If you're like me, I'm always looking for opportunities to learn and better my craft. This is why I wanted to share this with you. On June 5th, 2019, I had the amazing opportunity to present on a webinar with 3 other incredible educators. This webinar was made available through Achieving the Core, an excellent website that provides free, ready-to-use classroom resources that support excellent, standards-aligned instruction for all students.
This webinar helped kick off Achieving the Core's Summer Reading Challenge 2019, which I highly recommend you check out! As "most popular authors" from Aligned, we introduced some of the transformative practices we’ve implemented in our schools that have helped boost engagement and achievement.
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On Thursday, May 23rd, 2019 I had the amazing privilege to attend the 15th Annual Maryland ELL Family Involvement Network (MELLFIN) Conference.
MELLFIN is a non-profit organization, committed to sharing information and resources in support of immigrant families living in Maryland. MELLFIN is a collaborative body, cultivating effective strategies to appropriately meet the needs of Maryland's increasingly diverse and fast-growing immigrant population.
The theme for the 15th annual conference was "Schools and Community Partnership = EL Success". I was honored and humbled to be one of two keynote speakers - Ms. Becky Pringle, Vice President of the National Education Association was our morning keynote and I served as the afternoon keynote.
I had the privilege to share my immigrant journey as well as a few tips to support families and English learners to reach their full (and sometimes hidden) potential. #ELLchat_BKclub Meta Round 17.0On December 15th, 2018, Dr. Katie Toppel (co-founder of Twitter chat #ELLchat_bkClub) reached out to a few of us in our PLN (Professional Learning Network) and shared her idea for round 17.0 Twitter book chat. For round 17.0, Katie offered us to help facilitate a book study on Making Content Comprehensible text from SIOP by each one of us taking charge of a component. The idea was to make this an 8-week "meta" book study - one week for each component. Each facilitator was invited to guide each component with own ideas, resources, videos, live chats, presentations, and connections with other previously read books in our chat. So each one of us provided our preferences as to which component we wanted to lead. The component assignments were as follows:
As soon as the "meta" promo went out, participants immediately began sending in selfies with the book and showing so much excitement about participating. It was even more amazing with the author Dr. Jana Echevarria started engaging in conversation and even blogged about #ELLchat_bkClub round 17.0 - "Is SIOP Only for ESL Teachers?" - Read her post HERE.
My favorite line is "join the Twitter PLC discussion on SIOP." WOW!! Just awesome to read this from the SIOP author and highly recognized researcher in our field.
On February 21st, 2019 I had the privilege to collaborate and participate in a webinar hosted by SupportEd. Participating alongside Diane Staehn Fenner - president of SupportEd, Sydney Snyder, and Jill Kester was just beyond an imaginable opportunity.
First of all, I am a huge fan of their book, "Unlocking English Learners' Potential". This book provides an array of strategies and ideas to support ELs on working at their fullest potential. I've also participated in several of their free webinars and I've learned so much.
So, the title of our webinar is
Supporting ELs' Oral Language Development Through Academic Conversation. You can access the recorded webinar here.
Mannheim School District 83 in Franklin Park, IL holds an annual Bilingual Parent Summit and I was honored to be invited this year (2019) as a guest speaker.
The Bilingual Parent Summit is designed to provide Latinx parents the opportunity to engage and learn strategies and activities to work with their children. The summit not only provided a wide variety of workshops for parents but also a great meal for the entire family. It was wonderful for sit down and lunch with families as they asked questions and asked for support to better care for their children. I had the greatest privilege to share my immigrant journey as well as my struggles and difficulties as a language learner here in the USA. They best part of the presentation was that it was ALL in SPANISH...yes, and a little in English for our non-Spanish speakers. I noticed several parents crying and hugging their children while I was sharing. After the presentation, I had the opportunity to have to open Q&A sessions where parents asked questions and were free to discuss methods to support their bilingual children.
From the moment I made it to IL to the day I left, Dr. Piedad Kaye was so sweet and amazing with me. I have so much to thank her for. First of all, she believed in me and gave me the chance to share my story with her staff and school families. She also, was very kind offering all her help knowing I was not feeling well. District 83 provided nothing but royal treatment for me! LOVED visiting them and I would LOVE to go back.
I also had the amazing opportunity to meet Sarah Said. I met Sarah through twitter and we've collaborated in several twitter chats, including #ELLchat_bkclub. It's amazing how connected we felt even though we had never met before. I was honored to attend a wonderful family event night organized by the English as a Second Language of Rowan-Salisbury, North Carolina. This meeting had ELs and their families at heart. Not only they allowed me to share my immigrant story and EL experience to the audience in Spanish, but also they had several workshops available for parents.
