Tools and Strategies to Support ELL Students

What makes a teacher? Three parts patience and two parts flexibility. Don’t forget a cup of motivation with a heap of perseverance. Throw in thirty kids with their unique needs and backgrounds, and we have a recipe for an adventurous school year. Among the many individual needs of learners, our ELL students come to us with especially distinctive learning needs. Social and emotional learning, as well as functioning academically in another culture, can lead to frustrating situations for everyone in the classroom. As teachers, our job lies in understanding such circumstances and in providing support and effective instruction. The following are some strategies and tools to keep on hand this school year. If you have other ideas, please post them so we can all benefit.

Language Support

• Academic Language. English language learners need assistance when it comes to learning academic, or content-rich, vocabulary. For those who are learning English, the difference between social and academic language is quite different. Recognizing the difference is crucial in providing explicit instruction on content vocabulary. Think of, define, and display those academic terms your ELLs will encounter in your class. If you start with semantics, students will understand more of the content you are trying to convey, and it will likely save some headaches for all parties involved. 

• Cooperative Learning and Increased Peer Interaction. Creating working groups with mixed abilities is not new, but it remains an effective learning strategy. Awareness and strategic use of your ELLs' peer groups can offer significant steps in providing language support as well. Utilizing small groups and think-pair-share activities offers all learners with opportunities to practice content skills and knowledge as well as increase their communication skills.

• Illustrated Word Wall. Include illustrations and/or photographs with content-related vocabulary aids. This will not only benefit English learners, but all of your students. Displaying the words and accompanying visual representations can become an interactive bulletin board activity. For example, when students come across an unknown term, they can locate the definition and an illustration to post. Likewise, introducing a new set of vocabulary terms using images allows the ideas to be easily introduced. Follow the images by posting the word, thus connecting the image and word as instruction and learning moves along.

Instructional Support

• Graphic Organizers. Understanding the ways our students think allows us to better organize content information. Organizing and categorizing information can make a daunting concept more manageable. The act of organizing information can also help in clearing up confusing terms, phrases, and ideas.

• Chunking Information. Taking a large concept or unit of study and breaking it down into digestible bits of information makes learning more accessible, and it also aids in successful assessment completion. Again, areas of confusion are more easily identified and cleared up when dealing with smaller bits of information.

• Front-Loading Content. Previewing upcoming material, such as vocabulary, skills, and content helps to prepare ELLs for upcoming instruction. As familiar words, phrases, and materials are presented in class, students not only connect and recognize previewed content, but are given the opportunity to better comprehend and participate in learning experiences.

• Tapping into Prior Experiences. This is easier to accomplish in some content areas than others, but knowing and tapping into your ELLs' prior educational experiences, as well as their interests and hobbies can help connect them to your classroom. Look for opportunities to ask your ELLs to share an interest through reading and discussion. This can motivate writing, as well as boost confidence, as he/she may feel comfortable being the expert on topics of interest.

Again, what makes a teacher? The simple answer: our students. All of our students—with all their individual experiences, backgrounds, and needs—come into our classrooms each year expecting to learn something in their individual ways. Are you up for the challenge?

More Resources from Lesson Planet:

Use a Graph—ELL, Reaching Language Learners in the Classroom, Reducing Language Barriers