can differentiate instruction to accommodate differences in students’ language proficiency.6 Through inquiry units, teachers can connect curriculum to students’ lives and backgrounds.
Collaborative Unit Brainstorming Activity
Sit in grade level groups with others who are using your same basal reading program. Choose a unit from your basal. Together, use a large piece of butcher paper to create a poster reflecting how you will approach organizing the unit of inquiry. Begin by deciding on the big question for the unit. Looking at the reasons for organizing around units of inquiry, include in your poster:
how you will bring in different content areas
what vocabulary will be repeated naturally through the stories and activities
how you can differentiate instruction
how you will connect the readings and activities to your students’ lives
As you create your poster, you may want to use the graphic organizer that follows (Figure 1.2). Modify it to fit the categories you want to include.
Figure 1.2 Theme Graphic Organizer
Standards based skills: draw on background knowledge, select, explain, create
Getting to Know Your Students
There are significant differences among the students we refer to as English language learners. Some have arrived recently while others were born in the United States or have lived in the United States most of their lives. Some come with more formal schooling than others. And some have already learned some English, while others are just beginning to learn it. Although there are individual differences among emergent bilinguals in each group we describe below, it is helpful to begin by considering the major types of English learners.
Below is a chart of different types of English learners you might see in your elementary classroom (Figure 1.3). Read over the characteristics of each.
Figure 1.3 Types of English Learners
1. Turn and Talk (groups of four or more)
Each person in your group should focus on a type of learner. Identify one of your current or past students who fits this category. Share what you know about that student. What more would you like to know about that student? Do you know about the student’s previous schooling and literacy in the first language?
Standards based skills: summarize, identify, evaluate, analyze
2. Four Corners Activity
You each have a card to write on. In each corner of the room, there is a sheet of paper with the title of one of the four types of students listed above. Which of the types of students do you have or think you have in your classroom? List students’ names and characteristics on your card. Then, go to the corner that represents the type of student you identified. Discuss with others in your corner. Report out to the rest of the group.
Standards based skills: analyze, evaluate, formulate opinions, support ideas with evidence
Classroom activities for a Four Corners activity:1. To draw on background knowledge and to find out what students already know about key concepts they will be studying, choose four concepts or photos representing the concepts and divide students into four groups. Each group could meet to record what they know about the concept and then report back to the class.2. When studying a debatable topic, choose four possible responses to the debate (strongly agree, agree, disagree, strongly agree). Have students go to the corner that represents their opinion, talk together, and then present their argument to the class.
Creating a Multilingual/Multicultural Environment
It is important to find out about your students’ languages and cultural backgrounds early in the school year. You might have records that the school provides, but often student information is not available. In today’s diverse classrooms, it is not unusual for students to represent a variety of cultures and languages. Different activities provide opportunities for getting to know your students and helping students to get to know one another. These activities also encourage oral language development and help teachers create a multilingual/multicultural environment in their classrooms. When charts, objects, and student work reflecting cultures and languages other than English are posted around the classroom, diversity is celebrated, and students of different cultural and linguistic backgrounds are validated. Teachers have found the following activities effective for getting to know their students and creating a multilingual/multicultural environment.
1. Where in the World Are You From? Map.
This project is simple, teaches you about your students, and celebrates students’ backgrounds. A world map is on a classroom wall with a picture of each student arranged around the map. Students are asked, “Where were you born?” They locate where they were born on the map. Next, they draw an arrow or take a piece of yarn and connect it from their birthplace to their picture. See Figure 1.4 for an example. If most students were born in the United States, a second question, “Where were your parents (or grandparents) born?” could be added and students could use a different color of arrow or yarn to indicate where their parents come from. If students aren’t sure, they could ask their parents or grandparents. Students share where they or their family members are from and classmates ask questions and make comments.
Standards based skills: oral language development, compare and contrast, map reading
2. Country and Flag Graph.
Ask students where they were born. Research the correct flag for each country mentioned. Have students draw a flag of their country of origin or use an Internet image. Then use the flags to create a graph that shows the number of students in your classroom from each country represented. Students share their flags and where they are from. See Figure 1.5 for an example.
Figure 1.4 Where in the World Are You From? Map
Sources: iStock.com/monkyebusinessimages, iStock.com/bergserg, iStock.com/DOUGBERRY, iStock.com/FatCamera, and iStock.com/SteveDebenport
Figure 1.5 Country and Flag Graph
Sources:
