1. ENCOURAGE PARENTS/GUARDIANS TO SPEAK WITH THEIR CHILDREN AT HOME IN WHATEVER LANGUAGE THEY SPEAK BEST. DO NOT ENCOURAGE THEM TO SPEAK ENGLISH AT HOME IF ENGLISH IS NOT THEIR STRONGER LANGUAGE.
- The better developed a student's "first" or "native" language is, the better their English will become. Language skills transfer.
- If parents/guardians are not proficient in English, this will not assist the children in developing English well and might establish patterns that need to be corrected later.
- If parents/guardians are not proficient in English, then, in effect, by telling them to speak English, it limits communication between the generations. It is crucial that children have extensive interaction with parents/caregivers and other family members. This can only be done in whichever language they are most fluent.
2. DON'T ASSUME PROFICIENCY BASED ON CONVERSATIONAL ABILITY.
- Social language develops much faster than academic language.
- If an English language learner has basic oral communication skills, don't assume they are "fluent enough" to be successful without continued classroom differentiation and ESOL services.
- The student still needs to master academic language. Long-standing research has proven that social language develops typically within 3 years; academic language develops typically within 5-7 years.
3. CHILDREN WILL BENEFIT FROM READING AT HOME, IN ANY LANGUAGE. ENCOURAGE FAMILIES TO READ IN ENGLISH, AND IN THEIR NATIVE LANGUAGE.
- We have an extensive (and growing) collection of multicultural and bilingual books at each elementary school. English language learners can borrow books in any language. They can read at home with siblings, parents, grandparents, etc.
- We have bilingual flyers to encourage families to talk together about books before, during, and after reading. ESOL Family Literacy flyers in many languages are posted along the right side of this page.
4. ENGLISH LEARNERS NEED TO DEVELOP PROFICIENCY IN FOUR DOMAINS OF LANGUAGE, ALL OF EQUAL IMPORTANCE: SPEAKING, LISTENING, READING, AND WRITING.
- Using just one measure of proficiency (for a single domain) is not enough to judge proficiency in the other domains.
- Most ELs develop proficiency in Speaking and Listening sooner than in Reading and Writing.
- For many ELs, reading fluency and reading comprehension are very much separate. Many ELs demonstrate strong reading fluency but are still developing comprehension. However, it is also common for ELs to demonstrate limited reading fluency yet strong comprehension.
5. IDENTITY AFFIRMATION IS CRUCIAL FOR ACADEMIC ENGAGEMENT.
- Students who feel their culture and identity validated in the classroom are much more likely to engage with literacy than those who perceive their culture and identity ignored or devalued.
- Be sure your classroom includes images that are reflective of students' cultures, from the instructional texts and materials to the instructional activities, from the classroom walls to the classroom library.