Get to know your ELLs

This may seem simple, but it should not be overlooked.  Find out where your English Language Learners are from.  Show a genuine interest in their origins.  All Spanish speakers are NOT from Mexico, and you can really hurt your relationship with a Honduran student (for example) by assuming he is from Mexico.

I usually frame the question something like, “Where is your family from?”  This avoids awkwardness with students who were born in the U.S and whose parents are immigrants. 

More of our ELLs are from Mexico than anywhere else, but they are from numerous different states (Mexico is divided into 31 states and a Federal District.) and I always ask them what state they are from.

If you know something about their country/state, tell them – they will be impressed and you will be building a bond.  If you don’t know anything, ask them to point it out on a map and ask some questions.

Recent immigrants especially enjoy looking up their home towns in Google Images or Google Maps.  If I have a few minutes to spare in the classroom, we do this together and project the image.  I tell the class, “This is Jorge’s home town.”  The ensuing conversation really builds bridges between immigrant and “native” students.

USE COGNATES TO BUILD BACKGROUND

Cognates are words that are the same in two languages.  They may not be spelled exactly them same, but they have the same roots.  English and Spanish have many cognates.  Here are some examples:

English               Spanish

Capital              Capital

Colony              Colonia

Geography        Geografia

Magnetic           Magnético

Cognates can help students learn new content by connecting to what they already know in their first language.

· Point out cognates whenever you are aware of them.

· Teach the word cognate to students and encourage them to identify “new” cognates.

· Consider small rewards for students who independently identify cognates.

Links to English/Spanish cognate lists:

Colorin Colorado (A five-page printable list. Very useful)

Tier 1 vocabulary

Science cognates

Math cognates

There are also some  “False Cognates,”  where the same word has different meanings in each language.  Probably the most famous example is embarazada, which means NOT embarrassed, but pregnant! More closely related to school is:

English               Spanish

Library              Biblioteca

Book Store       Libraria

Check out this link for more:

Brown

Be Aware of Tier 2 Vocabulary

ELL Tip #3:  

Tier 1 vocabulary consists of the most common words: blue, mother, car, run, pencil.  Most ELLs will know these words before they come to your class.

Tier 3 vocabulary is the “academic” terms that you teach all your students: hypotenuse, subduction, alliteration.

Tier 2 vocabulary consists of the words that students need to function academically, but that ELLs may not have mastered yet.  Examples are difference, measure, except, underline, margin and compare.  Tier 2 also includes common words with special meanings, like table (periodic table, table of contents, tabled legislation).

Try to cultivate an awareness of these words and the challenge they pose to ELLs, especially during testing.  Don’t count on the students to ask you about them.  As you become more aware of Tier 2 words – especially terms that you know will appear on tests – stop occasionally to check for understanding and give a quick explanation.  (A systematic approach, like vocabulary journals or word walls, is even better!)  Your ELLs (and maybe some of your other students) will benefit.

Here are some links if want to learn more:

Colorin Colorado

Meggin Mcintosh

If you have suggestions of Tier 2 words that we should focus on, please put them in a comment!  

Paul

Comprehensible Input

Here’s today’s tip for helping the ELLs in your class:

This may sound obvious, but it bears repeating – make sure your students understand you.

· Face the students (not the board) when talking to them. 

· Speak slowly and clearly. 

· Don’t use slang or idioms. (What will an English Language Learner think when his teacher says, “I’m all tore up today.”?)

· Use visuals that reinforce spoken or written words.

· Employ gestures for added emphasis

· Exaggerate intonations at times.

All of this is based in research on Comprehensible Input by Steven Krashen.