Modifying Instruction for Newcomers: Comprehensible Input

What is Comprehensible Input?

Stephen Krashan introduced the concept of comprehensible input in the early 1980's. Krashen's hypothesis states that ELs learn and acquire language when they receive input (oral or written) that is only slightly about their current level (i+1). This means that the oral and written input we provide students should be mostly understandable, with only a few words or structures that are unknown or new to the students. Students will be able to understand the message and learn additional language in the process. 

At the newcomer level, comprehensible input is made up of short, simple sentences with known or learned words and phrases, with a few new words or language structures, added to get the +1 in the i+1.

The following video is an excellent example of how a teacher can take unknown information and make content comprehensible in the target language for ANY language learner.

Why is comprehensible input important?

This example demonstrates how much a newcomer might be able to understand if attention is not given to making input comprehensible. As you can see, the student is only understanding high-frequency words, some numbers, and some articles and common prepositions. Is the newcomer in this scenario able to learn the new information? Is the newcomer understanding enough to even know what they are being asked to do? At best, we can tell that it seems like some sort of math problem.

When the input a newcomer is being asked to understand is not comprehensible, they will most likely just shut down. When the student shuts down, no further learning of language or content is possible.

How do I make my input comprehensible?

There are many ways to make input comprehensible for students. Some of these include:

              Appropriate Speech

              * Moderate speed
              * Free from figurative language
              * Moderate volume
              * Use consistent vocabulary (e.g.: restroom and bathroom)

             

              Simplified Language/Text

              * Free from figurative language
              * Simple sentences
              * Highlighted text
              * First language (L1) clarification

You can also provide visuals with oral or written input. Do you know how to find images with Explore while using Google docs or slides? It is very easy. Just click Tools - Explore- type in the object you want a picture of - click Image. You should get a display of images to pick from. I like this method rather than using Insert - Image, because Explore documents the source of the image and most images are from Creative Commons. I suggest creating a folder in your Google drive of images you will use again.  It would be great to share these with fellow content area teachers. 

To make oral language comprehensible, Total Physical Response (TPR) is a great tool. For TPR you use gestures, body language or act things out for the students.

Comprehensible input is NOT 'dumbing things down'!

When you focus on comprehensibility you are simplifying the language, not the content.  It is possible to convey complex ideas in simple language, especially if you are using appropriate scaffolds and supports. 

Middle School.. Oh My

I taught at the Middle School for five years and raised five children, I am quite aware of the struggles that come with Middle School. Add to those struggles the fact that you don't speak English, or don't speak English well, and you find the struggle is real.

There are several strategies that teachers can adopt to support English language learners in the middle grades.  Valentina Gonzalez, a professional development specialist for ELs in Texas, wrote this blog post where she suggests using more visual tools and focusing on small groups.  I follow Valentina on Twitter.  As a language learner herself, she always has great ideas to share.  Her post reinforces many of the ideas I have shared in the past. There is also a link to a post by Tan Huynh. You should read this too.  Tan has many wonderful ideas and strategies for ELs.  He is a must follow on social media. Enjoy!

Promoting Language Development in the Mainstream Classroom

Another Hat

Zipping in and out of different buildings makes it challenging for me to find time to meaningfully connect with the classroom teachers of students in our English Language Development program. 

I plan to share a weekly post featuring a handful of ideas for increasing our students' opportunities to engage in reading, writing, listening, or speaking. Not all of the ideas shared in this post will be designed for your grade level or content area and some of these ideas may not be new to you. It is my hope that the suggestions will inspire you to try new approaches that will enrich your instruction and promote language development in your classroom.

Classroom teachers wear many hats: content specialist, nurse, coach, referee, nutritionist, reading teacher, counselor, cheerleader, surrogate parent, and several other roles that are too many in number to list here. Even though you're already balancing so many identities, I hope you have a little more room on your head to wear one of my favorite hats. Not only are you a teacher, but you are also an academic language acquisition specialist!

An Idea to Teach Listening

Listenwise!

