Strategies & Methods for Teachers

 

Elementary Strategies

 

Explanation: In this video the teacher is working with a small group of ELL first grade students. Students are participating in guided reading groups where they are placed with similar instructional reading levels and learning needs.

Strategy:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_jXuw_Knc0 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Research Rationale: Guided reading is small-group reading instruction designed to provide differentiated teaching that supports students in developing reading proficiency. The teacher uses a tightly structured framework that allows for the incorporation of several research-based approaches into a coordinated whole. For the student, the guided reading lesson means reading and talking (and sometimes writing) about an interesting and engaging variety of fiction and nonfiction texts. For the teacher, guided reading means taking the opportunity for careful text selection and intentional and intensive teaching of systems of strategic activity for proficient reading (Fountas & Pinnell, 1996).  

 

 

 

Explanation: For English language learners (ELLs), success in learning to read in English in the first grade depends on several factors: In kindergarten, were they exposed to reading in English or in their primary language? Did that exposure include ample vocabulary development? Were they exposed to the sounds of the language (phonemic awareness), the alphabet, sound-letter relationships (phonological awareness), decoding, and comprehension skills? This strategy demonstrates ways to teach listening comprehension for ELL students.

Instructional Strategy: Listening to stories read aloud by the teacher is one effective way for students to enrich vocabulary. It is also an easier way for you to introduce comprehension skills such as the main idea and cause and effect because the students are not having to do the arduous work of decoding, learning new words, and trying to comprehend the story while also attempting to think about elements of the story.

You can do this through discussions with students or by thinking aloud about what might be the main idea or the cause and effect in a section you just finished reading. When reading aloud to ELLs:

• Show and read the front and back pages of the book, as well as the dedication or table of contents page.

• Use pictures, maps, objects, or drawings on the board.

• Provide background knowledge on concepts that students will need to comprehend the story.

• Introduce the characteristics/elements of the story (characters, setting, problem, solution, plot).

• Pre-teach five to six key words they will encounter frequently and will need to use for the discussions.

• Model how a reader self-corrects when making a mistake.

• Think aloud about what you are reading; stop every once in a while and summarize what you have read so far.

• Provide opportunities for students to summarize or retell the story through dramatic retellings; or use picture cards to put the story's events in sequence.

Research Rationale: Reading is a process of getting meaning from print. Early reading includes the direct teaching of words and sounds. Children must be able to distinguish between different sounds of oral language to achieve understanding. They also need basic knowledge about the written alphabet, sound-symbol relationships, and concepts of print because these are the basis for decoding and reading comprehension skills (Colorin Colorado, 2007).

 

 

      Middle School Strategies

 

Explanation: English language learners frequently have not acquired through exposure to text the depth of vocabulary needed to comprehend their English and content area texts or to participate in classroom discussions of texts.  This Strategy Guide introduces strategies teachers can use for ELL vocabulary instruction in their English and content area classrooms.

Instructional Strategy: Supporting Vocabulary Acquisition -

• Before reading a text, identify key content vocabulary and vocabulary that may be difficult for language learners, such as phrasal verbs and prepositional phrases. Also, identify potentially difficult idioms, homonyms, and slang phrases.

• Pre-teach essential vocabulary words and phrases through word walls, Frayer models with an opportunity to draw word representations, and, sparingly, bilingual and English language learner (visual) dictionaries. Use Google images to pre-teach vocabulary.

• "Google" the focus vocabulary words, and choose the images category.

• Connect the images to the vocabulary words.

• When vocabulary words are more conceptual than concrete, use the images to start a discussion rather than name an object.

• Support students' meta-cognition around vocabulary.

• Ask students to identify confusing or new words during reading.

• Encourage students to use context clues before jumping to bilingual dictionaries.

• Encourage students to discuss possible meanings with partners and to keep vocabulary journals of newly acquired words.

• Develop a whole-school vocabulary focus on words of the week grouped by common roots and affixes or by key academic vocabulary.

Research Rationale: Nagy and Anderson (1984) estimate that students need to know 88,500 word families to understand their content-area texts (in Fisher, Rothenberg, and Frey (2007), yet Nagy and Herman (1984) found that only 10% of needed vocabulary was learned through direct instruction. ELLs learn more vocabulary through content: reading, writing, speaking, and listening; paradoxically, they need enough vocabulary to make sense of the texts in the content areas.  Therefore Fisher, Rothenberg, and Frey (2007) conclude that ELLs need both direct vocabulary instruction and immersion in important content.

 

 

Explanation: It turns out that reading comprehension strategies are as effective in one's second language as they are in one's first language.  For ELLs, the development of and access to useful background knowledge is crucial for their comprehension of texts in their second language.  What follows is a Strategy Guide for developing comprehension that incorporates the gradual release of responsibility model.

