Engage

Throughout these modules, I'll be drawing in part on materials from the following resources. I have included links to the books below in the cover images should you want to add them to your professional libraries, which I would definitely encourage. 

For this first module, we're going to experiment with two elements that help us create a more welcoming environment for emergent multilinguals as well as learn about them and their linguistic repertoires. 

As we learn about our students and their translingual repertoires, we can also apply those communicative assets. Testimonio pedagogies  let students share their stories as a general autobiographical narrative or in relation to a specific theme in order to exert their voice as valid knowledge holders and creators, and to build understanding and solidarity with others. They are also a chance for students to expand their repertoires with more complex discourse patterns or figurative language about a topic they know well - themselves.  

Testimonios can be written, voiced as poetry or podcasts, or multimodal through digital stories. Your district may have partnerships with different platforms (e.g., WeVideo, Google, SoundTrap, etc.) that can host student Testimonios securely. Below are some examples of Testimonios in spoken word poetry and digital stories. 

After implementing some of these structures or practices in your classroom, REFLECT on your learning and share with colleagues.