I loved taking questions and answering concern parents have in regards to second language learning; using native language at home; the law that protects ESL students; how school system works in the USA, etc. I can tell that a lot of parents felt a connection to my story and I hope that my story stays with them forever!
The Virginia ESL Supervisors' Association (VESA) hosts an annual conference that provides K-12 Virginia educators and administrators of English Learners opportunities for professional development, learning new ideas, networking, and program planning.
I was honored to join Dr. Kate Kinsella as keynote speakers for the 2019 conference entitled: Creating Pathways to Proficiency You can access the full conference program below!
So here I am...reflecting on my first semester in High School! As you may know, over the summer of 2018, I made the switch from an elementary school setting to a high school setting. The decision was not a difficult one in the sense that I knew with all my heart I was going where I needed to be. Besides, the passion within me to serve English learners is always seeking out new challenges for improvement. But, to be transparent about my feelings, I must share the FEAR I was facing while making my decision. Fear of the unknown. Fear of failure. High school is a radically different world than elementary school. It's like black and white. The only knowledge I had about high school was what I knew from my son since he is a HS student. So, I was afraid. I was afraid of schedules, services for students, accommodations for testing, enrollment, co-teaching, etc. I was afraid of how I was going to fit in with Concord High School' staff and students. Would they like me? Would I meet their expectations? Would I be a good fit? These questions led to begin thinking about failing. What if I fail. What if I don't fit in? What if I mess up? So many questions that for a moment became reasons to avoid venturing the unknown journey. However, unpredictable journeys can only be lived by being willing to take risks. If we want to maintain a burning passion & seek out new challenges, we must accept the probability that things might not go as planned or as we would've wanted them to; but that's how change happens...and change is good!! One semester. One semester is just enough time for me to realize how much I love working with high school students at Concord High School! Do I know everything? NO. Have I had failures? YES. You see, that's the beauty of unknown and unpredictable journeys; That no matter what the journey brings our way...we stand strong on the heartfelt decision and risks. I have SO MUCH to learn. I have so many relationships to build. I have so many more things to do. Meanwhile, I sit here - looking at the bulletin board with all our ELs' pictures (picture above)...and I smile thinking on the many - many more wonderful memories in the years to come. Thank you for reading & Go Spiders!
I just LOVE it when I buy a book and that book ends up stirring up everything within me. BE REAL - Educate from the Heart by Tara Martin just shook. My. World!! While reading Tara's story, I couldn't help thinking about my own experiences and realize how I too have experiences that are unique and powerful. Tara's message helped me zoom in and have a clear understanding of my purpose (my WHY) and all I do because of my purpose. You see, I am very passionate about English learners; so anything and everything I do is to highlight their potential and strengths. EVERYTHING I do (my what) whether is teaching, blogging, twitting, keynoting, PD sessions, will all be inspired by my purpose and my passion. For this reason, my #OneWord for 2019 is...ACTIONS. I will be doing everything I do with intentionality. I will, as Tara, says in her book..."measure everything I make using two questions:"
Whether is a professional or personal action, I will make sure that it is intentional behavior that will benefit my purpose and others as well. "Recognize your talents and strengths and own them! Then, make confident choices. Take the leap and try out an idea, teach, write, speak, encourage a friend over coffee - do what you do and begin to salt the world with your whats. Don't doubt yourself. That you may be easier said than done, but if an idea, action, or next step fits your purpose - your why - go with it!" ~ Tara Martin I will always return to these words that inspired me to continue working hard to make a difference. Thank you for reading and hApPy 2019!
The Long Island Regional Bilingual Education Resource Network (L.I. RBERN) holds an annual conference organized by the ENL/Bilingual Program Office. The Long Island Teacher Institute 2018, "Generation NOW: ACC-ELL-erating Pathways to Success for Linguistically Diverse Learners was on December 7th, 2018.
I was honored to be invited as their featured presenter following the amazing keynote presentation by Dr. Lorena Llosa.
For the past 15 years, I've organized ESL family engagement meetings at the elementary school level and all I had to do was send home an invitation and parents would show up!
