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When I received the keys to my classroom, the first thing I did was write “Bienvenue!” in huge letters across my board.
"So unfortunately, once my students arrived, their first days didn’t go as I had hoped and expected. French class didn’t seem to mean as much to my students as it had meant to me. Many of my students were very reluctant to speak the language, and they were even more unwilling to write. Vocabulary was regurgitated but then quickly forgotten.
We moved through the routine of unit-by-unit learning seen in many foreign language classrooms, such as learning about food and culture, and — of course — buying tickets at the train station for a journey they would never take.
But actual French language development? Forget it.
What was I doing wrong?"
What are the 7 Steps?
What are the 7 Steps?
The core function of the 7 Steps is to build a communicative classroom environment where students are not only motivated to participate but have access points to use the target language (English, French, Spanish, German, etc.) in a way that is comprehensible to them and scaffolded for their various language levels. Visuals and vocabulary are tools for building comprehension, and easy-to-implement structures are in place for moving through the modes of communication.
The 7 Steps provide a framework for teachers of multilingual learners to access some of the best theoretical knowledge in second language acquisition with practical applicability to the foreign language classroom. They are learning and teaching strategies for all modes of communication and for all levels of language acquisition.
The 7 Steps aren’t so much a methodology but norms that increase the comprehensible input that students are receiving while providing low-stress opportunities for output.
How did this book develop?
How did this book develop?
Originally developed by John Seidlitz and Bill Perryman to meet the needs of English learners, Anna received training on the 7 Steps after leaving the classroom as a French teacher to complete her Masters in Foreign Language Education. She then stepped into the role of language instructional coach and Bilingual/ESL specialist for school districts in central Texas.
Anna has been training teachers on the 7 Steps since 2013, and then worked with John to re-write the book in 2018 to tailor the content to the specific world language teaching communication standards and pedagogical needs of foreign language teachers.
After meeting at TFLA 2018, Sally joined the Seidlitz Education team while still teaching Spanish in the classroom and began co-writing the second edition of 7 Steps World Language in 2023.
The new book was published in 2024 with all-new strategies, updated research, and entire sections dedicated to proficiency, modes of communication, lesson planning, and more!
How do I order the book?
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