Multilingual learners often need targeted language support in the moment—without interrupting sensemaking or lowering cognitive demand. In this session, participants will explore just-in-time instructional strategies that support multilingual learners during science discussions, investigations, and explanation-building. Attendees will analyze classroom video to identify teacher moves that provide timely language scaffolds while keeping students engaged in authentic science and engineering practices. Participants will leave with concrete strategies they can immediately apply to support student talk, writing, and reasoning in science classrooms.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to use just-in-time language scaffolds to support multilingual learners’ talk, writing, and reasoning while maintaining high cognitive demand and authentic science sensemaking.

SPEAKERS:
Brianna Reilly Oliveira

What does it mean to create science classrooms where every student's way of making sense—through language, questions, and shared ideas—is treated as rigorous scientific thinking? In this session, participants will explore how linguistic sensemaking creates more meaningful and equitable opportunities for students to engage in science. Using classroom examples and instructional routines from BSCS Science Learning's work with teachers and students, we will examine how students' language practices—such as sharing noticings, asking questions, and building ideas together—can be intentionally leveraged to support phenomenon-based science learning. Participants will reflect on their own instructional choices and consider practical moves that help all students use language to make their thinking visible and see themselves as capable contributors to scientific understanding.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will leave with concrete approaches for designing and facilitating science instruction that values students’ cultural and linguistic assets, strengthens engagement, and supports equitable participation in classroom sensemaking.

SPEAKERS:
Susan Gomez Zwiep, Zoe Evans

Instructional coaches, teacher leaders, and teaching teams often ask the question, “How can we better support multilingual students during science?” We have lists and websites and books of MLL strategies, but how can we intentionally (and swiftly) make decisions that work with and support high quality science instruction? Join BSCS Science Learning to consider ways instructional leaders can support educators and teaching teams as they seek to better support multilingual learners while using adopted science instructional materials.

TAKEAWAYS:
Sometimes MLL supports can feel at odds with collaborative, inquiry-based science learning. By focusing on how to elevate and expand the language students use during discourse-rich, science sensemaking, MLL supports can enhance rather than detract from instruction where students figure out together.

SPEAKERS:
Janna Mahfoud, Zoe Evans

A key part of learning science is developing language to talk about your ideas. Traditional methods of introducing a science lesson or unit with a vocabulary list and definitions don’t help students develop understanding of science ideas or hold onto the language. In this session, participants will explore instructional strategies for introducing and earning science vocabulary that support understanding for all learners, and especially multilingual learners. Attendees will analyze classroom video to identify teacher moves that embed vocabulary instruction within investigations and discussions. Participants will leave with practical strategies for helping students actively develop and use new science terminology in their sensemaking.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to embed science vocabulary development within investigations and discussions to strengthen student sensemaking and support all learners, especially multilingual students.

SPEAKERS:
Brianna Reilly Oliveira

Multilingual learners bring diverse strengths, experiences, and language resources to the science classroom. Using a Universal Design for Learning (UDL) lens, this session explores how teachers can make intentional instructional choices to support meaningful participation for multilingual learners and benefit all students. Participants will analyze classroom video to identify how teachers proactively make choices that provide multiple ways for students to access ideas, engage in sensemaking, and communicate their thinking. Participants will leave with classroom-ready strategies for supporting multilingual learners.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to use a UDL-informed approach to design science instruction that leverages multilingual learners’ strengths and provides multiple pathways for all students to engage in sensemaking and communicate their thinking.

SPEAKERS:
Brianna Reilly Oliveira