Now that I am at a high school level I realize that the process and approach has to be different for family engagement nights. So, I came to a firm understanding that in order to successfully support our students at the HS level, a group effort is a must. What I mean is, it is imperative to create a culture of opportunities and a sense of collaboration among staff so our families and students are supported and successful. Culture of Collaboration and Responsibilities
In order to ensure success for our students and to encourage our ESL families to engage and participate in school events, our staff must have a strong sense of community and shared responsibility. As an ESL teacher, I feel very strongly about the need to have our ESL families' help in making sure that our students (especially ELs) have the support they need to be successful. Therefore, I invited several school staff members to team up with me in planning and implementing our very first ESL family engagement night.
Our form of communication was through email and we maintained a constant communication with all the details. Who
The perfect team to implement our first meeting consisted of our Spanish teacher (Ms. Perdomo), our ELA teacher (Ms. Armstrong), our bilingual secretary (Rina Rodriguez), our guidance counselors ( Mrs. Foster and Stacey Diaz), and admin (Dr. A).
Process
Three of us (bilingual ones) called ALL our ESL parents and personally invited them to attend. We called them with about 2-3 weeks in advance. We also provided the opportunity to attend to either one of two sessions offered. Both sessions followed the same format.
We also sent home this form as a reminder. ESL Parent Meeting Format
We didn't want this meeting to be a type of sit and get without engagement, so we provided our information in centers. We also wanted to model how we strive as teachers to have our students collaborate and work in groups with their peers. Also, being in small groups provides a more comfortable setting for parents to ask questions and engage without fear.
We started all together and received a welcome from all of staff who was present. I explained the format of the meeting and parents were divided into groups to begin learning. The groups and information provided were as follows:
Parents spent about 15 minutes at each center and rotated to another center until they had been to all three.
Our principal was there in the room with us to answer questions and engage with our parents as well. Our ELA teacher, Ms. Armstrong, was present and greeted our families and also helped answer any questions regarding class grades or content questions. Stacey Diaz, our county's ESL guidance counselor was with us during our first session and was able to share valuable information with our families too. We also had a representative from a local community organization called "El Puente Hispano" who provided our families with all the available support they have for students and parents.
I must say that without the sense of collaboration and responsibility from everyone who helped - this 1st awesome meeting with our ESL families would have not been as successful as it was.
Our parents were very grateful for all the information we provided and were also happy to create connections with other parents in our school. If you are having successful ESL parent meetings at the HS level, please share your experience with us! We'd love to continue what we started and the more ideas we have the better!! Thank you for reading! On October 22nd, 2018 - I had the privilege to be featured on DisruptED TV Teacher Sparks. Host, Michele Hill, (a passionate educator who by the way I admire), invited me to not only share my immigrant story but also share what I am currently doing for my students and their families. We had a great conversation around elements and ways we need in our schools and classrooms to create a welcoming and comfortable environment for diverse students. Cultural responsiveness is definitely a topic we both feel very strongly about - so it became core to our conversation. Check out the video and let me know if you have any comments or questions! Thank you for reading and watching the video!!
On October 23rd - October 26th, 2018 I had the opportunity to attend my first WIDA annual conference! The conference was in Detroit and I was able to attend with Stacey Diaz, Cabarrus County's ESL counselor and Doug Carr, Cabarrus County's social worker. I was honored to co-present a session with my colleagues and I also had a session on my own. I attended several fantastic sessions where I learned a lot and met a lot of Twitter friends! It is by far one of the most amazing experiences I've ever had! Sessions#1: Teachers, School Counselors, and Social Workers: Collaborating for Success "Research shows that students with engaged families adapt better to school, attend school more regularly, have better social skills, and pursue post-secondary opportunities. We explored the role of teachers, school counselors, and social workers in engaging families and learn about culturally responsive family engagement practices. Developed an action plan based on examples given to implement culturally responsive engagement practices at your school."
#2: Establishing a Comfortable Environment for Diverse Students - From Inside-Out "Students need a respectful environment to function to their full potential. This session provided Culturally Responsive Pedagogy strategies to create the environment diverse students need. Participants visualized that in order to establish such environment, it needs to start from within. Then, as a ripple effect it carries onto our students, our content teaching pedagogy, school culture, family and community engagement, and ultimately engage globally as open-minded individuals. After my session, I asked participants the following question as an exit ticket: A year from now, what will be important for you to remember about this session? EDUCATION ALUMNA USES PERSONAL JOURNEY TO INSPIRE THE NEXT GENERATION"Emily Francis leapt from her seat in the audience of The Ellen Show and made a run for the stage. Only after she was perched alongside Ellen Degeneres did the 2016 Cabarrus County Schools Teacher of the Year realize that in her excitement, she hadn’t given the famous talk show host time to finish her introduction. But looking back at her journey—from a one room shack in Guatemala, to a New York airport facing immigration authorities, to crossing the stage at UNC Charlotte to accept a graduate degree in Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL)—it’s clear that Emily Francis had been racing toward a moment like this her entire life." ~ The Language of Love I love how this article was introduced! The Cato College of Education at UNC Charlotte featured my story on their website this month. They also embedded wonderful pictures and videos they took while visiting me at Concord High School. To read the entire article and watch the videos, follow this link: https://inside.uncc.edu/featured-stories/the-language-of-hope
Thank you for reading!
