Incorporating Blog Posts into Professional Development

A number of years ago I was in charge of a rather large ESL and bilingual program. I often struggled with ways to share effective practices, tips, and ideas with my teachers across our various buildings. They were busy people and I knew I couldn't add more to their plate. I am mentioning this to you because I was reminded of this dilemma recently. I was speaking with a group of educators, and one of them asked me some questions. Rather than bend her ear for several minutes, I referred her to some blog posts on that very topic. Soon a number of others asked for the links. They realized the potential of sharing these short blog posts with their colleagues. The conversation turned a bit and we found ourselves discussing the merits of regularly sharing relatively small amounts of text with our colleagues via blog posts, short articles, etc.

Resources and Reflections on Migrant Education Programs

 

 
"Our migrant children ...

they are our only hope ...
Like seedlings, they have been sown in your school.
It is our wish they blossom into harvests of hope."
-Author unknown

 
Source: Illinois Migrant Education Program brochure


This time of year most teachers are packing up their classrooms and beginning their summer vacations. But a number of educators around the country are unpacking boxes, setting up their summer programs, and welcoming new children into their classrooms right now. But these are no ordinary summer school programs. The teachers I am talking about are those working in migrant education programs. 

Each year thousands of children and their families move in order to work in the agricultural or fishing industries. Collectively, these families are considered migrant agricultural workers.  For many migrant children, their life experiences are impacted by substandard housing, poor nutrition, low wages and seasonal work. Repeatedly moving in order to find employment can impact students' academic achievement. Therefore, the goal of migrant education programs is to reduce the impact of these issues on the children's education. Illinois alone identified over 1,700 children through its Migrant Education Program during the 2011-2012 school year.

Using the ACCESS for ELLs Score Reports

Last week an administrator told me that he was surprised to learn that there were several different types of score reports available for the ACCESS for ELLs assessment.  He only knew about the data that was uploaded annually to his district’s online data management system.  Reflecting on that conversation led me to today’s post. 

Quick Summer Read on Young ELLs

If you are looking for a quick and easy summer read about young English language learners (ELLs), then you may want to take a look at this book.  Like many of you, summer is my chance to catch up on personal and professional reading.  Earlier this week, the book Basics of Supporting Dual Language Learners: An Introduction for Educators of Children from Birth through Age 8 found its way onto my desk.   It is written by Karen N. Nemeth and published by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).  

First let me briefly clarify that the term dual language learners (DLL) is used by some preschool and early childhood programs instead of ELL.  In fact, DLL is the official term used by NAEYC, the Office of Head Start and the Council for Exceptional Children Divison for Early Childhood.  In a nutshell, DLL is used to describe a young child who is growing up with exposure to, and simultaneously learning,

Our Top Six Posts So Far

 Readers,

Thank you for making this blog such a success!  Today, May 7, 2012 is our six month anniversary.  So far we have had over 8,900 people come to the blog and read a post.  In order to celebrate, let me share the top six blog posts:

What’s new with ACCESS for ELLS this year? - Over 1,100 pageviews

Transformations – Part 1 - Over 600 pageviews

Decisions, decisions…about tier placement - Over 400 pageviews

Me Washa la Mano - Over 400 pageviews

Tips for Reaching Out to Parents of ELLs  - Over 300 pageviews

I’ve got a question about ACCESS for ELLs… - Almost 300 pageviews



Written by: Tammy King

Image: Rawich / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

 

Tips for Reaching Out to Parents of ELLs

criminalatt / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Many of you are struggling with how to best reach out to the parents of your ELLs.  You pick the date, book a fabulous speaker, set up interpreters and send home flyers announcing the event.  But when the time rolls around for the meeting, it looks a lot like the photo above.  So what can you do differently?   Today I’ll share six tips that I have learned over the years. 

Native Language Resources for Parents

Image: Arvind Balaraman / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I was recently asked by a district administrator for resources to share with parents of English language learners.   In his email, he stated that some parents of ELLs in his district need reassurance that it is ok to use their native language with their children.   In very practical terms, it is critical that parents and children share a common language that they can use to discuss everyday occurrences and key family topics and issues.  Pedagogically, we know that children do better in school when they are immersed in a language-rich environment in the home.  During workshops I explain it like this: parents should