Listenwise is a website that contains listening passages from podcasts and public radio stories. These passages and questions are designed for students in middle school through high school. Watch the videos below for a brief review of Listenwise and follow this link to create a free account.

An Idea to Teach Reading

Non-fiction Strategy: Rewriting an Author's Words

Cleverly written headings and titles are a great way to grab the attention of your audience. The practice of manipulating the English language for literary effect, however, leaves ELs scratching their heads (see what I did there?). Teaching students to rewrite titles, headings, and subheadings so that they truly reflect the content of the passage will increase their inferencing skills and also clarify their understanding of the text.  

• Discuss how some titles/headings/ subheadings are written very clearly to state exactly what is written in the section whereas others are written less clearly.
• Show examples of both, emphasizing how you must make inferences to make meaning from the cleverly written text.
• Provide students with an informal text that contains titles/subtitles/headings that do not explicitly state the meaning of the passage.
• Model filling in the chart. 
• Take time to discuss the nuances of English that allow the author to use the chosen terms to catch your attention.
• Allow the students to work in partners or small groups to complete the chart.

Follow this link to make a copy of the chart and use it with your own lesson!

This idea was modified from Serravallo, J. (2015). The reading strategies book: Your everything guide to developing skilled readers with 300 strategies. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

An Idea to Teach Speaking

Hippo Video

My current favorite tool for providing opportunities for our students to record themselves speaking is Flipgrid.  Flipgrid is a simple tool used by several teachers across the district.  There is an excellent tutorial on Canvas on how to use Flipgrid if you are interested in learning more.

Another tool for teaching speaking is the website and Chrome Extension Hippo Video.  There are several uses for Hippo Video from flipped lessons to screen recordings and sharing.  What the video below created by my friend Katy for a brief review of Hippo Video and follow this link to create a free account.

An Idea to Teach Writing

Old Fashioned Word Banks

For our students still developing their writing proficiencies, I cannot emphasize enough how helpful they find an old-fashioned word bank. Whether you expect your students to write one-word answers, brief phrases, complete sentences, or multiple paragraphs, the word bank provides a scaffold to support ELs and other struggling writers.

The immediate benefit of offering a word bank is that having the words on hand reduces the anxiety they harbor regarding their ability to write academic text. The long-term benefit is that by having repeated exposure to the printed term, they make stronger connections to the term when used orally and begin to use the term independently.

Word banks can be created by you, developed by the individual student, or even created collaboratively as a class. Word banks don't take a lot of time to develop but will pay out heftily in terms of providing students an opportunity to create more robust academic writing. Here is an article about working with students to create a class word bank. If you want your students to use more academic vocabulary in their writing, an easy way to achieve that is by offering word banks.

Care to Collaborate?

Are you interesting in collaborating to integrate more language development strategies into your instruction? Post a comment below.

Thank you to my friend Katy Booher for sharing her videos and ideas.

Edpuzzle

I love Edpuzzle and have presented on it at a couple of conferences.  This tool is great for getting students engaged in learning and can be used for every grade level.  For example, a high school science teacher was struggling with how to accommodate a lesson for his ELLs without losing rigor.  I helped him create a lesson an Edpuzzle which took the video he selected for all students to watch and added in stops for clarification, definition, and questions.  The students were able to listen, rewind, listen again... move at their own pace to complete the activity with understanding.

I have also used Edpuzzle in elementary school to help pace a lesson using a video.  With Edpuzzle I can plug in questions, define or clarify, and add think-alouds to selected spots as we watch the video together.  If a student was absent, they could easily watch the video on their own and have the same information that everyone else did when they return or while still at home.

Here is an example lesson I helped prepare that uses Edpuzzle (last page).

The following is an advertisement from Edpuzzle and a link to where you can sign up for your own free account.

Class Tag

Here is a tool for keeping in contact with parents.  It translates!

Reach every parent with ClassTag

Have you heard of ClassTag? I’m a big fan of this parent communication tool. I even spent time with them at their booth at ISTE a few years ago. ClassTag is a popular family communication tool with lots of special features for teachers and families.

