My students are elementary English as a Second Language students in a rural, public school in North Carolina. We are an A+ Arts school, so most of our lesson have a visual arts, dance, or music component. Most of my students speak Spanish at home, and all of them are eager to learn. They love to wiggle and move, and we rarely have a day when they're expected to sit still through an entire lesson. They love group work and collaborating with classmates to create something special. Usually, you'll find them spread out on the floor working or huddled around a group of chairs.
Like all children, my students love to work together with partners and friends, and they are very creative when given the chance to make something!
Writing assignments are so much more engaging when students have an arts component to support their understanding. We almost always have an art component integrated with the content of what we're learning. I let students take books home to supplement the books they get from their classrooms. Most of my students don't have access to quality literature at home, and many of their parents only read in Spanish.
My Project
Many of my students are very interested in science concepts. In their regular classrooms, they conduct experiments and inquire about how things work. In our ESL class, we often reinforce those same concepts by emphasizing academic vocabulary and learning more about special areas of interest.
I have a very popular collection of take-home books that my students are able to read on the bus, at home, and in class.
Some students read and check out a new book every single day! Graphic novels are their absolute favorite, but most of the graphic novels I have are fiction. They need more exposure to nonfiction material because those concepts are often more difficult to master for ELs because of the specific vocabulary used. Graphic novels make it easier to grasp new vocabulary by using pictures with text. Even though some of these texts have fictional characters and plots, they use academic vocabulary and examine true scientific concepts.
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