If you’ve ever spent an extended period of time in a foreign country whose language you do not know, you know how hard it is to navigate. Can you imagine trying to learn math or science or literature in that foreign language, especially if the alphabet is different than your childhood ABCs?

That’s what many English Language Learners (ELLs) face daily in our nation’s classrooms. In fact, one quarter of all U.S. children are first or second generation immigrants, many of whom are not native English speakers. Furthermore, there’s been an uptick in child migration, with a 90% increase of child migrants between 2013 and 2014. ELLs have unique challenges when learning in general, beyond learning English.

Here’s a few techniques for empowering ELLs to learn:

1. Learn more about the culture of ELL students. Cultural and linguistic differences can become assets rather than obstacles. A student’s ease of learning English will be greatly determined by what her/his native language is. The English language ranks 33 out of 239 in “weirdness”, so understanding the key differences between a student’s native language and English helps to instruct that student more effectively.

2. Group kids of different language skill levels together when appropriate.

3. Provide background knowledge. Contextualize what’s being read and avoid idiomatic phrases. For example, if the class is reading a speech by President John F. Kennedy, instruct students about the key themes and facts of his presidency.

4. Complement instruction with visual aids, graphic organizers, peer help and home language help. Bilingual materials can also help students learn.

5. Technology can be an important classroom asset, especially videos and internet resources. Videos, especially, merge visuals and auditory information.

ELLs can be found in classrooms in all 50 states and speak a myriad of languages including Spanish, Chinese, French/Haitian Creole, and Vietnamese. Just as ELLs have unique challenges in the classroom, they also have unique assets when learning too, like the cultural experiences they bring with them to the classroom. With the right tools, attitudes, and methods, ELLs are succeeding throughout the U.S. with the help of dedicated professional educators.

Teachers can find workshops for cultural understanding to help ELL kids and include their parents in the school-going culture. The Latino Family Literacy Project has trained more than 10,000 staff in 17 states. Join our family of readers!
Register Here.

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