Over the summer of 2018, I took the first step to a great journey...I made the decision to transfer to Concord High School (CHS) after working six years at Irvin Elementary school. The decision was based on a burning desired within me to support students who are facing the same struggles I faced as a high school newcomer student and language learner. Read more about my personal experience as a newcomer here!
I got our classroom ready with so much excitement! However, I was more excited to meet my new students. I had already met a few of them during our ESL summer enrichment program, so I was thrilled to meet the rest of my students.
On Thursday, August 23rd, 2018 - I had the greatest privilege to present during the National Council of State Title III Directors (NCSTIIID) webinar! I shared my story and some resources and key elements to build great partnerships with our English language learners' families. Building partnership with our families will ensure student success.
**Webinar was recorded .** follow this link: My part is about 60 min into webinar! Below you'll find my presentation slides and the links I mentioned during the presentation.
Link to online slides: Click here to access slides on Building Partnerships with Families to Ensure Student Success
You can also download slides as a PDF document here.
Links to resources mentioned during presentation:
Slide #8 ELLevation Podcast about Talking Points resource.
Slide #9 Con Respeto Blog Post link Slide #10 Parent Survey sample link Slide #16 Sarah Ottow’s blog based on my story link
After my presentation, I had the audience log into menti.com and answer question related to our topic. These questions and answers were to show our thinking and to see if we were in the same page when it comes to supporting our ELs and their families.
These were the results:
Thank you for reading!
On August 7th, 2018 I had the greatest privilege to be the opening keynote at the North Carolina Department of Education: Growing Success for English Learners' summer conference.
Below you'll find my slides presentation if you'd like to go over it. You may also want to check out the convention's hashtag (#NCELs18) to see our learning!
During my presentation, I had the audience pause and reflect on my story. I had them go to mentimeter.com and created the word cloud below by entering three words that came to mind after hearing my story. There were 140 participants who enter words and I LOVE how the word 'CULTURE' is the one word that stands out! Passion and inspire are the next two words that stand out.
THANK YOU, thank YOU, to Geovana for catching this short video!!
Thank you for reading!
On May 16th, 2018, Peter Cameron and Derek Rhodenizer made available a platform where more than 100 educators from around the world shared their best practices and strategies. I spent all day going from video to video learning from so many inspiring educators. The link for all the videos is available here is you're interest in learning more and access all MADPD presentations. I did not present during the event, but I applied to participate on their #MADpd Spotlight Series. Every week a presenter gets the spotlight with chats about the topic. I decided to share the work my students did during our 2017-2018 school year. Their work is so amazing that was featured on www.Achievethecore.com. Check it our here and here if you want to read more. I hope you enjoy this video and let me know if you have any questions. Thank you for reading!
