Equipping ELLs

Have you heard about the new, hot topic, translanguaging? If not, don’t worry! Today we are talking all about it! Tevia Tovares is joining us today to share her experience with translanguaging and how she encourages translanguaging in the classroom.We know how important it is to create a safe, comfortable, and inclusive atmosphere for our ELLs. In order to do this, we must allow our students opportunities to express themselves both in English and in their native language. This is exactly what our guest, Tevia, is sharing with us today. In this episode, we are talking about how Tevia creates a welcoming classroom atmosphere, what translanguaging is and why it's important, and how to start encouraging translanguaging in your classroom.Tevia Tovares is a third generation teacher who has been in the classroom 20 years.  She holds a Master's in International Education, is a member of the International Baccalaureate Educator Network and is currently teaching 5th grade at the Metropolitan School of Panama where she has been teaching for 10 years.  She loves learning about new things and challenging herself.  In her spare time she enjoys quality time with her husband, family and friends, as well as baking, acting, and gardening.Translanguaging ResourcesTranslanguaging with MultiLingual Students BookOfelia Garcia on Translanguaging VideoDownload the ESL Teacher ToolkitCheck out the ELL Strategy AcademyShop TpT resources that help with supporting your ELLsJoin the Equipping ELLs MembershipTo access all resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.inspiringyounglearners.com/translanguaging-affirms-ell-identity--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/equippingells/message

Do you know what stage of language acquisition your ELL students are in and how to support them in that stage? Understanding the stages and knowing where your students are at is so important in helping them successfully learn the English language. Cris Howard is joining us today to share her extensive knowledge on language acquisition and its importance.Keeping the stages of language acquisition in mind when we are teaching our ELLs is key to helping them understand and retain the language. Cris is sharing some incredibly helpful insight on language acquisition with us. She is covering her experience teaching English, what language acquisition is and why it matters, why it is important for teachers to understand this approach, what the steps of language acquisition are, and tips on how to teach students at each stage.Cris Howard is from Brazil and speaks three languages: English, Portuguese, and Spanish. She worked as an EFL teacher for 14 years in Brazil, and as a Family Education ESL teacher in the US for a few years before working as an ELL teacher for the past 7 years in a Southern Indiana district, and as Adjunct Professor for the ENL program at Indiana University Southeast for the past 5 years. She loves languages, Applied Linguistics, teaching Multilingual Learners and connecting with other educators on Twitter.Cris’ “How Languages Are Learned” YouTube PlaylistDownload the ESL Teacher ToolkitCheck out the ELL Strategy AcademyShop TpT resources that help with supporting your ELLsJoin the Equipping ELLs MembershipTo access all resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.inspiringyounglearners.com/language-acquisition--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/equippingells/message

Holiday season is upon us in the U.S. which means it’s a great opportunity to improve our ELLs’ English language using seasonal vocabulary. We can take advantage of the season and use the excitement of the holidays to engage our students and really work on their English skills. Today, I am sharing some activities I wish I would have done to take full advantage of the holidays with my ELLs.We’ve all tied the holidays into our lessons by teaching vocabulary, playing seasonal vocabulary games, or using word searches. But are these activities making the best use of our time with our students?In this episode, we are looking at alternative activity options to be more intentional with our instructional time while still bringing in the excitement of the holidays for our students. We are covering ideas for teaching holiday vocabulary in context, the importance of including students’ native language when teaching holiday vocabulary, using discussion prompts in your lessons, and how to help your students feel included in your classroom and connected to the holidays.Check out more holiday resources hereESL Christmas & Holidays Around the WorldELL Vocabulary Flashcards: Valentine's Day ESL | ESL ConversationDownload the ESL Teacher ToolkitCheck out the ELL Strategy AcademyShop TpT resources that help with supporting your ELLsJoin the Equipping ELLs MembershipTo access all resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.inspiringyounglearners.com/holidays-to-improve-english-skills--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/equippingells/message

