English Language Development: Foundations & Implementation in Kindergarten Through Grade 5

Presenters: Dr. Ann Snow & Dr. Anne Katz

December 7, 2010

California Department of Education: Accountability Leadership Institute for English Learner and Immigrant Students

AgendaPreparing teachers through

Professional DevelopmentDesigning ELD instructionExamining instructed ELDExample of ELD instructionActivity

What is your role?

English Language Learner Teacher/School Site Coach

School Site AdministratorDistrict AdministratorCounty Office or Support ProviderTechnical Assistance ProviderCollege/University InstructorsOther

Preparing teachers through Professional Development

Scope: school wide approaches◦Collaborative sessions◦In-house coaching◦Calendared planning time

Depth: knowledge, skills and dispositions to teach ELs

ELD in Elementary ClassroomsGoal: to ensure students succeed

academically ◦Academic language development◦Social and pragmatic language

developmentMeans: through instructed ELD

◦Systematic, explicit instruction during designated time periods

Designing ELD instruction

Questions:What aspects of language do I

teach?How do I know if students are learning?

Answer:Standards-based instruction and

assessment

Planning, enacting and evaluating Instructed ELD

Step 1: Identify the learner’s language proficiency level

Step 2: Select standards-based language objectives for instructed ELD

Step 3: Design and enact activities

Step 4: Assess learning through standards-referenced assessments

Step 1: Identify the learner’s language proficiency level

Use multiple sources to collect information

Collect information across all four domains: listening, speaking, reading, and writing

Focus on student performances on authentic tasks

Step 2: Select standards-based language objectives for instructed ELD

Draw on ELD and ELA standards to identify targets for learning

Frame learning outcomes suited to students’ proficiency level and language learning needs

Design language objectives

California ELD Standards

Skill AreasListening and SpeakingReadingWriting

Grade-Level SpansK-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12

Five Proficiency Levels

Example from ELD Standards, grades K-2, beginning level

ELD standard:Read aloud simple words (e.g., nouns and adjectives) in stories or poems

ELA content standards, K - 2Identify and sort common words in basic categories (e.g., colors, shapes, foods).

Step 3: Design and enact activities

Design learning activities in light of learning aims

Utilize a range of resourcesDifferentiate instruction based on

language proficiency levels

Step 4: Assess learning through standards-referenced assessments

Gather information frequently within the classroom

Keep a written record of information collected and link the information to targeted standards

Review the data to see patternsEngage students in monitoring

their own learning

Questions?

What is Instructed ELD?The systematic, explicit

instruction of the English language during scheduled blocks of ELD time.

In instructed ELD, ELs learn the English language skills needed to transition to English Language Arts and mainstream content instruction.

What are the goals of Instructed ELD?1. To teach young ELs (grades K-5)

to use English for all communicative purposes both inside and outside of the classroom.

2. To teach Listening, Speaking,

Reading, and Writing skills related to the given ELD standards.

3. To teach syntax, phonology, morphology (e.g., plural endings, past tense –ed, prefixes/suffixes), and pragmatic uses of language (e.g., politeness features, indirect requests)

4. To teach text-level structures(e.g., genre in oral & written domains)

5. To teach everyday language functions (e.g., ask for information, give directions) and academic language functions (e.g., define, request clarification)

6. To teach vocabulary systematically:

a) everyday vocabulary b) non-specialized academic

vocabulary

Question:

Are you familiar with this linguistic terminology?

Four examples of academic language functions from science:

Description: “A sunflower has bright yellow petals and a long green stem.”

Explanation: “Clownfish will actually protect sea anemone. That’s a mutualistic relationship.”

Comparison: “Flowers have mechanisms of attraction like whales have echolocation.”

Questioning: “What did we learn in our last unit on water properties?”

Academic language functions: Other examples from science

analyze, classify, demonstrate, formulate, hypothesize, infer, measure, observe, predict, provide evidence, record, report, strategize, summarize, etc.

Common Function Words: Examples from Science

Definition: refers to, is the same as, consists of, in other words

Providing an example: for instance, including, such as, like

Sequencing: first…second, next, finally, following, not long after

Showing cause and effect: because, as a result of, if…then, for this reason

Explicit language objectives“Students will use adjectives to describe

the characters in the story.”“Ss will use the sentence starters to

express a conclusion: In my opinion, I believe that, I

agree with… ““Ss will listen for main ideas and

supporting details.”“Ss will use context clues (i.e., grammar,

punctuation, logic, antonyms, appositives) to understand the meaning of unfamiliar words)

Example of ELD instruction

Fifth-Grade Interdisciplinary ELD Lesson: Immigration Unit

Lesson: Immigration Unit

Lesson: Immigration Unit

Lesson: Immigration Unit

Work Sheet: Biographical Essay

Work Sheet: Biographical Essay

Biographical Essay Rubric

Activity

In groups, take a look at the excerpts taken from California Science, a grade 2 textbook. Considering the various goals of instructed ELD discussed in the presentation, analyze the texts for embedded language demands, develop language objectives, and consider ways of assessing student learning.

Activity: Part 1Discuss the language demands

from the point of view of: ◦syntax; ◦morphology, genre and text features; ◦academic language functions; ◦the four skills (R, W, L, S); ◦and, vocabulary (everyday, non-

specialized, and specialized);

Examples of language demands

Activity: Part 2Develop language objectives for

an instructed ELD lesson which cover some of the language demands identified in the first part of the task.

Examples of language objectives

Activity: Part 3Design an assessment task that

you could use after you have taught the lesson to examine student learning of the language demands.

Examples of assessment tasks

Thank you for attending.

This powerpoint will be posted online at:

http://www.sccoe.org/depts.ell