February 17, 2016

15 Tips for Working With English Language

Learners
By Amanda Nehring

Grades PreK–K, 1–2, 3–5, 6–8, 9–12

No matter your grade level, subject area, or location, it is likely that you will have a student in your class
that is learning to speak English. The diversity of our nation’s schools is one of our most valuable traits,
but it can still be scary for students and teachers alike when language differences make classroom
learning more difficult. If you find yourself needing a few tricks of the trade and some new resources for
working with your ELL (English Language Learner) students, then read on!
Introduction to ELLs
ELL students will come to your classroom with a wide range of language abilities. Newcomers to this
country and younger students may find themselves in early language development stages where they are
silent observers or speak in shorter sentences. This is normal and while it can make communication more
difficult it doesn’t mean that those students aren’t learning.
As students become more comfortable with English they will begin to practice speaking. At this point it is
important that you be encouraging and foster a safe classroom environment where students feel
comfortable taking risks and making mistakes. This is where students will make great strides in their
language development, beginning with basic social language and working their way to academic
vocabulary.
A great resource I have found to help teachers is Easy & Engaging ESL Activities and Mini-Books for
Every Classroom. Many of the activities and strategies that follow can be enhanced by the games,
worksheets, and mini-books in this book, so I recommend grabbing yourself a copy!

Tips for helping your ELL students

 Use lots of visuals. Students who are developing English language skills will benefit from
seeing pictures, videos, and real-life examples of objects and concepts being studied. You can
 make sure to provide visual support through picture

dictionaries.
 Create a safe environment for practicing language. Confidence is key for students trying
to learn a new language, so it is imperative that your classroom be a safe place for students to
practice speaking English and even feel comfortable making mistakes. Try to avoid correcting
students in general conversations, instead modeling the correct usage of vocabulary and grammar
in a simple and slow manner.
 Clearly communicate objectives. Students will be most successful when they are told
upfront what they will be expected to learn and to do as a result of a lesson. This is true for all
students, not just English language learners. Dedicate a section of your whiteboard to listing both
content and language objectives for each lesson. Review the objectives with students at the end
of the lesson to make sure that you all accomplished what you set out to do.
 Introduce new vocabulary at the start of a lesson. Before you begin to explain the life
cycle of a butterfly to your students, for example, you should take the time to introduce your ELL
students to the relevant academic vocabulary. Make sure to use visuals and maybe even have
your students keep a dictionary of new words they learn. This will help them assign meaning to
the language of the concepts you are about to cover.
  Be flexible with your assessments. ELL students
will be more successful if they are assessed in ways that allow them to use all of their resources
and skills to show what they know. If a student can’t write out a description of a story’s main
character, can they draw and label the character to show traits? If mathematical word problems
are too difficult, can they understand better when they hear the problem read aloud? Look at each
of your ELL students’ strengths to decide on the best assessment method for each child.
 Make use of the students’ native languages. Many students coming with languages like
Spanish, French, or German will find similarities between their native language and English. Use
those similarities to foster language growth! Encourage students to keep a notebook of cognates,
the words that sound the same in both languages, to help them bridge the language gap. Ask your
ELL students to share the connections they’ve noticed with the class, allowing all students to see
the basic building blocks of language and maybe even learn some new words in a different
tongue!

Communicating with ELL parents

 Make the effort to meet parents in person. You’ll be amazed how far a simple meeting can
go to make ELL students’ parents feel comfortable. You can give a tour of the school, share some
work that the student has done in class, or just say a quick hello to show that you care. If your
district has translators for the family’s native language, ask them to come to the meeting and
introduce themselves to the parents.
 Avoid using students as translators. It may be easy to ask students to help you
communicate with their parents, but this can actually cause problems. Many times you want to
share information with parents that you wouldn’t want going through a student. You’d be amazed
how the translation of “Ben had trouble getting along with his partner today,” can change when
you are sending it through Ben himself. Using children as translators also creates an imbalance in
the hierarchy of the family. Parents should feel like they are in charge, so it is best to use an
outside adult translator whenever possible.
 Never assume that a parent can’t speak English. Making the assumption that ELL
students’ parents can’t speak English can be both insulting and inaccurate. Many times a student
receives ESL services because more than one language is spoken at home, but parents still speak
 English. I have found that it is best to send a home language survey at the beginning of the year
to get to know the family dynamic and language preferences up front.
 Host a newcomers night at your school. Bring together all of the ESL resource teachers,
district translators, school administrators, and, of course, ELL families for a night of
introductions and information. Give a tour of the school. Explain how to use the school library.
Introduce parents to the people that can serve as translators. Making newcomers feel welcome
can help to increase participation in school events.
 Make your best effort to provide materials in parents’ native languages. If you have the
means to provide information to parents in their native language, do it, but only if you can be
sure that it is a good quality translation. Translation websites can be great, but often the meaning
of your message can be confused and even incorrect. If you use a translation site try to find
someone who can read over the text to make sure it makes sense.

Advocating for your ELL students

 Foster an environment of acceptance and an appreciation of diversity. Be intentional
about sharing other cultures with your class. Read one of these books with your students to
impress upon them the importance of making everyone feel welcome and valued.
o I Hate English! by Ellen Levine
o Little Blue and Little Yellow by Leo Lionni
o The Sneetches by Dr. Seuss
 Let your ELL students share their culture. Provide students many opportunities to share
their own experiences, customs, foods, and language with the class. You could have a weekly
show-and-tell or even host a cultural celebration in the classroom.
 Fight against stereotypes in your school and community. As a bilingual teacher I am often
saddened by the stereotypes about ELL students that pervade. When you hear students,
colleagues, or community members engaged in conversations that could be inaccurate and
hurtful, don’t be afraid to kindly interject. Many people are just unaware of different cultures and
would be happy to learn about your experiences with the ELL population.
 Stay informed about best practices in teaching ELLs. Researchers are always uncovering
new information about how language develops. Keep your eyes open for local conferences about
language learning held by your department of education. You can also find articles like "Success
for ESL Students" in Scholastic Teacher magazine.
Some of the products in this blog post were provided to the blogger by Scholastic for her review and
suggested use.