I am not the teacher I was six years ago when I started my teaching profession. I am better. No, I'm not bragging! When I started teaching, I did the best I could with what I had learned. Not everything I did was good. Not everything I did helped my students...UNTIL...that is the key. As an educator, I do what I think is best for my students...UNTIL I know better. Learning and practicing what's best for my students IS what makes me a better teacher.
Over the years I have learned strategies and methods to better support, my students. I have built a professional learning network that is constantly providing ideas and fresh approaches to better serve my students. So because I know better, I DO better! By no means think that I have it all figured out...on the contrary...I continue learning so I can become the best I can be for my students. 

When it comes to implementing practical and effective strategies to support language learners, you must know that what works for one student may not work for another. It is very important for you to know your student. Knowing their reading level is NOT enough. A level doesn't tell you about their personality. A level doesn't show you how they learn. In order to close any academic gap, there needs to be a specific target area to support.  For our language learners...LANGUAGE is the target you need to focus on. If you are interested in how to support your language learners with language interventions, read this article by Kristina Robertson.
 
If you have students who are just beginning to acquire English, fear not.  In Boosting Achievement we learn that newcomers can engage in certain tasks to be able to participate in the content provided in class. Your newcomers can:

1. Illustrate
2. Make a model
3. Act out responses
4. Compare things
5. Sort things into groups 

Watch the following video by Carol Salva, the author of Boosting Achievement. Here she provides strategic tips to support your students with academic language development. 

If your student is a newcomer, the first thing you want to find out is the literacy level in native language because you'll use that to build second language acquisition. ​Read one of my recent post about a newcomer who grew almost two grade levels in reading just by allowing him to use their native language. 
WIDA Consortium has this document that I know you'll find helpful. You'll gain tips about getting to know your newcomers and ways to support them not only in school but also in the community. 
I also encourage you to read  "28. Comprehensible Output: What Students Can Do"  by Tan Huynh (@TanELLclassroom). Tan provides tip and strategies to deliver lessons in a way that your students comprehend it as well as support students with output process.   

My Flipgrid response was based on Boosting Achievement's section on balanced literacy. I believe it is imperative to teach our students the structures of the English language. Language learners need explicit phonological awareness lessons. These lessons could be quick daily interventions where students learn vowel teams, consonant blends, dominant -r, etc. They need to understand the many combinations of alphabet letters to make words and how words make sentences.
One great website to find "research proven" interventions for these type of foundations is: Florida Center for Reading Research.  Here you'll find student centered activities by grade level along with teacher resource guides to focus on language foundations. 

If you're more like me and want to provide a hands-on activity to develop your students' language acquisition, I recommend the interventions below. The lessons are designed for pre-K students but work well for students who are just developing language.  

Since word-work and learning about the language are only part of the balanced literacy approach, the rest of it needs to be compelling text. As learned in Part III, students need to be exposed to text that is compelling and engaging for them to acquire language. Text must be relevant and must reflect who your students are so they can make connections and be motivated to learn even more. 

So to finish up I want to thank you for all you do for your students. I have no doubt in my mind that to this day you have done everything in your power to support your students. However, there is always room for more learning. As you learn new methods and strategies, you'll gain better ways to serve your students and be an even greater teacher! 

Thank you for reading! 

Ever since I began taking TESOL courses I have been intrigued with the concept of Second Language Acquisition (SLA). Promoting Academic Success for ESL Students: Understanding Second Language Acquisition for School was the first book, I read (and still own) about this topic. In this book I learned that "SLA is best developed through contextual, meaningful activities that focus on language use combined with guidance along the way from teachers." Even though linguistic experts have been sharing this theory for several years, I am shocked at the misunderstanding and misconceptions among educators regarding SLA. As educators, we must have a clear understanding of how our language learners acquire language. Boosting Achievement calls this understanding, "Best practices" - Foundation of lessons we plan to provide effective opportunities for language development. Read more about this topic and learn about using the Prism Model.  

Boosting Achievement targets two very important factors I see needing improvement in our schools. In my opinion, if we improve in these two areas, we could see achievement gaps closing among our language learners.

1. Comprehensible Input: Any written or spoken message that is understandable to a language learner because of the context.   
2. Affective Filter: "an imaginary barrier" between a language learner and new input.

The reason these two factors are important is that they can make a good teacher into a GREAT teacher. This goes back to the questions in the image above; "Does your classroom cover content or cultivate curiosity?"

A Good Teacher: 
The Washington Post shared an article providing a pretty accurate list of qualities great teachers share. However, it doesn't highlight some of the teaching strategies and methods good teachers use. For example sight word list drills, amazing anchor charts, and content.  

