ESOL English for Speakers of Other Languages ELL- English Language Learner Nancy Urnes-Coordinator x57050

Parkway’s ELL Population:  K students  K-1 Stay at their “home” schools and receive services from traveling teachers  Center Schools: 4 Elementary (Carman Trails, Green Trails, Craig, and Ross)  Middle (Central Middle, NEM 07-08)  High School (Central High)  Our students come from over 50 countries and speak more than 40 languages

Why do we have ESOL:  2000 with “No Child Left Behind” the federal government mandated “accountability” for various sub-groups.  ELLs are one of these groups. Each district must provide services for ELLs. This must be reported to the state and then the state reports to the federal government. There is federal money (Title III) available to help fund the program. It is against the law to not provide English language services to students that need it.

A typical Parkway ELL:  No such thing!  Can be a refugee, immigrant  Can be here due to employment/education of parents (temporary)  Can come from an educated background  Can come from a background of extreme poverty  While proficiency can take time, the younger students can acquire language quite quickly

Welcome to Parkway….  And US public education!  The US system is very different than most other countries…  Don’t forget about “culture shock”!  Sometimes parents of ELLs mistake language services for Special Education  Students shouldn’t be interpreters.  It is important that students maintain their native language at home  Current research (Dr. Patricia Kuhl at the University of Washington) is proving that a multi-lingual upbringing is an asset to the intelligence of the child, especially in the area of mental dexterity.

Reminders when speaking to a family of non-native speakers  Speak slower, not louder  Speak slower, not louder  It is all about tone and facial expression  No slang  No idioms  Use simple language without being condescending  Ask family if they have questions. They may not feel comfortable initiating a question.  Use your best judgment about whether a student needs to be tested or not. a student needs to be tested or not. If you have a question, contact an ESOL teacher, or me. If you have a question, contact an ESOL teacher, or me.

Diversity is the one true thing that we have in common. Celebrate it everyday. - Diversity is the one true thing that we have in common. Celebrate it everyday. -anonymous -Embrace and highlight the ethnic diversity here with flags, bulletin boards, guest-speakers ex.Green Trails clocks, Thanksgiving “Feast”, Spring International Festival -”Culturegrams” Website -Student initiated projects

Strategies for ELLs  Common sense!  Lots of visuals  Advance Organizers and use of prior knowledge is key  Cooperative learning:  use heterogeneous groups; lots of repetition and feedback  Summarizing and Note Taking

About ELLs  Honor the “silent period”  Be aware of the difference in social language and academic language  Many non-Romance/non-European languages read from right to left

Questions???  Contact Nancy Urnes x57050  For a list of the names and extensions of the ESOL teachers in Parkway, go to the Curriculum and Development website and click on the ESOL department website Thank you and have a great year!!! Thank you and have a great year!!!