In 99 Ideas and Activities for Teaching English Learners with the SIOP Model, MaryEllen Vogt and Jana Echevarria offer research-based and verified techniques for putting together SIOP lessons. These ideas and activities are aimed at promoting differentiated instruction in the classroom and include new approaches to lesson planning and activities as well as numerous familiar, time-tested ideas that simply serve to remind teachers of the tools and methodologies they have at their disposal. While all of the ideas they present are useful for any classroom teacher, not just those who work with ELL students, and can be adopted or not based on students’ needs and teaching style, there is a key component that is essential for success no matter what:
…show more content…
Clearly defined and communicated objectives are essential to “provide a roadmap for both students and teachers” (p. 8). By knowing what you want students to achieve in the end, you are able to construct a lesson that supports student learning and create assessments that accurately gauge knowledge gained. For students, knowing what they are supposed to learn gives them the opportunity to focus on essential information and allows them to take some responsibility over their …show more content…
It would not make sense to try and teach scientific notation to a group of first graders or to go through the alphabet with a freshman English class. As teachers, we must adhere to grade-level content standards, but we also need to be aware that ELL students may have learning needs. This could be new vocabulary or, as can be the case with immigrants, missing content knowledge necessary to understand the information or gain the skills you are presenting. Acknowledging this allows us to be aware of areas in the lesson where the potential for confusion exists. In my lesson, I employed the third feature by basing it on a core content standard for all 8th grade students and making a conscious effort to incorporate numerous activities to gain, practice and clarify understanding of the concepts. I also started the lesson with something all students are familiar with: gravity. By setting the beginning point at a simple, well-known force that we experience on a daily basis, students are able to stretch into unknown information with confidence.
Overcoming these obstacles can be difficult, but some useful features are addressed in the final three aspects of preparation: supplementary materials, adaptation of content and meaningful activities. By drawing attention to these essential instruction strategies during the planning phase,
Clearly defined and communicated objectives are essential to “provide a roadmap for both students and teachers” (p. 8). By knowing what you want students to achieve in the end, you are able to construct a lesson that supports student learning and create assessments that accurately gauge knowledge gained. For students, knowing what they are supposed to learn gives them the opportunity to focus on essential information and allows them to take some responsibility over their …show more content…
It would not make sense to try and teach scientific notation to a group of first graders or to go through the alphabet with a freshman English class. As teachers, we must adhere to grade-level content standards, but we also need to be aware that ELL students may have learning needs. This could be new vocabulary or, as can be the case with immigrants, missing content knowledge necessary to understand the information or gain the skills you are presenting. Acknowledging this allows us to be aware of areas in the lesson where the potential for confusion exists. In my lesson, I employed the third feature by basing it on a core content standard for all 8th grade students and making a conscious effort to incorporate numerous activities to gain, practice and clarify understanding of the concepts. I also started the lesson with something all students are familiar with: gravity. By setting the beginning point at a simple, well-known force that we experience on a daily basis, students are able to stretch into unknown information with confidence.
Overcoming these obstacles can be difficult, but some useful features are addressed in the final three aspects of preparation: supplementary materials, adaptation of content and meaningful activities. By drawing attention to these essential instruction strategies during the planning phase,