ELL+Levels

There are five ELL levels: (which are determined by the CELDT- California English Language Development Test)

-Yes or No responses -May remain silent/ active listening -One to two word expressions
 * 1. Beginning (6 months)**

-Simple sentences -Will retell events -Reads basic sentences and vocab -Frequent grammatical errors
 * 2. Early Intermediate (3 months- 1 year)**

-Provides details orally -Makes Comparisons -Relies on illustrations for readings -Writes simple sentences **
 * 3. Intermediate (2-3 years)

4. Early Advanced (3-4 years) -Appears to be orally fluent -Begins to use academic terminology -Near grade level in academics
 * Normally mistaken for being at risk of being detained solely because of language restrictions, not because of the student's actual academic capabilities

-Paraphrases/ Synthesizes -Generates discussions -Socially comfortable -Reads and writes at grade level **
 * 5. Advanced ( >3 years)

The textbook outlines specific strategies to use while working with ELL students. pg 173-175 Level 1: Teachers should frame Yes/No questions, use hand gestures and use simple oral instructions. Level 2: Use books with clear illustrations to convey the story, label student drawings and model writing. Level 3: Create an illustrated thesaurus to expand their vocabulary and to teach cognates. Teach them how to take notes, write in journals and reflect on stories. Level 4: Bring jokes in for the students to see if they laugh and understand the joke. Use direct instruction to form questions in order for them to seek answers. They should be taking notes and be able to organize their thoughts. Level 5: Give them opportunities for social interactions such as group projects or presentations. Allow them to paraphrase text and express other students' thoughts. Help them to explore the nuances of language through limericks or jokes. They should have organizers for lectures and reading.

http://www.ctu.edu.vn/centers/cfl/teaching/EFL%20games/Games-index.htm
 * Games and Activities for the ELL classroom:** This is a place were teachers can share games and activities that they have found useful in the classroom.

3 Phases of ELL Students: **
 * 

"Stop it!" "I’m next!" "Me too!" "that’s mine!." > Example: > "I like it" which s/he hears over and over is used as if it were two words: > "I like it play ball." > "I like it little trucks." > Eventually, the "it" part of the phrase is released and the child will say: > "I like little trucks." > > > One of the rules in the acquisition of a second language is: "Concentrate on big things first. Leave the details for later." If you can grasp the basic meaning of what your student is saying then ignore the grammatical errors. > Often we place more emphasis on what the child is producing than what he or she is comprehending. The child may use the appropriate content words, but not in the appropriate form. For example, a child may be observing an experiment with ice in a freezer and say: "water frozen." > A child for whom Spanish is the first language and who is used to the fact that in his/her language most objects have a gender assigned to them, may say: > "Where is my pencil? I put him there." > > Other things to keep in mind when working with your ELL student: > []media type="youtube" key="TJbejQ2oSPE" height="344" width="425" **Barriers to Meaningful Instruction for English Learners (Meyer, 2000)** This article focuses on effective ways teachers can help ESL students overcome barriers to meaningful instruction. Teachers can use strategies based on social interactionist theory, such as that of Vygotsky, to create classroom conditions that foster learning by modeling, scaffolding and helping students to construct understanding, with the eventual goal of becoming independent thinkers and problem solvers. The author identifies four loads as barriers to meaningful instruction: cognitive load, culture load, language load and learning load; and she states teachers must be skilled at lowering these barriers and sparking student interest and curiosity by developing a creative, wise and passionate curriculum. Cognitive load refers to the number of new concepts embedded in a lesson. It is critical that we consistently assess prior knowledge of all students, ESL students particularly, and look to identify the concepts and skills the students do and do not possess. We must then fill in any conceptual gaps by trying to relate new concepts to life experiences of ESL students. Thus, it becomes more critical to get to know and understand these students. 'Culture load' refers to the way language and culture are related and the amount of cultural knowledge required to comprehend meaning or participate in an activity. Meanings of words are determined by the uses of words within linguistic and cultural settings, never the same in any two cultures. English learners need to learn the words in English as well as the cultural background that gives the words their English meaning. They need to learn words in context to understand the meaning. Additionally, the information conveyed in our textbooks and lessons is culturally embedded. Some texts or topics can actually be culturally offensive. Culture load also refers to how teachers expect interaction to occur in a classroom. This would include when to speak, when to stay silent, when to raise hands and when to write. These expectations vary from one culture to the next. English learners are often expected to determine the classroom behavioral norms independently. The author offers several strategies to help teachers lighten the culture load for students. Teachers should treat English learners with respect, not judgment, and try to build personal relationships with students, their families and communities. Teachers can use information gained through these relationships to develop lessons and activities that help students understand the American culture while still respecting the culture of the student. By demonstrating respect for students, teachers allow a door of trust to open that can serve to further deepen a nurturing teacher-student relationship. The next barrier, the 'language load,' refers to the number of unfamiliar words encountered as an English learner reads a text or listens to teacher or peer academic talk. Teachers can lighten this load by rewriting or explaining text material. Complex sentences can be broken down into comprehensible parts. Academic vocabulary can be presented at the start of a lesson and highlighted. Several different texts can be available covering the same content but at different reading ability levels. Additionally, teachers should model both academic and social language and scaffold its appropriate use to help the learner acquire it, use it effectively and move to more sophisticated levels of speaking and writing. The 'learning load' represents what teachers expect students to do with English in the learning activities. An example offered by the author is brainstorming, an activity that is oral and fast-paced, with few visual examples and minimal clarification in the initial stages. An English learner would have difficulty following such an activity, let alone participating. Thus, teachers must carefully consider the learning load of all activities involving English learners, making adaptations and offering supports accordingly. One such strategy is the language bath. This strategy involves the teacher doing the initial talking about a new topic and students listening before any brainstorming or other activity is assigned. This strategy is also effective with English speaking students. It prepares students to participate by helping to familiarize them with vocabulary and develop their thoughts on a topic. The last concept discussed is what the author calls the "yearning goad," which is intrinsic motivation, a drive to know and learn more. This needs to be cultivated by teaching, whenever possible, through topics of high student interest. Teachers should also endeavor to broaden student interests by sharing their passions with students. Critical selection and creative implementation of curriculum are also important. By lightening even one or two of these loads and arranging meaningful learning for students, teachers can motivate students and facilitate learning of both the English language and content. This can help ESL students avoid being misinterpreted as unmotivated or resistant to learning.  http://www.teach-nology.com/tutorials/teaching/esl/print.htm
 * 1) Silent stage (which may be combined with emotional shock). The child is taking in the new situation and listening to the language to begin to make sense of what goes on around him/her.
 * 2) Child will imitate what other children do in the class. In a sense, s/he is pretending that s/he understands.
 * 3) A very outgoing child may use a lot of body gestures, or actually grab other kids in order to make him/herself understood. This may be misinterpreted as physical aggression by other children or by the teacher.
 * Phase II: Single word and phrase use**
 * 1) Child begins to use words or phrases that are important for his/her survival in the classroom. Example:
 * 1) Child begins to use the language but is still not sure of what constitutes a separate word in English:
 * Phase III: Initial understanding of grammatical rules**
 * 1) Early on in his/her use of English, the child may leave out plurals or past tense markers. This doesn’t mean that the child does not understand the concept of "more than one" or "past events." S/he may be using these forms quite comfortably in his/her first language.
 * 1) Child’s comprehension exceeds his/her ability to produce language.
 * 1) Child’s language may use grammatical forms that are literal translations from his/her first language.
 * 1) Child tries to make the most of the vocabulary s/he has learned. For example: "My sleeves are big." instead of "long." Here, the child is generalizing the meaning of "big" to include anything that goes beyond a particular dimension.
 * Because children can acquire native-like pronunciation in a second language, it is easy to assume that they know a lot more of that language than they actually do. Be sure that your student understands what you read or discuss with him or her. Encourage your student to ask for definitions of words or concepts and provide a model for this. For example, tell your student that he or she can say: "I don’t understand" whenever something is not clear. In this way he or she will know how to ask for help.
 * Children will experiment more with a new language when with peers than when with adults. If possible, observe your student interacting with peers. This will give you information about the extent of his or her vocabulary and fluency in an informal setting.