During the summer of 2017, Refugee book by Alan Gratz was released. There was a huge buzz about this awesome book that I decided to get it. I even ordered several copies and shared with colleagues so we could all read it together. However, I had to stop reading it and put it away. I didn't stop reading it because I didn't like it; I stopped reading it because I found myself disoriented while reading it. You see, I am an English Learner (EL). English is my second language. As matter of fact, I've only had 3 years of high school and my college education here in the USA. Read here if you want to learn more. Even though I was compelled and excited to read this story, I found myself struggling to make sense of what was happening. I was getting frustrated. I was getting caught in small details, I couldn't remember the most important events, I was forgetting what I had just read and was unable to make connections between events. I TRIED! I KEPT READING! But I felt like I was wasting my time. So I gave up and put the book away. All year went by and I kept seeing posts about how awesome this book was and how everyone should be reading it. I felt bad and kind of embarrassed that I had not been able to read this wonderful book. However, reading 'Más Allá del Invierno' by Isabel Allende, entirely en Español, was super easy and refreshing to my mind. So, why did I have trouble reading Refugee, you might ask? Well, allow me to shed some light on the book's NARRATIVE STRUCTURE (text structure is the overall organization of the text). The novel alternates among three narratives that explore the lives of refugees in different decades and parts of the world. The book is beautifully written, and its narrative structure is brilliantly constructed...but, it threw me off and confused me as an English language learner. Isn't comprehension the purpose of reading? If so, if you can't read it, you can't comprehend it! Comprehension is the process of extracting or constructing MEANING!! Giving Refugee Book a Second ChanceThe #ELLchat_BkClub voted on reading Refugee over the summer of 2018. As matter of fact, I also voted on this book because I was still intrigued by everything I've heard about the story and I really wanted to read it. Guess what?!? I read it ALL in just 4 weeks! However, the only reason I was successful in completing the book was that I had support. You see, participating in a book club not only provided the accountability for my reading but also facilitated weekly discussions with other participants reading the same story. Dr. Katie Toppel, the book club moderator, provided weekly questions based on a given number of pages read, and that in itself, gave me the purpose for reading I needed to pause and reflect on what I had read. I was not just reading the words! I was making sense of the information and ideas. I was constructing meaning, and also retaining information. So this experience led me thinking about my ELs and thought about gathering some resources about this topic. Why Teach Fiction/Narrative Text Structures?The question should be, 'why wouldn't you teach narrative structures?'. If you want students to make sense of the text and build on ideas to construct meaning and to retain the information they're reading, then you MUST intentionally teach its structure. Students NEED a purpose for reading! The purpose of reading is COMPREHENSION. Again, if students are finding themselves disoriented while reading a narrative, they WILL NOT comprehend, construct meaning, and/or retain information. How to Teach Text StructuresELs, and all students in general, NEED explicit text structure lessons; they need tools to support them as they move throughout their reading whether is non-fiction or narrative text. I find this blog post on Cultofpedagogy.com by Jennifer Gonzalez loaded with resources on ways to teach text structures for non-fiction text. This "20 Strategies to Teach Text" is fabulous. It actually gives a great perspective as to why and how to teach text structures. Some key elements our students need to focus on while reading narratives are:
Here's an excellent list of printable graphic organizers provided by Fountas and Pinnell. The most important strategy we can teach our students is to PAUSE AND DISCUSS the text! MODEL, MODEL, MODEL how to think aloud while reading! Here's a great video that teaches how to model thinking aloud to increase comprehension. This "Think Aloud Checklist" is a great resource our students can have with them as they read and think about their reading. Introducing Fiction Text Structure with STORY looks like a fun way to teach this topic! Click here for more. S – SETTING T – TALKING CHARACTERS O – OOPS! A PROBLEM! R – ATTEMPTS TO RESOLVE THE PROBLEM Y – YES, THE PROBLEM IS SOLVED! In conclusion, the method you choose to teach your students 'Narrative Text Structure' doesn't really matter. What matters is to make sure students know how to navigate through challenging text formats to comprehend stories. Having the tools described above will increase reading speed, help retain content, and support with connections with incoming new information.
I would love to know if you use any of these resources or if you have any others I need to learn about. Please share comments below! Happy reading and thanks for reading my post! New Position
I am super excited to share with you that I am starting a new position for the 2018 - 2019 school year...I will now be a HIGH SCHOOL ESL teacher!!!
Working with high school ESL students it's a desire that it's been in my heart for quite some time now. I understand first hand the struggles and huddles newcomer high school students are facing as they begin their educational journey in the USA. It is my hope that my personal experiences and 14 years in an elementary setting, have equipped me with the skills I need to support students are Concord HS. I am very sad to leave Irvin Elementary!! I've built great relationships with students, parents, and staff. However, I feel very strongly about this change. It's the right time. I must admit that I am a little nervous. New content, new staff, new students, new EVERYTHING! However, the excitement and passion I feel about this change are going to help me adjust to all new changes. Wish me luck...and send any HS resources my way please...I'll be needing all the support I can get.