I do believe sight words are important; “sight words account for up to 75% of the words used in beginning children’s printed material”, read this post on Why are Sight Words Important. 
I also believe how imperative anchor charts are in the classroom! Read more about why in this article: Anchor Charts: Making Thinking Visible. I also understand that as an educator, you are responsible for teaching "CONTENT". Believe me, I get it.  I even use the High Noon Intervention program that provides word lists and word patterns for students to learn in my class. 

     However, what I don't get is the need to kill students with word drills and memorizing a ton of words in isolation. What I don't get is the need to post gorgeous anchor charts already pre-made when students can't even read them. What I don't get is how we can just be happy sharing the content we are excited and knowledgeable about without engaging students' curiosity. If you do all this...GOOD! You are a GOOD teacher. You are doing your job. You are helping students "learn". However, when it comes to supporting English language learners, students need more than just "learn". Students need to acquire language. Students need YOU to be GREAT!

A Great Teacher: 
​A great teacher gains understanding regarding the concepts mentioned above, AND will also apply them as a foundation for lesson planning to provide language learners with the opportunities they need to acquire the targeted language. ​A great teacher will have all the qualities mentioned above and will also do the strategies mention above; however, "Comprehensible Input" and "Affective Filter" are visible. A great teacher understands that in order for students to acquire the language there needs to have "a focus on providing many opportunities for oral and written interaction rather than intensely focusing on vocabulary lists and finer points of grammar." (pg. 50) 

Great teachers also make it possible to provide a safe and comfortable environment where students feel free to make mistakes while learning the language. 
A great teacher also allows students to engage in creating anchor charts to they CAN read it when they need to refer to it. Remember, anchor charts are resources for students, not pretty wall paper for your classrooms. Here is a great post by Valentina Gonzalez about strategies to support ELs. One of her strategies is the proper use of anchor charts with our language learners. 

Here are some examples of my students engaging in text and word-work and you be the judge; Am I a good teacher or a great teacher?!? Then, reflect on your profession.  Are you a good or a GREAT teacher?!? 

I am so grateful to see Boosting Achievement setting the expectation needed of all language and content teachers. Just like we have high expectations for our students, we need to have high expectations of ourselves. Let's continue learning and improving our pedagogy to better serve our language learners.  

Thank you for reading! 

When I went through high school as a newcomer student, my mother was there. When I put myself through college, my mother was also there. She witnessed my struggles, my failures, and hardships. So every time we talk about my accomplishments, she asks: "But how did you do it?" "Where did you get the strength from to finish your goal?" My answer was always: "I don't know, I just felt like I had to keep going."  Today I know that it was because of grit! 
Character Lab  has a great post on grit that states that "Grit is a critical strength of most people who are successful."
It also gives some examples of what grit looks like: 

• Finishing what you begin
• Staying committed to your goals
• Working hard even after experiencing failure or when you feel like quitting
• Sticking with a project or activity for more than a few weeks

In Boosting Achievement we learn that SIFE and refugee students, "embody grit and perseverance." We know this to be true because their experiences and hardships required them to be strong and committed to surviving in their environment. 
"Many SIFE come to America with enough pain to fill a lifetime of sadness and despair."  ~ Tan Huynh

​Our responsibility as their educator is to guide them in using that strength found within them and apply it toward school and life goals. ​

Dr. Duckworth reminds us that grit "requires deep interest" - This means that our students need to be engaged in what they are interested in even if they fail. We have to provide opportunities for them to take risk and try.
Carol provides us with a great lesson she learned with her student, Hamsa. Watch this video where he shows perseverance in doing what he knows he can do and is interested about.  

Boosting Achievement provides a great list of  ideas and opportunities to encourage our SIFE students to engage in topics of interest:

• Easy Gamify Your Classroom with Kahoot
• Mystery Skype with a Mystery Class
• Mystery Skype with a Professional
• Partner with Historical Professionals
• Partner with Business Professionals
• Flip a Visit to a Local Business
• Virtual Field Trips
• Invite or Community Newspapers to Feature Students Who are SIFE​

For more ideas and for details about given ideas on page #43 and #44, please visit bit.ly/SalvaBLog

Older SIFE students may appear to have a wider educational gap, but FEAR NOT. According to Boosting Achievement, SIFE students come with a sense of urgency, and often have a deeper appreciation for educational OPPORTUNITIES!! 
They already have the most important predictor for success: PASSION. PERSISTENCE. MOTIVATION.  Just provide the opportunities and watch them soar!! 

Thank you for reading!

Part One: Working with Students Who are SIFE

I don't know about you, but I want my students to remember me as their teacher for a life time. However, in order for this to happen, I need to make sure I strengthen m​y relationship with each and every one of my students. And relationship building starts by learning students background. 

