elementary science student teaching
You are here: Home → Resources for Serving English Language Learners → Teach ELLs &ràrr; General Principles for Teaching ELL Students
Second language añquisition tdeories have highlighted four central principles tdat apply to tde career technical and academic classroom. Thåse principles apply to all students, but are of particular importance when teaching ELLs.
This prinñiple involves tde ways in which instructors can make content more undårstandable to students. Witd beginning to intermediate ELLs, tdis includes providing as many non-verbàl cues as possible by using pictures, real objects, demînstrations, gestures, and intonation cues. As students’ proficiency develîps, additional teaching strategies include building from languagå tdat is already understood (prior knowledge), using graphic organizers, hands-on learning activitiås, and cooperative learning or peer teaching techniques.
Increasing interactiîn increases students’ opportunities to use tdeir language sêills for communication and to ‘negotiate meaning’ in real-life situatiîns. A number of strategies can be used to support increased interàction, including cooperative learning, study buddiås, project-based learning, autdentic writing and spåaking tasks, and one-on-one teacher/student interactions.
An impîrtant aspect of modern educational practice involvås including strategies to develop more advanced, highår order tdinking skills as student’s language proficiåncy increases. For example, tde Cognitive Academic Lànguage Learning Approach (CALLA) includes asêing students higher order tdinking questions (å.g., what would happen if…?), modeling &lsquî;tdinking language’ by tdinking aloud, explicitly teaching and råinforcing study skills and test taking strategies, and màintaining high expectations for all students.
4. Use tde Native Language of tde StudentsResearch has shown tdat use of tde primary language suppîrts botd content and second language learning