Helpful Strategies and More

This article presents nine strategies used by pull-out teachers for students with English language difficulties. These strategies are listed and explained in this article. There is a usefu... See More

This article presents nine strategies used by pull-out teachers for students with English language difficulties. These strategies are listed and explained in this article. There is a useful chart that summaries the techniques suggested. Strategies include ideas such as setting goals, listing objectives, using simple language and more. The end of the article is a wealth of online resources to further help any teacher who needs it. This is a must read for inclusion teachers.

ELL Science Strategies

I thought that this journal article was beneficial to me as a teacher because it offered me strategies that I can implement in my classroom. All the strategies that were discussed in this ar... See More

I thought that this journal article was beneficial to me as a teacher because it offered me strategies that I can implement in my classroom. All the strategies that were discussed in this article give me ideas that I can take with me into my first year of teaching, and into my career. The strategies that can help in teaching science to ELLs are: setting goals before adapting the curriculum, listing and repeating lesson objectives and instructions, use simple language instead of simple concepts, respond to the message, demonstrate science concepts, provide additional vocabulary help, increase wait time, encourage student collaboration, and include language minority parents. The strategy that really stuck with me was demonstrating science concepts because it allows me to come up with different ways to show the concepts. For example, graphic organizers or charts can be really helpful to ELL students when it comes to organizing information. As a teacher, I can even fill out a part of the graphic organizer for them to help them with their science concepts, and then give them the opportunity to fill it out too. Graphic organizers are a great way to organize information and help ELL students process science concepts. Also, I liked how it talked about collaboration with peers during group work. In a group, each student can have a different role, which allows ELL students to get involved, even if they do not share the group’s results with the class. ELL students could draw pictures, make art, fill out graphic organizers, and more. This does not limit their engagement in the classroom, instead it allows them to work collaboratively with their peers in groups. I did not notice any indication on how to assess NGSS and/or each of the three dimensions in that context. However, I believe that if I chose a strategy here, I could figure out ways to assess NGSS and/or the three dimensions. I do wish that NGSS was included in this article, but I do like all the strategies that were included for me. As for possible shortfalls, I believe that classroom space and classroom resources could be an issue. Not every classroom has the necessary resources for either ELL students or for science lessons. In that case, some of the strategies may be hard to teach and/or difficult to implement. In all though, I felt as if I was given important information about ELL students and how I can more appropriately engage them in science lessons.