Are you looking to create a culture of reading at your school and with your ELLs? We all know that reading opens so many doors for our students but getting them to read can be a struggle. Today I am joined by high school librarian Terrie Sharp, who is sharing how she helped create a culture of learning in her school.There can be many obstacles in getting ELL students and emergent bilingual students to read but it is so important that we help them become readers. Terrie saw there was a need to make reading more accessible to the students in her high school in order to help them develop their reading skills. In this episode, Terrie is sharing her background and current role, what the Cowboys Read! program is and how it got started, how the program created a culture of reading in the school, and what’s next for the program.Terrie is celebrating almost 30 years as an educator at McCollum high school in San Antonio, Texas. She began her career as an English teacher and taught all levels, from IS to AP and everything in between. Her love of books and reading inspired her to make a change 15 years ago and became the librarian at McCollum. Inspired by students, Terrie has developed the Cowboys Read! program to promote reading without restrictions tied to checking books out of the library. Terrie enjoys how different every year can be at the best job in the world, a librarian.Cowboys Read! programDownload the ESL Teacher ToolkitCheck out the ELL Strategy AcademyShop TpT resources that help with supporting your ELLsJoin the Equipping ELLs MembershipTo access all resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.inspiringyounglearners.com/culture-of-reading--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/equippingells/message

I’m sure you’ve heard about the Science of Reading and maybe your school is pushing to incorporate it more into literacy lessons but you aren’t quite sure how to do that. You’re in luck! Today, we are continuing our conversation with Sara Marye about how to create skilled readers through literacy instruction and the Science of Reading.If you haven’t checked out last week’s episode, be sure to do that so you don’t miss out on the incredible information Sara shared with us! In this week’s episode, we are picking up right where we left off. Sara is sharing the remaining three elements of language comprehension, how to determine what to focus on first with your students, and her advice for teachers who want to focus more on language comprehension this year.Sara Marye has over a decade of experience working as a classroom teacher and school administrator. She is now CEO of The Stellar Teacher Company and a literacy specialist passionate about helping elementary teachers around the world grow their students into lifelong readers. Sara’s mission is to make teachers’ lives a little easier by providing them with endless encouragement, effective strategies, and engaging no-fluff resources. Sara is also the host of the Stellar Teacher Podcast, where she loves to share her favorite literacy tips each week!FREEBIE: Word of the Week Routine[The Stellar Teacher Podcast] Episode 11: Create a Reading Block that Supports ELL Students with Beth Vaucher[The Stellar Teacher Podcast] Episode 85: What is The Science of Reading & Why is it Important?Each Kindness by Jacqueline WoodsonDownload the ESL Teacher ToolkitCheck out the ELL Strategy AcademyShop TpT resources that help with supporting your ELLsJoin the Equipping ELLs MembershipTo access all resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.inspiringyounglearners.com/creating-skilled-readers-2--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/equippingells/message

The new “hot topic” in education this year is the Science of Reading. You may have heard about it or looked into it but aren’t sure how to incorporate it into your work with ELL students. Maybe you aren’t really sure what all the buzz is about. Sara Marye from The Stellar Teacher Company is joining us today to share her expertise about literacy and the Science of Reading.Sara has so much knowledge to share that we had to make this a two part episode! In this week’s episode we are talking about what the Science of Reading is and why it is important especially for ELL students, what challenges teachers face when helping students become skilled readers, and the first three elements of language comprehension.Sara Marye has over a decade of experience working as a classroom teacher and school administrator. She is now CEO of The Stellar Teacher Company and a literacy specialist passionate about helping elementary teachers around the world grow their students into lifelong readers. Sara’s mission is to make teachers’ lives a little easier by providing them with endless encouragement, effective strategies, and engaging no-fluff resources. Sara is also the host of the Stellar Teacher Podcast, where she loves to share her favorite literacy tips each week!FREEBIE: Word of the Week Routine[The Stellar Teacher Podcast] Episode 11: Create a Reading Block that Supports ELL Students with Beth Vaucher[The Stellar Teacher Podcast] Episode 85: What is The Science of Reading & Why is it Important?The Reading Comprehension Blueprint by Nancy HennessyEach Kindness by Jacqueline WoodsonDownload the ESL Teacher ToolkitCheck out the ELL Strategy AcademyShop TpT resources that help with supporting your ELLsJoin the Equipping ELLs MembershipTo access all resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.inspiringyounglearners.com/creating-skilled-readers--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/equippingells/message

