group as a whole is working towards a common goal. Ultimately, when setting goals, you'll do what works best for you and your students. How it looks from one group to the next might look very different. Creating a Goal After I analyze each student's scores and I know the area(s) that need targeting, I use language descriptors to help create their goals. The descriptors are formatted with two levels side by side. Once I determine where my students or groups are, I then choose skills from the next level up to create a challenging, yet attainable, goal. I'll write the goal on the board for the students to copy on their own goal setting sheet. This sheet gets glued into their notebooks or their folders. We then, together, come up with skills we can work on that will help them reach that goal. I lead this discussion but they are definitely part of this process. Once a couple of strategies/skills are decided upon, I'll write them on the board and the students copy them on their goal setting sheet as well. This will be a reference throughout the year as we keep focus on what their goals are. I keep the language descriptors page, one for each student, in my binder. As we work, I check off the various skills and take anecdotal notes on how they are doing. Here, I want to get my student(s) from a level 3 in Speaking to a level 4, so I use the descriptors to help create a challenging yet attainable goal. Measuring Progress I keep track of my students' progress throughout the year, but at the beginning, middle and end of the year I use summative assessments to measure progress towards student goals. These scores become part of my official data collection. The assessments are typically a writing prompt, a speaking or listening activity and/or a reading assessment. After these assessments, I make time to meet individually with students to conference on their progress. For the students, or groups, that I have tracking their own progress, it is during this time that students shade in their graphs. Charting their own progress provides a great visual and is highly motivating for most students. This too will look different depending on your students. You may find that this is also a good time to revisit the steps needed to reach their language goal(s). I do not have my first graders chart their progress, nor do I have my newcomers. I usually add charting progress with my second or third graders and higher grades. My 1st graders know that we are working on goals because I post a learning target poster for each group, but they don't track them, I do the tracking. I'm not suggesting that you don't let your "firsties" track their own progress, I just choose not to. I have spoken with teachers who do and they have great success with it. You have to decide what works best for you and your students when setting goals. For newcomers, I show them at the end of the year how much progress they've made. They are usually amazed to see how far they've come. In the End... My number one piece of advice when setting language goals is, keep it simple! It can easily become overwhelming, but if you know your students' needs, and you group them accordingly, you can set one goal for the group. If they have multiple needs, give them one goal at a time to work on. You can always give a second goal later. When goals are clear and an action plan, or "road map", is in place, students (and teachers) are set up for success! Your students will love seeing their progress from the beginning of the year (BOY) to the end of the year (EOY). For the students who track and chart their own progress, this process can be highly motivating. They love pushing themselves, IF they know what they are working towards. My Language Goals resources below have all of the components necessary to help you start planning and setting goals with your ELs. Data Collection Sheets - get to know your students and their needs Descriptors for Each Language Domain - levels formatted side by side Goal Setting Sheets - for students Goal Planning Sheets - for planning or language goal posters Progress Monitoring Graphs -students actively participate in tracking their progress Cover Pages and Divider Pages - for creating a personalized "Language Goals" teacher binder It's never too late to set goals with your students. Click HERE to find my Language Goals for English Learners!

Using subject pronouns is key to forming sentences and making the English language flow naturally. This is why one of the absolute first ESL grammar skills that newcomers need to learn is subject pronouns. However, teaching

Using sentence frames to get ell students writing. Click here for more:

Effective ELL teaching strategies with our top 10 tips to support Level 1 students. Includes a free resource to help newcomers...

Newcomer students receive some support from an ELD (English Language Development) teacher in most elementary schools. The majority of their time is spent in their grade level classroom. Here are some strategies for supporting a newcomer student both in their grade level classroom and areas to focus on during targeted language development lessons. Create a

The start to the school year for newcomer ELLs can be overwhelming and nerve-wracking. It is our job to set them up with tools to help them feel comfortable exploring a new language in a

This digital resource is great for English Language Learners. It is ideal for back to school season! It has editable fields, ready to be assigned in the traditional form or digitally as long as it is on a password-protected platform such as Google Classroom. It includes the following: ⭐ Posters of 24 common classroom phrases ⭐ Translation activity in DIGITAL format (printable as well) ⭐ Speaking activity ⭐ Comics strip activity ⭐ List of ideas for the teacher Thank you, and happy teaching! First Generation Dreams

Learn some ideas for supporting IEP and ESL students in the middle school classroom.