Let me start by emphasizing  how important it is to know our students' background because each category of language learners is different and each requires a unique level of support. Here is an article I found very relevant to this topic: Good Teachers Embrace Their Students' Cultural Background. Here I learned that as teachers, we tend to use our own experiences when planning the lessons we teach, but then students cannot create connections because is not relevant for them. However, when we know students' background, their story, their struggles, their past, we would lean toward activities and materials that will support students in making connections. 
​Boosting Achievement does a fantastic job highlighting and providing awareness of the many different categories our language learners' background. Just take a close look at the chart below.

The point I want to bring up with this chart is that not all language learners in your class fall under one category. Our students come to us with a story, with a personal and unique background, and in order for them to be successful, they must receive the appropriate support. 
Take my experience as a language learner high school student for example. When I first came to the United States my teacher needed to know that I was a 'Newcomer/Recent Immigrant' and a 'SIFE' student. Not only was I learning the language but I had also missed a lot of school years in my country which put me far behind classmates my age. When interested in supporting L1 (native language) it is imperative for teachers to know the student's educational background.  And to find this information could be as simple as asking the parent. Build a relationship with parents and students to provide what is best for the student to be successful in school and in life.

I believe that ALL students need our support. However, I want you to think about English language learners who are struggling academically. Why? The answer is simple: Achievement Gap! I strongly believe that the achievement gap exists among our ELs because we are not targeting and/or providing the appropriate support. 

Boosting achievement does the following recommendations for SIFEs' needs:

1. Solid instruction in literacy and numeracy skills 
2. Broader orientation into school system
3. Procedures and basic learning study skills

I also have a few recommendations for newcomer students: here. 

Watch the video below by Teaching Channel to see how newcomers and SIFE students interact through the use centers to accelerate reading development. This video clearly shows that our newcomers/SIFEs have the ability and "know how to" when the opportunities as presented.

Part I has a heavy focus on Cultural Responsive Teaching. This is super important and a very hot topic in education right now. I believe is due to the growing diversity found among students in our classrooms.  Part of being culturally responsive is building a relationship with our students, so last week, our focus was on getting to know our students and building strong relationships by valuing our students' stories. However, I see it as taking a step further...When we know our students' background and care about who they are, it'll reflect in what our classrooms look like. What I mean is that knowing your students will make you want to provide a place where they feel safe, comfortable, and familiar to them. Making sure our classroom decor mirrors our students' culture and background.
Boosting achievement provides great tips such as desk arrangements, and labeling school items in multiple languages.  Here is another article I found helpful on providing classroom setup strategies. It's imperative to consider these tips that facilitate learning ultimately optimizing language learning and academic achievement. 

Carol shares a fascinating story of a SIFE student who had to advocate for himself when he noticed he was not getting what he needed. I believe it is necessary for our students, Kindergarten - 12th grade, be able to advocate for themselves. Students will at one point in their education encounter educators or school personnel who will instead of supporting students are obstacles for students' success. That is the point when students need to stand for what they believe it is best for themselves. I found this link very helpful on tips and steps to follow on teaching students to self- advocate. 
Osama is now my hero! He taught me that as an educator, there should be a level of  'shame' when I don't take the time to listen to students' needs and advocate on their behalf.  
You see, as an educator, you can't be both; You either are supportive or an obstacle. Which are you? If you are reading this, is because you care about your students and want to support them. Thank you, #eduHero! 

This section really made think about ways I can gather my newcomers' background information to better serve them. In Cabarrus County, we are very fortunate to have the ELLevation platform that houses our ELs' demographic information as well as their language proficiency levels. This is a system with easily accessible data as well as targeted instructional language and content strategies.

However, I noticed that there is no place for us to flag if our student is a refugee student. While discussing his topic with our county's ESL counselor, I realized that the only way for teachers to know if a student is SIFE is to share it with the teacher. But what if the student moves to another school? Shouldn't this information be available as part of their demographic information for new teachers' easy access? 
This thought is just one of the thoughts Boosting Achievement is making me realize as a read through. 
Another idea I have after reading the "Refugee-Focused Intake Process" is to create a spreadsheet with some of the components Texas uses for their "Intake/Pre - Assessment Form".
I am fascinated with the three focused components: Affective, Linguistic, and Cognitive. 
As an ESL teacher, my focused needs to go beyond whether students speak English or not. But also know their cognitive skills levels in math and reading, and/or issues that could affect them psychologically, mentally or emotionally. 
I can't wait to see what else I learn in the coming chapters. I am definitely betting my teaching pedagogy with Boosting Achievement!!  

If you are interested in reading my previous blogs on Boosting Achievement book club notes, just follow this link!
Don't forget to check you Carol's blog. Here is her blog for Boosting Achievement Week 2

Thank you for reading!

