Activity
3: Planning for English Language Learners
I will be teaching the unit about weather next term to my
grade 1 class and is all in English.
I have a Korean boy, 6 years old, native language is Korean. He is in stage I, and he requires more
attention than others. He is quiet, and
I will need to repeat the teaching materials more often.
I have a Taiwanese girl, 6 years old, native language is Mandarin. She is in stage II, and she is a little more
receptive to me now. She can answer 1 –
2 word phrases, and requires less attention.
I have a Brazilian girl, 6 years old, native language is
Portuguese. She is in stage III, and she
can communicate with simple phrases and sentences. She can work independently at times.
I have a Chinese boy, 6 years old, native language is Mandarin. He is in stage IIII, he can read, write, and
speak more complex sentences to express his thoughts and mind. He can work independently most of the
time.
In
my classes, ELL, English Language Learners, will have a difficult time at
first, but given time, patience, caring, and skills, they will become
proficient. Thankfully, I do not have to
teach content based subjects, such as science or math, because then they will
have to learn English and science or math at the same time, and that would be
very challenging for young learners.
I
always try my best to create a successful and effective lesson plan, for both
native and non-native speakers. Now that
I have four ELL students, and have already assessed their skill levels, I can
prepare a successful and effective lesson plan.
I
will have to include:
- building background knowledge
- clear and coherent instructions and modeling
- guided and unguided practice
- tutoring, mentoring, grouping, and assisting
- group assessment and individual assessment
- use separate materials, props, technologies, and worksheets appropriate for each stage
- have assistant teachers, and parents to help out if available
I
will have to prepare materials and set obtainable objectives for students from
all stages. So, to build background
knowledge about weather, I will have to using pictures, videos, and internet
and bring students outside the class to see the current weather.
For
my Korean student in stage 1, I can use this worksheet with pictures to help
him understand the meaning of each weather condition.
The
stage 1 student does require a lot of time and effort, so I will also encourage
him, use pictures, videos, read aloud, and other strategies to be sure he
understands the content. And for other
students, I can continue discussing the main idea, the cause and effect, and
what clothes and items to have for certain weather conditions.
For
my Taiwanese student in stage 2, I can model and give clear instructions once,
then have her partner with a friend similar or above her skill level. Two students can share their thoughts and
answers on their worksheets. During the
class, I will occasionally monitor her progress and evaluate her separate worksheet. If she requires another tutor, then I can
always switch her with another partner or assist her after class.
As
for my Chinese student in stage 4, he can complete his worksheet on his own, he
can be my little helper in class, or he can be tutoring lower level kids. He can also surf the Internet for further
information about weather, and have him write sentences about his thoughts and
ideas.
APA citations
URL: http://www.everythingesl.net/inservices/language_stages.php
Website Title: Stages of Second Language Acquisition
Article Title: Stages of Second Language Acquisition
Author: Judie Haynes