VirtuEL Conference Keynote What Every Teacher of English Learners Should KnowOn Saturday, June 23rd, 2018 I had the greatest privilege to join several inspiring and amazing educators from around the world at the 2nd annual VirtuEL Conference. Tan Huynh (@TanELLclassroom) and Carol Salva (@MsSalvac) are the founders of this amazing and FREE online annual conference for teachers of English learners (and all classroom teachers in general). The lineup of presenters is EPIC - from classroom teachers to authors and professionals in the field. Each presentation is short but loaded with great and very helpful information to support our students. To see all presentations click here: bit.ly/VirtuEL I was honored to be the mid-conference keynote where Carol Salva interviews me and I share my immigrant/newcomer story. I also share what motivates me to do what I do and what all educators should keep in mind in regards to their language learners. If you'd like to watch/hear the interview, just see Youtube video below or go to the VirtuEL webpage. I also would like to invite you to follow the hashtag #VirtuEL18 where you'll be connected with amazing educators who share our passion to support language learners. If you watch the interview, I would LOVE your feedback and learn from you how you will perhaps use this video at your school or in your county. I leave you with this quote and thought...what are your language learners doing because of YOU?!? Thank you for reading!
I believe without a doubt that the core of my students’ success relies on parent engagement and parent-teacher partnerships. So, in order to foster this success, I gather my students’ families quarterly and share relevant information with them in order to keep them engaged and well informed about their children’s success. I create a culture in my school that fosters an environment where parents feel welcomed and valued.
However, this year I started a new approach with our ESL families; I started our school year providing our parents the opportunity and the platform to have their voices heard. Our students' parents know our students best! They know their weaknesses and strengths much better than we do. Their dreams and aspirations for their children should be what drives our desire to do what is best for our students. I made this simple "My Wish..." poster and gave each parent a sticky-note. We asked parents to write down their wish and desire for their children's school year and/future. Our focus was not necessarily with an academic approach, parents were also encouraged to think about their personal and social desires for their children. These are some of our parents' wishes for their children:
In January, we met with our parents again...this time our focus was mid-year grades. I asked our parents to bring with them their children's report card and any intervention documentation they had received from their teacher. As we discussed the grading process and the desired academic target at each grade level, I could sense that our parents were feeling discouraged due to their child's current level and grades.
I didn't want our parents to leave our meeting discouraged so we switched gears and started talking about students' strengths. I gave then the mantra I stand for, "highlighting strengths to make weaknesses disappear". I reassured parents that even though we had some work to do...we could work together to support students to get where they need to get. They are not there YET...but then can be! Each parent received a sentence strip to write their child's strengths. I asked them to think about what they love doing, what they like spending their time doing, what their favorite subject is, what they want to be when they grow up...etc. These are some of our students' strengths highlighted by their parents
This was an amazing opportunity for parents to turn and talk with their children and ask them about what they love doing (if they didn't know). Students were excited to share their likes and what they were very good at. Parents' reactions were priceless! They realized there are was so much good and strength in their child. Once they started focusing on strengths, they realized that their weaknesses (academic, that is) were slowly disappearing.
We took every sentence strip and attached them together to create a chain. We talked about how we need to focus on strengths and make them stronger like a chain to strengthen our students' future! Our parents were excited and more receptive to ways they can support their children at home to help them achieve the required grade level.
Again, in order to support our students' success, we need to foster an environment where our parents feel part of the process and have an opportunity to voice their opinion about the children WE are educating at school. And don't forget Jimmy Casas' wise words: "UNLEASHING TRUE POTENTIAL BEGINS BY REMOVING THE LABELS THAT HOLD CHILDREN HOSTAGE."
Thank you for reading!
If you know me well, you'd know how much I advocate for family engagement and family support to ensure student success. Ever since I started working for our school system I've organized ESL family nights to provide educational interventions aimed at promoting student success. One reason why I feel strongly about family engagement is that it is something I felt I didn't have when attending school in the US. Another reason was and still is because of the vast demands our schools have of our students and family support to ensure student academic success. Just last week I thought about starting a blog in Spanish to provide "adequate" support and strategies that Latinxs parents and readers can use to utilize to support students academic success. Though my intentions are not bad - as a matter fact, I have great intentions to support families - I started thinking about the core of my intentions. You see, I began these family meeting with our ESL families because I questioned or perhaps devalued ESL families' competence to support their children at home. I know this sounds wrong - and it is! However, I need to be honest with myself and the families I serve; and understanding the reason why I do what I do is imperative. There are two books I read recently that helped me see family engagement through a different lens.
Reading these two novels made me think of a book I read a few years ago while getting my graduate ESL degree. Con Respeto by Guadalupe Váldes is a study that brings to life the everyday worlds of 10 newly arrived immigrant Mexican families. The core of this book and the two novels I mentioned above is to showcase immigrants' family life as a great resource. As an educator, I see my colleagues and school systems well-meaning intentions in creating and providing educational interventions aimed at promoting school success based on teacher knowledge and based on school context - but not based on parent knowledge. A New LensYou see, instead of looking at our families' childrearing styles as a deficit, we can start by changing the way we look at our ESL families' parental knowledge.