ClassTag is totally free and includes direct messaging using both email and text messages to communicate. Teachers can set up class-wide announcements as well. So you can send a notification to everyone or a special message to just one or a few families. There is the option to share videos and photos too making it perfect for every day sharing or sharing after a field trip or assembly. Teachers can also use ClassTag for meeting signups during parent-teacher conferences.

Parent Features

ClassTag adapts to parent preferences. When you send a message, directly to a parent or to the class, they automatically receive it in the way they choose. For example, there is an automatic translation into over fifty languages. So if a parent signs up with your unique code, they will receive messages from you in their native language. Parents can also decide if they want to receive messages from teachers via email or text. ClassTag is available on any device, so families can read messages and receive updates from their go-to device like a cell phone or laptop.

Teacher Features

In addition to these special features for families, there are lots of perks for teachers too. Teachers using ClassTag can see who is the loop. That’s because ClassTag lets you know who has read a message, and who hasn’t seen a message yet. This information can help you make sure families see all of the critical information you share. Teachers will also receive notifications when a family’s contact details are in need of an update. This way you can send notes home or make a phone call to families who may be hard to reach electronically.

Click here to sign up for a ClassTag account - it's free!

January tips for family engagement

To kick off 2019, a free ClassTag account can give you opportunities to take control of everything on your calendar. In addition to the features mentioned above, I want to spotlight a few activities you can create with ClassTag to try out this month!

1. Create Events: This year, keep your upcoming events organized through ClassTag. You can create an event in ClassTag that lets every family know about the next parent curriculum night, school play, or anything else on this month's schedule.

2. Request Volunteers: Whether you're hosting a car wash or looking for parents to present on career day, ClassTag can help you manage volunteer requests. With a few clicks on your ClassTag teacher dashboard you can request volunteers for anything going on in your classroom this month.

3. Item Requests: If you have a list full of to do items and know that families in your class can help, you can create a "to do item" in ClassTag. This means you have the opportunity to ask for help from families and know who has committed to making sure things run smoothly in your classroom this month.

4. Conference Sign-Ups: Are parent-teacher conferences on your schedule this quarter? You can create a sign up schedule for families using the ClassTag platform.

In the image above, you can see how easy it is to click on the Activities tab and choose which activity you'd like to create for your class.

Another way to use ClassTag this year is for weekly summaries. At the beginning or end of each week - you choose the time - you can send out a weekly summary to families. This way you can keep everyone up-to-date and start 2019 off strong!

Click here to sign up for a ClassTag account - it's free!

Read & Write Webinar

Hello everyone!  I hope your year is off to a great start!  I have hit the ground running and not stopped yet. 😊

I shared in an earlier blog (April 2018) a great resource for working with students called Read&Write.  The resource has expanded and now provides services for Windows, Edge, and Mac.  They are offering a series of free webinars on product features and use that you should check out.

You can sign up for the webinars here.

Have a great year!  I will see you soon.

How I Teach Paragraph Writing to ELs

I have been using a book by Margaret Wise Brown for many years to teach paragraph writing to students. We begin by watching the video or reading the book.  Sometimes I will stop during the reading and ask the students what they think the author will say is important about the object.

After we hear the book, I ask students to pick something they think is important. We begin listing on chart paper some of the ways the object is important. I then introduce the sentence frame: The important thing about ________ is _____________. Google translate may be used to help create the sentence frame in Spanish or other languages if available.

I then use a tri-folded half-sheet of paper to create our own mini-book. On the first page, we write our important statement. On the following pages, we list additional things that are important about the object, one statement per page. On the last page, we add the word but. The word but is added to show that a paragraph begins and ends with the topic sentence.


This story would be read: The important thing about erasers is that they erase. They come in many colors. They are soft. They get warm when you use them. They leave little crumbs when they work. They come in many different shapes. But, the important thing about erasers is that they erase.

The students would then write their important book as a paragraph.  Later, we discuss how the concluding sentence may be written in a different way. We refer back to our important books as we write future paragraphs.