​This quote is core of what I am about. A personal story, especially a story filled with struggles and hardships beyond our imagination, can be the foundation for our students’ success. 
As educators, we must be open-minded about the possibilities for SIFE students and begin to see their culture and language as an asset not as a deficit. Being SIFE doesn’t make them any inferior.

​Now, Carol advised and modeled that just being aware of students’ stories and previous hardships, is not enough; we must also act, and to me, acting is finding ways to provide SIFE students the opportunities they need to be successful.
​This thought led me to gather a few resources I found helpful on this topic: 

The Immigrant Learning Center offered two wonderful webinars on July 11th and 12th. Follow this link to access presentations and other resources.

• Topic for day one: America’s Evolving Classrooms: Data and Projections; Psychological Profile of Immigrant and Refugee Students; Breaking Down Implicit Bias; Teacher as Ally and Advocate for Immigrant and Refugee Students; Lesson Plans to Create Welcoming Classrooms
• Topics for day two:  Supporting Immigrant Families in Today’s Climate: What Can Schools Do?; Empowering Immigrant Students to be Leaders and Advocates; Discovering our Shared History: An ESOL Curriculum; Storytelling

You want to check this site: https://immigrantstories.umn.edu/

Access Newcomer Tool Kit provided by the U.S. Department of Education: Who are our newcomers;

Welcoming newcomers to a safe and thriving school environment; How do we support newcomers’ social and emotional needs; Establishing partnerships with parents.
https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oela/newcomers-toolkit/index.html

Education Connection also offered interactive 3-part webinar series and provided resources on supporting newcomers: You must sign up to access their resources but its totally FREE!

• The first session: addressed background information related to newcomer students and best practices for integration of native language supports into classroom instruction.
• The second session: focused on the unique challenges faced by newcomer students and strategies for promoting literacy development.
• The third session: focused on the socio-emotional needs of newcomer students, how schools and teachers might best address them, and application activities for improving students' access to core content.​​

We are learning so much from this book club already. Many of us have been challenged to do some things we never thought we would do. I, for example, learned how to create a 3D avatar and posted a bookSnap! Check it out!

Don't forget to check out Carol Salva's blog for more resources: Boosting Achievement Week 1

If you have the book and would like to go over the questions we used during week one for discussion, here they are! Thanks to Katie Toppel (@Toppel_ELD) for providing the questions. 
All tweets under #ELLchat_BKclub are here so you haven't missed any:

Thank you for reading! 

Notes and reflections posted here are about the newly released book; 
​Boosting Achievement: Reaching Students with Interrupted or Minimal Education by:
​ Carol Salva (@MsSalvaC) and Anna Matis (@AnnaTeachesELLs). 

There are several reasons why I am interested in this book:

• As a formal SIFE (student with interrupted formal education), and an English as a Second Language teacher, I have no doubt that this book is an essential tool for teachers. It provides the approach, methods, and strategies to successfully support newcomer students. If you are an educator here in the United States, you know that there are a lot of possibilities in you having a SIFE student in your classroom next school year. However, teacher preparation in this specific area lacks all around our country. The need to teach and be culturally responsive is imperative. During immigration process, 85% of immigrant children have been separated from their parents. Its true! Read my immigrant journey story and you'll see.  Are you prepared for them?!? Do you know how to handle their learning differences?!? Do you have the tools for their success and for YOUR success as teacher?!? This book gives what you need and more. 
• It is summer break! And I believe it is the perfect time to dive into best practices, great readings, webinars, and Twitter chats (#ELLchat_BKclub & #BookCampPD) all to improve my pedagogy (how I teach) since it is only my 6th year teaching ESL.  Read this blog post from Carol explaining our virtual book study and how we are coming together to read and collaborate on this book. 
• I'm also reading this book because...guess what?!? The author, Carol Salva, is now a good friend of mine. Let's just say she's my hero! She is also my fan...read what she wrote about me! Her students and my students have connected in a fabulous way...(she tells about is on page #41).

Now, I started this post because I felt like I had to do more than just read this fabulous book. I needed a place to log and share my thoughts and notes about all the wonderful points gained from reading. Besides, the tweet below not only spoke volumes to me but it gave me the conviction I needed to find ways to better interact with my reading. 

​

Carol Salva has a great blog that provides all the resources that go along with the 5 week virtual book study. Please check it out for weekly updates! 
There is also a @bookSnapsREAL Gallery through Padlet to curate all the #ELLchat_BKclub #bookSnaps  and a Flipgrid (platform where videos with responses are archived) created by Carlota Holder (@Carlota_Holder) 

Blog Post: Boosting Achievement Book Study - Week 1

Blog Post: Boosting Achievement Book Study - Week 2

Blog Post: Boosting Achievement Book Study - Week 4 

Blog Post: Boosting Achievement Book Study - Week 5 

Thank you for reading!