Sheltered Instruction for Young English Language Learners A Conversation Presenter: Jo Gil

“For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.” Matthew 13:12 The New King James Version

“The Matthew Effect” in Reading “Those who already have good language understanding will gain still more language proficiency, while those who lack initial understanding will fall further and further behind.” E.D. Hirsch, Jr. 2008

The earlier children acquire a large vocabulary, the greater their reading comprehension will be in later grades. Hirsch, Jr. 2008

We learn words up to four times faster in a familiar context than in an unfamiliar one. (Support for theme-based Instruction) Hirsch, Jr. 2008

“The Early Catastrophe” The 30 Million Word Gap By Age 3 Betty Hart and Todd R. Risley, 2003

“Vocabulary is completely socio-economically based.” Entering Kindergarten: Middle Class: 6-8,000 words Working Poor: 5,000 words Poor: 3,000 words

Ratio of Encouragements to Discouragements Heard by Children: Professional Families: 6:1 Working Families: 2:1 Welfare Families: 1:2 Hart & Risley, 2003

What you say matters! Powerful interactions Are like rich gifts. Dombro, Jablon, Stetson, 2010

Play vs. Instruction Does it have to be one or the other in order to level the playing field? Chien, 2010

“In some ways, all children at age 4 are ‘English language learners.’” Pedro A. Noguera Professor of Culture, Education, and Human Development at NYU

How do children learn language? It’s part of the software we’re born with! (called “universal grammar”) Dr. Charles Yang Author of “The Infinite Gift: How Children Learn and Unlearn the Languages of the World.”

Even babies can pick up on the rhythm and cadence of speech –prosody. That is how they distinguish between different languages. Dr. Charles Yang

“Children learn a language by unlearning all other possible languages.” The more we adapt to one language, the more our brains ignore the subtle inputs which can mean a great deal for the other. Dr. Charles Yang

The less unlearning that takes place the better. So… teach and reinforce different languages as early as possible! Dr. Charles Yang

“Rules” for Teaching English Language Learners ELLs A conversation starter (Karen Nemeth)

1. Preschool needs to be high quality. 2. Well prepared teachers make a difference in child outcomes. 3. Every child must be read to at least once a day in English and at least once a day in their home language. Somehow.

4. There is no research basis for prohibiting young children from using their home language. 5. All the languages of the classroom must have equal status. 6. Volunteers and aides should be provided with training so they can be effective language models and conversationalists.

7. Teachers should learn a few words in each of the languages of the children, and provide books that match those languages and cultures. 8. Teachers should develop their skills for nonverbal communication.

9. Understand that children need more than four years to become fully, academically fluent in their second language. 10. Help parents to support home language – this is a key to future school success and strengthens the family bond.

11. Do not teach language – teach children. Language and vocabulary must not, and can not be separated from meaning, function and concept learning. 12. Use real, authentic, recognizable items – to build on prior knowledge, evoke conversation, build real functional vocabulary, and can be duplicated at home.

13. Teach in themes that extend over several or many days. Children need time, repetition, and practice in a variety of contexts. 14. Use real, authentic, recognizable items – to build on prior knowledge, evoke conversation, build real functional vocabulary, and can be duplicated at home.

Resources (Karen Nemeth’s website and blog)