Attention Grabber for Teaching Root Words

Creating an attention grabber is my favorite part of a lesson.  It's the teachers opportunity to spark  student interest and trigger excitement for what we they are about to learn.

Currently, I am teaching my students about Greek Latin Roots. To spark their attention, I introduced  the longest English word. Wow they couldn't believe how long the word was!  They couldn't help but  count the letters.  They chuckled when they had to stop counting and start over again because they lost count. This long 45 letter word definitely grabbed their attention.

Then we tried to pronounce it.  I gave each student a chance at it.  This was fun! Take a stab at it, can you pronounce the word  pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconoisis ? Pretty tricky huh! It took me a few tries.

Next we took the time to break the word into its different Greek root words. 

pneumono=lung/breathe
ultra=beyond/exceeding
micro=small
scopic=watch/see
silico-flint/quartz
volcano=fire
coni=dust
osis=disease/condition

From here we could put a meaning to the word.  The actual meaning is referred to as an actual disease of the lungs more commonly known as pneumoconiosis or silicosis.

As I reflect back on my lesson, I believe my attention grabber is what helped keep my students focused and interested in the lesson involving root words. The key is to keep it short, to the point, but fun and engaging. Please share any ideas you may have for attention grabbers. I would love to hear your ideas.

ELL Family Information Night

Reaching out to the families of our ELL Students can be very challenging.  Many times parents shy away from school events because they are unable to communicate with teachers and staff.  This language barrier also makes it harder for teachers to build relationships with parents who speak little to no English.

 

Here in Michigan we have funds called Title III funds which schools are given from the state to service our ELL populations after school.  Part of these funds are used towards "parent nights" which provide parents an opportunity to get involved and informs parents on what is happening at their child's school. 

 

Recently, we had an ELL Family Information Night.  Since a large portion of our ELL's are Spanish speaking, we hosted the meeting in Spanish.  This makes our families very happy since they are able to receive important information in their native tongue. 

 

At the meeting, we provided families with information on things happening at the school and upcoming events.  Light refreshments were served and we raffled off items such as poinsettias and gift cards.  Parents love raffles!  Its fun to win something. 

 

Our turn out was decent.  One take away we have from our most recent parent night is...survey families and get to know them.  We found that many could not attend because there was an important event at the local church which many of our families attend.  Had we known this, we would have scheduled the event on a different evening.  For future events,  we will now print out the calendar of events at the local church and talk to parents ahead of time to find out what is happening in their communities.  This will help us better understand our families and help us build a relationship with them.  Its important to take the time to get to know our students and families.

 

 

Our Costco Trip

Wow its hard to see! 

Teaching Students Social Language

Middle school is tough enough for any student, let alone an English Language Learner. While working with one of my middle school students, I was reminded of how important it is to look cool and not sound dumb in front of your peers. One of my students asked me what lol meant. After explaining that it stands for "laugh out loud" he chuckled and proceeded to ask what lmao stood for. Now it was my turn to chuckle to myself (silently in my head) as I expained what it represented. He then had that "aw hah" moment. 

It was then that I realized how important it is to teach ELL's street smarts. For the longest time he communicated with his English speaking friends and played along as if he knew what these text acronyms meant, and all along he was lost and confused. I'm glad that he had me to trust and ask for help in understanding. 

Building Background Knowledge

As educators we know the importance of building background  knowledge. This is especially important when teaching ELLs.  Today I made the mistake of assuming my middle school students had prior knowledge of what a monument was. The narrative text was about an experience The author had when visiting his grandparents. Not being familiar with what a monument was made the text hard for my student to understand. Too often ELL students struggle with vocabulary and as educators we can help by building background knowledge and discussing vocabulary. During the same small group lesson this same student was not familiar with the word windy such as...The windy road. We can't assume they know even what appears to us as the  simplest words.

WIDA Blog: Using the CAN DO Descriptors in Grades 3-5

Has your district adapted the WIDA Standards? We are here in Michigan. This is our our first year. As with all new things, I am in the process of learning the different tools available. Can Do statements are one tool I am finding to be very useful. Check this blog out!

WIDA Blog: Using the CAN DO Descriptors in Grades 3-5

Utilizing your Resources

Some of us teach in districts with an abundance of resources and some of us need to get creative. Some districts offer a curriculum and others give teachers a chance to explore their options as long as they follow certain criteria such as WIDA Standards in my district.

Knowing what to teach can be a struggle. If you are like me, you only see your students a few times a week and it's only for 30 minutes at a time. How much can one really cover in this amount of time? With limited time, we need our lessons to be as purposeful as possible.

Below I have listed some ELL teaching resources to consider when planning.  There is no one size fits all method. Please add any resources you may find useful in the comments column.  The more options we have the better. Together we can create lessons that are purposeful and meaningful.

1. Kagan Structures
2. Picture Cards
3. SIOP Model
4. Bilingual Books
5. Graphic Organizers
6. Common Core 
7.freerice.com
8. Picture dictionaries
9. Visuals
10. Vocabulary support


There are many more resources. Please share your ideas and what resources you find to be useful.  The more we share, the better we can teach!

My Purpose

Being able to speak more than one language is a gift. It looks great on a persons resume and provides opportunities in our competitive global market, communities and schools.  English is one of the most widely used languages in the world along with Chinese and Spanish.  Learning English or any language can be very challenging. Students enter our English US schools with little or no English Language background.  This can be very challenging for our teachers.  Especially when students enter the classroom as beginners of English.

I'm an EL Teacher (English Language) and teach students with various levels of English. Some students I service speak very little English (levels 1 and 2) and other students are bridging towards reaching proficiency in English (levels 5 & 6). I teach using the WIDA standards and assess students using the Access Test and W-APT for screening students to determine whether or not they need to receive services.  These are state mandated tests. 

As a teacher of ELL Students (English Language Learners) I am always looking for new strategies and ways to support ELLs. In my area we see a lot of Spanish speakers. Often I struggle finding the best practices for teaching ELLs. I've searched the web, googled key ideas and concepts, attended professional development, taken college courses and asked colleagues.  Still I struggle at times and seek out new ideas and support. 

I love to write and communicate my thoughts.  I don't have all the answers but I want to share my ideas and take aways with teachers who service English Language Learners.  I believe this blog will help me better service my students and inspire me to be the best teacher possible. I invite others to share their ideas and teaching strategies by leaving comments. Together we can collaborate and support each other.