I work with ELL students in grades 9-12. My students are mostly immigrants and refugees. We have students from all over the world. I have students from Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, El Salvador, Mexico, Guatemala, Micronesia, Marshall Islands to name a few. Our refugee students come mainly from Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Many of our students have interrupted schooling and have years of educational gaps due to conditions making school inaccessible.
I have students reading at many different levels. Some are reading at a 1st-grade level, while others are almost on grade-level!
My students are amazing, strong people who are eager to learn English. They are happy to come to school. Every day there are students who have educational breakthroughs or "a-ha" moments!
My Project
This text, "A Long Walk to Water," is written at a lower reading level than other books that address difficult topics intended for high school audiences. I have chosen this book because it is appropriate for high school students in their second year of English study. My high school students will be challenged by this book at the reading level, and the difficult topics it addresses. Many materials written for older ELL students are not age-appropriate.
Many authors of lower reading materials don't take into account the fact that while high school ELL students are not yet proficient in English, they are still intellectually capable of discussing complex real-world issues.
This book covers serious topics that my students can relate to, such as political unrest, access to safe drinking water, and limited access to education. Students will be reading and writing in response to this powerful text.
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