to develop knowledge about a subject, discuss the topic in a “safe” setting where they can question, and even use their primary language to discuss the lesson so that they have a foundation before receiving the main lesson in English.
Check the Clarity of Your Lessons
Making your lessons understandable to ELLs is the most important thing you can do to help these students be successful in your classroom. Making “input” comprehensible will help your students participate in lessons, help them understand what is going on in the classroom, and encourage them to speak in English, as appropriate (Krashen, 2003). You need to provide comprehensible lessons that scaffold the language learner. Scaffolds can include pictures, objects, media from the Internet, and other realia, as they powerfully contextualize what you are saying, making it comprehensible and concrete.
Speak Clearly and at an Appropriate Pace
It also helps to slow down your speech rate and to repeat what you are saying to give students learning English “clues” about what you are teaching and time to process. This is not only true for students new to English; it is also true for students who seem to be proficient because they can speak well in English but who may not have yet developed academic language.
Attune Your Teaching and Learning Expectations to the Stages of Language Acquisition
Language-appropriate, culturally relevant instruction and instruction with high expectations for learning can support students as they learn English. The following chart explains the five stages of language acquisition and highlights learner characteristics at each stage. You can best support language acquisition by matching your expectations for student production and interaction in English with the stages that your students are in as evidenced by their oral and written work.
Unfortunately, many students remain in the Intermediate and Early Advanced stages for their entire school careers, never reaching full English proficiency. These students are considered long-term English learners and struggle in content-area classes. This is why it is so important to know and understand the five stages of language acquisition so you can differentiate instruction based on students’ needs.
The Five Stages of Language Acquisition: What to Expect of Students
Source: Contributed by Nancy Akhavan.
References
Akhavan, N. (2006). Help! My kids don’t all speak English: How to set up a language workshop in your linguistically diverse classroom. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Callahan, R. M. (2005). Tracking and high school English learners: Limiting opportunity to learn. American Educational Research Journal, 42(2), 305–328. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/200368076?accountid=10349.
Hakuta, K. (2000). How long does it take English learners to attain proficiency? Berkeley: University of California Linguistic Minority Research Institute. Retrieved from http://escholarship.org/uc/item/13w7m06g.
Haynes, J., & Zacarian, D. (2010). Teaching English language learners: Across the content areas. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Hoover, J., & Patton, J. (2005). Differentiating curriculum and instruction for English-language learners with special needs. Intervention in School and Clinic, 40(4), 231–235.
Krashen, S. D. (1982/2009). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. Retrieved from http://www.sdkrashen.com/content/books/principles_and_practice.pdf.
Krashen, S. (2003). Explorations in language acquisition and use: The Taipei lectures. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Krashen, S. D., & Terrell, D. (1983). The natural approach: Language acquisition in the classroom. Hayward, CA: Alemany Press.
Peregoy, S. F., & Boyle O. F. (1997). Reading, writing and learning in ESL: A resource book for K–12 teachers (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Longman.
Quick Reference: Common Core State Standards, K–12 English Language Arts
Reading
Key Ideas and Details
1. Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.
2. Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
3. Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.
Craft and Structure
4. Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.
5. Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.
6. Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.
Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
7. Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse media and formats, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.
8. Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.
9. Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.
Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity
10. Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.
Writing
Text Types and Purposes*
* These broad types of writing include many subgenres. See Appendix A in the Common Core State Standards for definitions of key writing types.
1. Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning
