ELL teachers had an opportunity to come together in their second district flex opportunity focused on language acquisition through the reading domain.
To start out the session, an overview of the continuum of reading instruction was discussed. Read aloud, shared reading, guided reading, independent reading and phonics instruction play a strong role in not only reading instruction but also language acquisition in the ELL classroom. Working exclusively on one strategy will not have as great of an impact on learning as using all of the strategies interchangeably. To see the reasons why, click here.
The remainder of the session focused on planning for guided reading instruction keeping students literacy portraits in mind. English language learners not only need to develop reading skills, they also need to work on language at the same time. In order to be intentional for language instruction through reading, teachers need to be assessing students and then using those assessments in formative ways to help determine what language needs students have as well as their reading needs. See a tutorial on DRA assessments and interpreting those assessments.
After distinguishing students needs, teachers then need to be asking questions before reading, during reading and after reading that keep language visible. To see a bookmark planning guide for guided reading, click here.
We also focused on Jan Richardson’s templates for teaching guided reading for a second time. We highlighted the components that were essential to reading instruction and also enhanced the impact of the planning template for ELL instruction by talking about the language considerations that need to be kept in mind. To view the powerpoint from this presentation, click here.
The most important concept that I hope teachers walked away with is that it isn’t always about the planning template. Use it as your guide but understand that it is what you do with the templates to keep language learning in mind that will create the strongest impact in your teaching. To get copies of the templates we used in the session, click here. To see further information about reading with ELL’s go to the following links and resources:
Avalos, Mary A., Placencia, Alina, Chavez, Celina, Rascon, Josefa. (2007). Modified Guided Reading: Gateway to English as a Second Language and Literacy Learning. The Reading Teacher, 61 (4), pp. 318-329.
Cappellini, Mary (2005). Balancing Reading & Language Learning: A Resource for Teaching English Language Learners, K-5. Stenhouse Publishers: Portland, Maine.
Castaneda, Martha, Rodriguez-Gonzalez, Eva, Schulz, Melissa. (2011). Enhancing Reading Proficiency in English Language Learners (ELLs): The Importance of Knowing your ELL in Mainstream Classrooms. The Tapestry Journal, Volume 3, No. 1
Richardson, Jan. (2009). The Next Step in Guided Reading. Scholastic: New York.
What Does Research Tell us About Teaching Reading to English Language Learners?http://www.readingrockets.org/article/19757/