From now on I want to make sure my families are being honored for who they are. My teacher knowledge must increase in cultural understanding to be able to embrace and maintain a comfortable environment for my ESL families and my students. The support and tools I will be presenting my ESL parents from now on, will NOT be with the idea of changing who they are or devaluing their family support. My ideas and tools will now be to provide parents with the tools they need to navigate the standard and expectation our schools in the US hold. My ultimate intention, as well as our ESL families' intention, is to support our students in becoming successful adults, who although they find themselves between two words, may they be empowered to be the best they can be to represent their two worlds. I would love to know your thoughts on this topic! Please share your comments and lets continue learning together. Thank you for reading! Teaching is by far the most rewarding profession! What I love the most about our profession is the opportunity we have each and every day to make a difference in our students' lives. However, the moment I experienced yesterday, taught me how much our students have to teach us...and their lessons are what ignite passion in our profession. We are halfway through the school year and administrators are making their required observation rounds. So I was working with my 1st-grade pull-out class when our assistant principal, Mrs. Baker, walked in. I knew she was coming to see us sometime, so I was excited to show the awesome learning happening in our classroom. However, as excited as I was to showcase our awesomeness; I was really nervous! Anyway, I pulled out the book we had read during class the day before: “Last Stop on Market Street” by Matt de la Peña, and together we had a quick discussion about the characters and setting in the story. I reminded students that just as important as naming the characters and the settings; it is also important to understand how the character is feeling throughout the story to be able to get the message the author wants for us. Students had already started analyzing parts of the story and brainstorming what is happening as well as analyzing how the character is feeling based on illustrations and text. I asked for volunteers to share their work with the class. I had several students who raised their hand and wanted to share their work. I chose Jarett to share his part of the story because the day before he had done an excellent job and I knew he had the language to share his work. What happened next, of course, took me by surprise...Jarett froze! Jarett was holding his work and just looking around so confused and unable to say a word! So here am I thinking, "Come on, Jarett, you know the answer!"; "Just say what you told me yesterday!"; "How do I empower him to say something.?!"; "Do I give him more time, or should I call another student?!" It was pretty awkward for a few minutes. All students, an assistant principal, and his teacher staring at him and expecting an answer. Now, I am a huge believer in wait-time! Please check out Valentina's illustration and post above; however, I also think that after a few minutes of waiting, students on the spotlight need some sort of empowerment to be successful with their response. And in that moment I really thought that this empowerment was supposed to come from me...his teacher! The awesomeness I want to share is how the empowerment didn't actually come from me...but from whom I least expected it. Carlos! Carlos is struggling academically right now, so in my mind, answering a high order thinking question was not going to happen for him. Oh, boy, was I wrong!!! When Carlos noticed that his partner was struggling to answer the questions, he began to side-whisper the answer they both had thought about the day before! When Jarett heard what Carlos had said, his face lit up and began telling us all about his work. I had Carlos stand up and share along with Jerett, and between the two of them, we heard the best presentation ever!! What a success and powerful moment for my students but more so for me! First of all, I learned a good lesson on NOT doubting my students' abilities. Just because they are below grade level does not mean I set up limitations to what they can do! Secondly, I learned that students have a powerful ability to empower and support each other. Empowerment does not always have to come from teachers...If we provide opportunities and a comfortable environment for students, they can help each other beyond our imagination! Our API was able to snap a picture of our students smiling and sharing their work! She was very happy to see our students empowering each other and successfully share their learning! Please do not underestimate what our English learners are capable of doing and knowing! Having the opportunities and the possibilities, our students, regardless of grade level, CAN and WILL learn and empower others to learn. Thank you for reading!