Our favourite Portuguese language resources for little language learners and bilingual children

Click here for methods of teaching writing skills for different styles.

Download these free picture mats to build vocabulary in preschool and kindergarten. These are great for English language learners, too! #vocabulary

ELL, ESOL, LEP, ELD. We all have experienced English Language Learners at some point during our teaching careers. Learn some strategies to help both you and them be successful!

So - after planning for hours this weekend, and reading Señorita Reina's comment - I am not alone! WooHoo! I know - it sounds crazy ... but many times I think I am the only one experiencing trouble or that has an issue...chances are ... many others have the same issue.. So - I did some blog stalking research today - Here is what I've found.... First up - WIDA blog This blog - by Tammy King - has been up and running for two years. She highlights trainings, ACCESS for ELL's, ed tech, and data analysis with EL's in mind. She has also written a book on implementing effective instruction for EL's into the classroom. This blog has been added to my bookmarks - I've enjoyed what I have read so far :) #2 Another great ESOL blog - I may have blog stalked Laurah for a while..... :) She has a giveaway running now {hint, hint} and has some WIDA/CCSS aligned units in her tpt store. I was really sad to learn that someone stole their MacBooks and even more heart-broken that her Donor's Choose project to replace them expired in April! Boohoo! #3 ColorínColorado.org This page has a wealth of information - in ABC order! It is also a bilingual site! #4 They also have a blog dedicated to Common Core and ELL's :) The blog *might* be my favorite thing....ever.... The first post that comes up is the back to school writing prompt - with CCSS and expectations for each level of ELL student! #5 The National Writing Project This site addresses issues with Common Core and EL focusing on writing. There are links to journal articles and books for further PD {uh....Christmas Break?} night peeps - time for more cold meds and bed.... yay for bts germs.

What is Oral Language? Oral Language skills are an important component of language development. It is made up of at least five key components (Moats 2010) including phonological skills, pragmatics, syntax, morphological skills, and vocabulary. Students need opportunities throughout the day to practice their speaking and listening skills. For English Language Learners this is particularly important

Games are a great way to help students practice vocabulary. For newcomers that are just learning English, they are a fun way to practice basic Tier 1 terms. For students at higher language levels and native speakers, they are great ways to practice content-specific vocabulary. It is important to review vocabulary words with ELLs before

Helping K-2 Teachers Like You Save Time, Grow Instructional Skills, and Teach With Confidence!

Check out our TOP 5 whiteboard games you can try in your next English class. Includes FREE resources!

Advice from three ESL teachers on the things regular classroom teachers can do to help English language learners thrive in mainstream classrooms.

How to teach English Language Learners in your preschool or kindergarten classroom. Tips for working with dual language learners.

District specialist Valentina Gonzalez says English learners need "massive opportunities" to use academic language in class. She shares 10 teaching techniques.

"He Iti te Kupu: Māori Metaphors and Similes" is an essential resource for anyone looking to deepen their understanding of te reo Māori. This comprehensive guide presents nearly 500 sayings, each drawn from various elements of the natural world and tied to human experiences, events, or contexts. The dual-language layout, with texts in both Māori and English, makes it accessible to learners and fluent speakers alike. Divided into thematic sections like birds, body parts, and animals, this book not only teaches the sayings but also explores their meanings, uses, and cultural significance. The title, inspired by the proverb "The words are small, yet their meanings are substantial," highlights the profound impact these sayings have in the Māori cultural landscape. Authored by Hona Black, a respected lecturer with deep roots in Māori education and language revitalisation, "He Iti te Kupu" serves as an invaluable tool for educators, students, and anyone passionate about incorporating nuanced Māori figures of speech into their daily communications. Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned speaker, this book will enrich your linguistic journey, providing a bridge to both the language and the worldview of te reo Māori. Author Hona Black (Tūhoe, Te Whānau a Apanui, Ngāti Tūwharetoa) lectures on the post-graduate diploma in teaching for Māori medium schools at Te Pūtahi a Toi: School of Māori Knowledge at Massey University in Palmerston North. He has worked as the Senior Māori Adviser on Massey’s Wellington campus, and been Head of Te Reo Māori at Hato Pāora College in Feilding. Publishing Details Publisher: Oratia Media | Oratia Books Authors: Hona Black Published: 4 February 2021 Pages: 232 Format: Paperback Dimensions: 210x148x18mm ISBN: 9780947506919

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) activities are highly engaging for students. This is particularly true for English Language Learners. A key component is that the disciplines are inte…