1. Lesson Preparation

Feature #2: Language objectives are clearly defined, displayed, and reviewed with students.

• Identify what students need to know about English in order to learn, express, and apply new information, demonstrate knowledge, or perform academic tasks using English language proficiency standards

• Write clearly and simple with active verbs in student friendly language

• Limit the number of language objectives to 1 or 2 per lesson

• Review objectives with students both orally and in writing at the beginning middle, and end of each lesson.

• Use the following verbs for language objectives: listen for, retell, define, find the main idea, compare, summarize, rehearse, persuade, write, draft, defend a position on, describe

Example: Students will be able to define orally the difference between prime and composite numbers. Students will be able to write a number sentence that supports if a number is prime or composite.

Feature #3: Content concepts are appropriate for the age and educational background level of students.

SIOP teachers must carefully consider the content concepts they wish to teacher, and use district curriculum guidelines and grade-level content standards as guides. In SIOP classrooms, this entails ensuring that although materials may be adapted to meet the needs of English learners, the content is not diminished. The following considerations are important to keep in mind:

• In general, it is inappropriate to use the curriculum materials and books from much earlier grades. Students in high school who are developing literacy for the first time should not be reading about "doggies and birdies," for example, but might use a middle school textbook. Students deserve books with age-appropriate illustrations, as well. Teachers should provide scaffolding to help ELs understand complex texts.

• In some cases, students with major gaps in their educational backgrounds may be placed in newcomer programs that pull content concepts from earlier grades in order to provide foundational knowledge and catch students up to their classmates.

• We should be mindful of concepts our English learners may have already learned through their life experiences and prior schooling.

• To help students make connections to the content topics, reflect on the amount of background knowledge needed to learn and apply the concepts, and plan ways to build or activate students' prior knowledge related to them.

• "Jump-start" student learning by reviewing key background concepts, introducing vocabulary, leading a picture or text "walk" through the reading material, engaging students in simulations or role-plays, or having students participate in hands-on experiential activities through mini-lessons.

Feature #4: Supplementary materials are used to a high degree, making the lesson clear and meaningful.

In teaching grade-level content to ELs, it is crucial to use supplementary materials. Mainstream students may be able to acquire content through more traditional paper-pencil methods, but these methods will not be substantial for ELs. Materials should be culturally responsive to student backgrounds. Supplementary materials may include:

• Hands-On Manipulatives (i.e. counting chips, base-10 blocks, microscopes, globes and maps, etc.)

• Realia (i.e. fake money, historical costumes, live insects, etc.)

• Pictures and Visuals (photographs, illustrations, maps, models, graphs, etc.)

• Multimedia and Technology (videos, podcasts, news articles, DVDs, etc.)

• Demonstrations that provide visual support and modeling

• Related Literature (books, articles, or magazines accompanied by audio versions)

• Hi-Lo Readers (adapted texts that give high interest at low readability levels)

• Chapter summaries that students can preview before or after learning about a topic

• Adapted texts that retain major concepts and content, while lowering the reading level demands

Feature #5: Adaptation of content to all levels of student proficiency.

Teachers are required to use textbooks that are too difficult for ELs to read. We discussed in Feature #3 the problem of "watering-down" text to the point where all students can read it; the content concepts are frequently lost when text is adapted in this way. However, we also know ELs cannot be expected to learn all content information by listening to lectures. Therefore, we must find ways to make the text and other resource materials accessible for all students, adapting them so that the content concepts are left intact.

Suggestions for adapting text to make it more accessible include:

• Summarizing texts to focus on key points of information

• Elaborating texts to include background information and explain important concepts

• Rewriting text into logical chunks of information or shorter, simpler sentences by...

  • deciding what students need to learn from the text.

  • focusing on concrete concepts first, then abstract.

  • reducing nonessential details.

• Relate new information to students' experiences

• Use visual representations such as maps, charts, timelines, and outlines

• Simplify vocabulary, but keep key concepts and technical terms

• Elaborate to explain concepts if necessary

• Check word choice and sentence order (e.g., for a question, begin with the question word; for an if-then statement, begin with the if clause).

Feature #6: Meaningful activities that integrate lesson concepts with language practice opportunities for reading, writing, listening, and/or speaking.

Lesson activities should be planned to promote language development in all skills while English learners are mastering content objectives. We want to provide oral and written language practice that is relevant to the lesson concepts. Authentic, meaningful experiences are important for ELs because they are learning to attach labels and terms to things already familiar to them. Their learning becomes situated rather than abstract when they are provided with the opportunity to actually experience what they are being taught. Remember:

• English learners are more successful when they are able to make connections to what they already know

• Activities assigned to English learners should be meaningful and connected to the content concepts

• Activities assigned to English learners should mirror what native speakers are doing, providing scaffolding