Instructional Strategy Lesson Plan: Supporting Comprehension Strategies for English Language Learners -

• Model with graphic organizers, or use think-aloud protocols to teach research-supported comprehension strategies such as predicting/clarifying predictions, summarizing, evaluating, inferencing, connecting, and understanding Question-Answer Relationships (QAR). 

• Use comprehensible texts, including short stories, excerpts from larger works, and adolescent novels.

• Give students time to apply comprehension strategies while in collaborative learning groups.

• Finally, use complex texts such as novels, non-fiction, and academic exposition. The goal is for students independently to choose and use strategies for different purposes, and to be able to critically analyze, in writing or in speech, the texts they read strategically.

• Model with graphic organizers, or use think-aloud protocols to teach the processes of literary and stylistic analysis. 

• While ELL's may have exposure to basic narrative elements (plot, character development, and setting), they need access to more complex components of writing such as tone, symbol, theme, author's attitude, and word-choice. 

• Consider teaching the terms directly, and then applying them through teacher-modeling and student practice using visual text, comprehensible texts, and complex texts. 

• Focus on how these stylistic choices affect the text and create meaning. 

• Follow modeling/think aloud protocols with plenty of practice in groups and independently. 

• Provide opportunities to synthesize and evaluate learning through presentations, written literary/stylistic analyses, reciprocal teaching, Socratic seminars or other complex tasks.

Research Rationale: We know that effective readers monitor their comprehension by activating background knowledge prior to reading and questioning, clarifying, predicting, and evaluating during their reading (Fisher, Rothenberg, and Frey, 2007).  Given that background knowledge is so crucial for ELLs, the gradual release of responsibility model, which asks that teachers build background knowledge through model focus lessons, have students practice strategies in collaborative learning groups, and gradually release students to apply their learning in independent reading and writing, is quite effective for teaching comprehension strategies to ELLS. (Fisher et. al.)

 

         High School Strategies

 

Explanation: This video demonstrates pre-reading strategies that help lay the groundwork for ELLs before tackling a new text. Strategies include previewing vocabulary, activating background knowledge, and introducing academic concepts (such as literary elements) important to the text in an ELL-friendly way.

Strategy:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVlcr_ORpQk&list=PLCE9E371F4E813F00

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Research Rationale:  It is extremely important for educators of ELLs to know and incorporate the ways that students learn vocabulary directly, including: explicitly teaching vocabulary words before students read a text, how to use dictionaries, how to use prefixes and suffixes to decipher word meanings, and how to use context clues (Antunez, 2002).

 

 

Explanation: This video is a panel of experts who discuss ways that schools can become more and improve instruction for ELL students. In this video you will learn about techniques to adapt classroom instruction to improve comprehension, and strategies to increase college readiness.

Strategy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrDkfSbBNmc&list=PLoU659hwTdDYqlDliiBvbXzDeaJ-aqhFS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Research Rationale: Learning to read for meaning depends on understanding the language of the text to be read. To the extent possible, ELLs should have opportunities to develop literacy skills in their home language as well as in English (Snow, Burns, & Griffin, 1998, p. 324)."

 

 

        Recommended Assistive Technology 

 

1.) The purpose of BrainPOP ESL is to provide a comprehensive English language learning program that uses highly engaging animated movies to model conversational English while seamlessly introducing grammar concepts and vocabulary words. The movies are leveled, with each new movie and associated features building upon earlier ones, thereby reinforcing vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, reading comprehension, and writing skills. The building block structure enables students to master the language in a step-by-step process, giving them the confidence they need to read, write, and speak English.

BrainPOP targets skills aligned to state standards across the curriculum, including: science, social studies, English, reading, math, arts and music, technology, and health. 

A 12 month classroom subscription for ELL BrainPOP is $130.00. The Español version is $160.00.  

 

2.) The purpose of Rosetta Stone is a language-learning software, which helps them associate images with English words and sentence structures to build their vocabularies. 

Rosetta Stone software provides the opportunity to target skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing—from the beginning, using your own natural language-learning ability.

You can purchase an online or CD-ROM download of Rosetta Stone for between $349.00-$499.00.

 

3.) The purpose of Let's Go Readers 1-6 is a fun-to-read story based on the characters in the Let's Go series. There are two stories in each book. Comprehension exercises after each story help students develop reading and critical thinking skills. The materials follow the syllabus of the series, and can also be used independently.

“Let’s Go” was created just for children beginning their English study.  This program targets controlled grammatical syllabus with functional dialogues, alphabet and phonics work, reading skills development, listening tests, question and answer forms, pair work exercises, and communicative games. It adds to the fun with popular child-appealing songs and chants! It's the ultimate "get up and go" for learning English!

There are 6 levels to purchase, all ranges from $24.94-$94.63.