Thinking Maps Strategy Overview- This strategy is mainly used for organizing information. Examples of thinking maps include the circle map, bubble maps, double-bubble maps, tree maps, brace maps, and many others. As you plan your instruction, you should think about whether or not one of these maps can assist you
Prior Knowledge is Important Something that continues to confuse and/or amaze teachers of Language Learners is how one student can excel in a seemingly short amount of time while another continues to struggle after many years. A key contributor to unlocking this puzzle is how much prior knowledge the student
I was reading an article this morning in Education Week titled, “Efforts to Toughen Teacher Evaluations Show No Positive Impact on Students” and it caused me to reflect on the current state of education, the policies and reforms that have been implemented over the last 20 years, and the trajectory
What if I would like to refer an ELL student for special services? An ELL student who is suspected of being disabled and in need of special services may be referred at any point. It is wise, however, to make sure that this child’s learning difficulties are not a result
New Jersey Version- Part 1 What happens when a parent doesn’t want services for their child? According to the parental consent amendment to the N.J. Bilingual Education Law, parents of limited English proficient students have the right to decline bilingual education program services. The parent has the right to decline
Bilingual and ESL Programs in the United States? For those who don’t work in the field of English Language Learner Education, the terms “bilingual” and “ESL” can seem confusing. Many believe that they are one in the same. You’d be surprised how many times I’ve had to clarify to teachers
As an Instructional Coach, one of the things that I regularly did was to go into classrooms and provide teachers with instructional solutions. I call them solutions and not simply strategies or techniques because each of them helps to solve challenges that many of my teachers faced. Each classroom was
A new student in my class has a name that is very difficult to pronounce. Is it appropriate to call him/her by a nickname? Children’s names are integral to their identity in most cultures, so it is important to learn to pronounce names correctly. For example, in the Vietnamese culture,
