Interventions

General Considerations When Selecting Interventions:  Research/evidence-based  Targeted to student needs  Sensitive to cultural differences  Level of acculturation and stage of English language acquisition 2 ELL

Guiding Questions in Planning Interventions: Auditory Attention and Memory  Does the student attend during instructional times? Is lack of attention due to fatigue because of overload of working memory? Is lack of attention due to environmental factors?  Are there any pertinent medical issues? Has hearing been checked?  Does the student remember information given verbally from day to day? 3

Interventions: Auditory Attention and Memory Provide opportunities for the student to learn how to … repeat sentences through strategies such as chunking rephrase/retell rhyme and use songs to remember classroom content (math facts, historical events, etc.) connect auditory information through visualization, mnemonics, etc. 4

Guiding Questions in Planning Interventions: Listening Comprehension  Can the student demonstrate understanding of academic content and/or novel information presented orally?  Can the student answer questions when given a visual cue, choices, scaffolded content?  Can the child demonstrate that he/she understands age appropriate vocabulary and basic concepts?  Can the child demonstrate that he/she understands how sentence structure can change meaning? (Example: “The boy was hit by the girl.” vs “The boy hit the girl.”  Does presentation method make a difference in the child’s ability to respond? (Example: Visual or kinesthetic rather than auditory.) 5

Guiding Questions in Planning Interventions: Listening Comprehension, cont.  Can the student follow one and/or multiple-step directions? Is the student able to follow directions presented orally without visual cues? Does he/she improve with visual or auditory cues?  Is the student an English Language Learner? Refer to stages of language. Recommend instructional strategies, such as SIOP. ELL 6

Interventions: Listening Comprehension and Following Directions  Explicitly teach listening strategies Eyes on speaker – within cultural norms No talking Quiet hands and feet Ask for repetition  Teach strategies such as repetition, identification of key words, summarizing  Provide sheltered instruction and implement vocabulary- building strategies ELL 7

Guiding Questions in Planning Interventions: Grammar and Syntax  Does the student use age appropriate grammar? A “typical” 1st grader may say mouses instead of mice, but this would not be age appropriate for a 5th grader.  Is sentence word order appropriate and do sentences make sense? “I want juice, please.” vs. “Juice I want, please.” Word order may be appropriate in the native language but not in English. Student may need modeling and direction to understand English grammar/syntax.  Does a student’s writing reflect the grammar and syntax of oral expression?  Does the student over generalized grammar rules? 8

Considerations for English Language Learners:  Consider that errors may be differences NOT disorders due to primary language structures.  Consider the importance of providing frequent opportunities to practice syntax structures with peers and adults. 9

Interventions: Grammar and Syntax  Explicit teaching of word order for different sentence types  Daily oral language activities  Sentence strips – words rearranged into correct order  Grammar games such as: Build-A-Sentence or Making Sense with Syntax  Translate oral expressions into written form (Example: develop a 2-part story plan and create grammatical sentences for the parts or develop a story with a problem and solution and write the story with appropriate grammar and syntax.) 10

Guiding Questions in Planning Interventions: Vocabulary Development  Does the child know common words and/or concepts?  Does the student misuse words, for example, call a hat a mitten? It is common for ELL students to not know the correct words for objects or concepts.  Is the student able to learn new content area vocabulary?  Does the student have trouble recalling content area vocabulary?  Does the student interpret figurative language literally (e.g., idioms, jokes, metaphors, sarcasm)? Resource: Bringing Words to Life (author Isabel Beck) - robust vocabulary instruction that emphasizes the importance of instruction that expand upon a student’s vocabulary base, especially for ELLs. 11

Interventions: Vocabulary Development  Explicitly teach word meanings in authentic contexts.  Use words in context and provide daily exposure to new vocabulary words.  Pre-teach new vocabulary before content area lessons.  Use graphic organizers to build vocabulary  Teach how to provide a description when unable to come up with word. Don’t limit the teaching of vocabulary to having students look up dictionary definitions. 12

Resources  Longman English Dictionary Online ( - provides definition, word in sentence, word in pictures.  Word Wizard from Scholastic: ( and enter search terms: Word Wizard and English Language Learners) Teaches cognates - words that are similar in both languages Teaches idioms Reinforces repetition - read it, hear it, see it, say it Builds academic vocabulary  Use of a dictionary can help build alphabetic knowledge and self-reliance on it as a resource. 13

Guiding Questions for Planning Interventions: Social Language  Does the child respond to greetings from peers and adults?  Does the child engage in reciprocal conversations?  Does the child stay on topic or does he/she immediately introduce a topic of interest to him/her?  Does the child respond appropriately to nonverbal cues and body language from others? Note: An ELL student may not respond because of his/her stage of language acquisition. Scaffolding may need to be provided that is appropriate to the student’s language proficiency. 14

Interventions: Social Language Development  Implement social skills programs  Cue students to respond to greetings  Teach students to observe and respond appropriately to body language and facial expressions of conversational partners  Teach students stay on topic of conversation and to shift topics appropriately  Have students turn to a partner for content-related conversation (Buddy Talk or Pair Share strategies) 15

Narrative Skills in the Classroom Students are asked to…  share stories or retell stories to demonstrate reading comprehension  predict or hypothesize  express their opinions  state main ideas or themes from stories and texts 16

Guiding Questions in Planning Interventions: Narrative Skills  Can the student retell or create a simple story with a clear beginning, middle, and end?  Can the student make predictions and draw inferences?  Can the student ask and answer questions in the classroom setting?  Can a student provide a response to a reading selection and explain his/her thinking?  Can a student provide the explanations needed for comparing and contrasting? Note: You cannot expect proficiency in these skills if student is non-English proficient or Limited English proficient. Additional supports will be needed. 17

Interventions: Narrative Skills  Sequencing activities such as arranging picture cards to illustrate a story or stating the steps for an activity  Explicitly teaching narrative structure including the beginning, middle, and end  Using graphic organizers for oral presentations  Having student provide a sequential retell to a story 18

Teacher Read Alouds  Students listen to aural content and learn to extract the important information. Applies to any content area material - not just stories  Students learn to visualize the information. Scaffolding may include the use of visuals/pictures that support the text being read aloud.  Effective teacher implementation of read alouds:  Pre-teach vocabulary  Have students draw, write, or respond orally to what is being read  Ask questions about the content being read  Make connections to prior knowledge and experience (e.g., picture walk) 19

30 Second Conversation  Target students who have weak oral language skills  Take 30 seconds each day to engage them in authentic conversation “This is one of the most powerful interventions for developing oral language skills.” This strategy is effective with all students, but essential for students with limited oral language skills. The 30 Second Conversation strategy is effective for enhancing social language skill, but also for building content area concept vocabulary and understanding. (The Talking Classroom, Judi Dodson 2008) 20