Do you know the Humpty Dumpty nursery rhyme? I'm sure you do! But, just in case you don't, this is how it goes: Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the king's horses and all the king's men, couldn't put Humpty together again. Interestingly, 2,500 people were asked to name their favorite nursery rhyme, and at no surprise, Humpty Dumpty is among the top 10 all-time nursery rhymes. However, this nursery rhyme only highlights Humpty's great fall and creates a sense of pettiness toward him because no one was able to fix him. My perspective on Humpty changed forever after reading After The Fall by Dan Santat. If you haven't read this book, go get it right now! This fantastic picture book is Humpty's story AFTER the fall...because he GOT UP again. His story is by far the most inspirational story I've ever read in children's fictional books. I was very emotional after reading it and I learned so much from it. Six Lessons I Learned from Humpty Dumpty...After the Fall
1. Embrace Failure The first lesson we can learn from Humpty is to embrace failure. He understands that everyone knows about him because of his "great fall". However, he doesn't define himself based on our perspective of him, but on what he believes of himself. He sees "the great fall" as an accident...and as an opportunity that changed his life. Can you say growth mindset?!? "There were some parts that couldn't be healed with bandages and glue." FEAR - the feeling Humpty had to embrace after the fall - and he embraced it like a hero. He began taking small steps in order to face his biggest obstacle...heights! 2. Know Your Purpose Humpty had a very clear picture of what his purpose was and who he was meant to be. He made sure he was always surrounded by what he was passionate about. His room décor shows what was in his heart and mind. And even though he knew that height was his weakness, he also understood that it was the very thing that was keeping him away from what he loved most - being where he belonged! Humpty walked by the wall every day! It was a daily reminder of his failure. But he wanted to be as close as possible to where he knew he was supposed to be. And every day he would think about climbing...perhaps planning his next steps...perhaps, thinking about what he would do once he gets back up where he belongs.
3. Enjoy the Moment He never gave up. Not even while all he had was walking by the wall and watching the birds fly up high. He settled on what he was able to do at the moment. He enjoyed the moment and made the best out of it. He actually thought, "it was better than nothing." As a matter fact, thinking about his future ignited in him an idea to get closer to his goal. You see, Humpty had his eyes fixed on his passion and goal. For him, it was fine to just do what he was capable of doing based on his abilities. Meanwhile, he was learning. Meanwhile, he was active. So this got me thinking, are my eyes fixed on my goals? Am I being active developing my skills to be who I am meant to be? Am I enjoying the moment and am I being faithful in the little bit I am asked to do right now? 4. Set Small Goals Humpty thought of a way of getting just a little closer to his goal. He started making paper airplanes so at least that part of him would make it to the top of the wall. As small as this small step might seem, he had to work day after day - try after try - until he was happy with this project. You see, having the motivation isn't enough to reach our goals. If we learn anything from Humpty, is the determination to complete small goals. He knew that what he was working on will one day pay off in his favor. Humpty didn't let cuts and scratches impede with daily work. He was determined to take it one step at a time. Applying this to our lives...what are we allowing to discourage us from achieving our small goals? What excuses do we have to stop developing the skills needed to function where we belong? Don't forget that goals without actions become just a wish! 5. Celebrate Small Accomplishments Accomplishing a small goal made Humpty happy. In fact, it gave him back the happiness he hadn't felt for a long time. Why? Simply because he understood the power of small goals. He celebrated the fact that he believed in himself. He knew what he was capable of. He knew it was close enough to his ultimate goal. It is so important for us to realize that it is OK to feel scared when drafting small goals. In fact, this is a good kind of fear! A fear of the unknown. However, it is exciting to know that reaching our goals will without a doubt give us a sense of accomplishment and a level of self-confidence that only we can give ourselves! Make sure to share your accomplishments with your loved ones. Use social media to share your accomplishments. Let your friends and family celebrate with you when you reach a goal. It's not about bragging...it's about the opportunity to inspire those who might need a little encouragement. 6. Determination Once again - Humpty is face-to-face with FEAR! The opportunity came for him to finally climb the wall and be where he belonged. He knew he had to climb that wall but he wasn't just afraid, he was TERRIFIED! At this very moment he has two choices: Walk away or step into an uncomfortable situation to finally be who he was meant to be. Humpty stepped forward! What made him stay and encouraged him, you might ask? Well, he started thinking about how hard he had worked to accomplish his small goals. He made a choice because he was empowered by his small goals and the sense of accomplishment he celebrated before. "I didn't look up. He didn't have to see the whole staircase - All he had to do was to take the first step! Halfway up he realized he was no longer afraid! What a powerful lesson we learn from Humpty; Progress is found outside our comfort zone, and it is through our uncomfortableness that we grow and develop the skills we need to be efficient where we belong. Making it to the top - where he always belonged, is where he became what he was meant to be! He made it so you and I can have a different perspective on him. He made it so that he can inspire us to reach our goals and celebrate where we belong. He made it so we can change our expectations of failures and those who fail. Humpty's grit and determinations are admirable! Let him be a hero to you and your students. Here is a great article I highly recommend: The Fear of Taking Risks Never Goes Away (Feel The Fear And Do It Anyway) For teaching lessons and ideas click here Thank you for reading!
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