Disclaimer: the audio for this episode is not the best, but the content is so great that we still want you to hear it!There is a huge shift in how schools are teaching reading. They are moving away from Guided Reading and moving towards Science of Reading with a focus on phonics and phonemic awareness. Today, Aylin Claahsen is joining us to share her expertise on teaching younger students early literacy skills.Ensuring that our ELLs are receiving the best literacy instruction we can give them is so important and Aylin is sharing so much helpful information with us! We are covering what the difference between phonemic awareness and phonics is, where to begin with phonemic awareness and phonics instruction, how literacy instruction is changing with the shift to Science of Reading, and fun and engaging ways to teach phonics.Aylin is a certified reading specialist, literacy consultant and curriculum designer who loves sharing literacy tips for teaching readers. Specializing in Kindergarten-5th Grade, she can be found sharing literacy tips on her blog or social media at Literacy with Aylin Claahsen, or in her newsletter. Aylin has a huge passion for small group instruction as she’s seen the impact it has on readers of all ability levels. Writing engaging passages is one way that Aylin gets to connect with students and teachers all around the world. She believes that building confidence in readers is one of the most important things teachers can do.FREEBIE: Reading Intervention Mat Download the ESL Teacher ToolkitCheck out the ELL Strategy AcademyShop TpT resources that help with supporting your ELLsJoin the Equipping ELLs MembershipTo access all resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.inspiringyounglearners.com/fun-with-phonics--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/equippingells/message

Reading can be a challenge for many students and it can be especially difficult for our ELL students. That’s why it is so important to systematically work on sight words with our students. Leslie Tomanovich is joining us today to share her experience and wisdom on teaching sight words to our ELL students.When it comes to reading, we want to find ways to reduce the cognitive load and frustration for our students. Sight words play a huge role in that. In today’s episode, Leslie and I are discussing the importance of sight words for our ELL students, the difference between sight words and high frequency words, effective techniques for teaching sight words, what orthographic mapping is and why it’s great for reading instruction, and Leslie’s routine for teaching sight words in her lessons.Leslie is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to teaching sight words and phonics to ELLs and she is sharing so much information with us today! Don’t forget to check out the sight word resource we’ve put together if you’re interested in seeing more of her routine and how to make sight word practice work for your students this year!Leslie Tomanovich has been teaching ELLs for over 10 years. She lives and works in the Finger Lakes region of New York State. She works with grades K-4, but specializes in the primary grades. Leslie has developed multi-modal sight word instructional routines and materials that are used by many teachers in her school district. She lives and works in the Finger Lakes region of New York State.Sight word resourceDownload the ESL Teacher ToolkitCheck out the ELL Strategy AcademyShop TpT resources that help with supporting your ELLsJoin the Equipping ELLs MembershipTo access all resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.inspiringyounglearners.com/sight-words--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/equippingells/message

Working with our ELL students on social emotional learning is so important now more than ever. Between virtual learning, the pandemic, and any traumatic experiences they may have been through, they may need help with coping skills and that is where SEL  comes in. Today, we are getting some wonderful insight about the importance of SEL from our guest, Rachel Davis.Rachel is sharing all about social emotional learning. We are talking about the importance of SEL, easy to implement tips for incorporating SEL into the classroom, SEL lesson ideas, and how to support students who have been through trauma. Rachel has so much knowledge on SEL and helping students with their emotions and she is sharing tons of info with us so we can best help our ELLs!Rachel is the school counselor and curriculum designer behind Bright Futures Counseling. With nearly a decade of experience, a highly rated school counseling podcast, and an engaged online community, Rachel is passionate about helping school counselors increase their impact and advocate for their role. She resides in Costa Rica, and when she’s not working on her business you can find her at the beach playing with her toddler son!FREEBIE: Feelings Check PosterDownload the ESL Teacher ToolkitCheck out the ELL Strategy AcademyShop TpT resources that help with supporting your ELLsJoin the Equipping ELLs MembershipTo access all resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.inspiringyounglearners.com/incorporate-sel--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/equippingells/message

Have you ever thought about trying out a different lesson planning process? Planning units and lessons based on language forms and functions may be a method that could really benefit your ELLs! Today, I have special guest, Kristen Vibas, joining us to talk about how she plans her lessons around different language functions and forms.In this episode, Kristen is giving us an inside look at what her role and lesson planning process looks like. She is sharing what her role in a very large district looks like, what she focuses on the first month of school,how she communicates with parents, and how she plans her instruction utilizing language forms and functions.Kristen Vibas is a K-6 elementary ESOL teacher living in Northern Virginia. She’s been teaching multilingual learners since 2005 in one of the country’s largest school districts. She enjoys each grade level, but is particularly fond of working with upper elementary newcomers. Kristen also loves creating educational resources that support English language development. She opened her TpT store, called “Kristen Vibas,” in 2012, and shortly afterwards started a blog called “A Walk in the Chalk.”Teaching Language Functions in the ESL ClassroomTalkingPointsBrainPopEpic BooksReading A-ZReadworks.orgDownload the ESL Teacher ToolkitCheck out the ELL Strategy AcademyJoin the Equipping ELLs MembershipTo access all resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.inspiringyounglearners.com/language-forms-and-functions--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/equippingells/message