Hello! Thank you for visiting this blog! If you are here for videos, they can be found here.
Click the links in the MENU to find what you’re looking for. If you are here, you must have some interest in education…. your education, or that of others. Thank you for that.
Based on the last 12 months of working with newcomer teachers, here is a checklist to set ourselves up for success. These ideas will make all the difference for the students and for the teacher.
You can listen to the podcast right here or in your favorite podcast app. All the links are below.
✅ Have the right mindset. I share a few different mindsets that helped so much. When I was new to having so many newcomers and SLIFE, things did not go well initially. Most of that was because of how I was thinking about things. Self-talking and keeping a few things in mind made me so much more effective and the job became so much easier. For example, getting daily reminders about what a newcomer can do VS what it looks like they can do; reminding ourselves that each day it will get easier for them (patience), and also the effect of kindness. If a newcomer teacher is getting overwhelmed (like I was at first) take deep breaths and remember that you are playing the long game. The job exists to help these learners become confident and more fluent. We should be focusing on a culture of conversation. See other shows on how to get them talking, TOP TIP on that is QSSSA.
Find someone who can help you with those mindsets daily. Put things in your Environment
✅ Self Direct your own PD (3 minutes a day can do wonders!)
I covered many ideas for that:
I mentioned DIYpd, book but here is a link to free resources.
Join NAELPA,( the National Assn of EL Program Administrators) or just watch the webinars for free!
NAELPAs 3rd Qtr Webinar on Goal setting just happened (create a free connect space account to watch this webinar)
MLSummit.net (Thanks Dr. Katie Toppel and Tan K Huynh for putting this on with me every year)
Larry Ferlazzo’s Blog <—TOP TIP, He is a great filter
Seidlitz Newcomer Division: @DrCarolSalva @EliseWhiteDiaz @DrMarieHeath @dr_aquagirl
Podcasts I mention: Tan Huyhn’s and Highest Aspirations
VoicEd.ca <- VoicEd Radio
Elise White Diaz and Andrea Honigsfeld’s Free Live Webinar Sept 10th (you can watch after Sep 10)!
Facebook – Advocating for MLs & Leading ELLs
I did not start with these because many subscribers have seen them so much. But they are great reminders. Some of the most effective newcomer teachers I know rewatch that video before every school year. I mention each one in today’s podcast episode but the video is an hour and shows many examples of what these things look like:
✅ WATCH my 5 TOP TIPS for the First Days of School video
The Writing Process (credit to Abydos Learning International). I am having great discussions with amazing content teachers on how to include pre-literate SLIFE in grade level work (like writing). Kudos to these eduHeroes!
These content teachers have a desire to hold these students in high-regard (✅ ?)… they are understanding that the learners CAN do this work (✅ ?)… and they want to support them with high expectations for content WHILE they gain English and more literacy (✅ ?)
Thank you for your interest in this podcast. You are helping me learn so much!
Wishing you the best school year ever! Please take good care.
HUGS, Carol
PS: Please reach out if we can help you. We love working world-wide 🌎 with education communities to support newcomers and all the teachers who support them.
I h
ave a super important show for you today! Some of the things I mention are KEY to receiving higher numbers of newcomers throughout the year in a way that makes sense for the teacher and the students. This show also offers ideas for getting the most of our time with our newcomers. You can listen to the show in your favorite podcast app or right here:
Listen to “BAP122 Reflection for Newcomers and their Teachers” on Spreaker.
I’m covering the strong effect of Reflection and Evaluation. This show does a bit of a deep dive into how we can all take a moment to reflect and how we can help the students do the same. There is strong evidence that Reflection and Evaluation have a significant impact on learning. I quote researcher John Hattie for this. Learn more about his research here.
To make this happen, I had to be sure to use QSSSA for structured conversations. The routine is from John Seidlitz and Bill Perryman of Seidlitz Education. It is our TOP TIP as consultants. Find more resources on QSSSA here or get the book here:
USE W.I.T: This is how we can help students extend their conversations.
Want examples to show your older students how the class can look? Get them talking with Kagan Strategies and show them models from YouTube. Search YouTube for”Kagan Strategies Middle School” or “Kagan Strategies High School.”
I hope this show has been helpful for you. It has been a great opportunity for me to reflect… so I thank you for that! PLEASE, as always, reflect on the fact that YOU are amazing. If you are listening to an education podcast, it is evident that you care A LOT about students. That speaks volumes to me about what kind of an educator you are. I hold you in very high regard!
Also, please remember that I am part of the Seidlitz Education Newcomer Division. We would LOVE to work with you if that makes sense. Any one of us would be happy to schedule a call to talk about how you are serving newcomers in your school or district to see if we could be of service to you. You can reach me at CarolSalva1@gmail.com
Thanks again and take good care!
-Carol
In this episode, Khalil El-Saghir shares insight about supporting the educators of Multilingual Learners. His background is extensive! In the first half of this episode, we get to hear about where his passion comes from. The second half of the show ended up being a blueprint for an effective Language Assistance Program as he shares specific, essential elements every program should have.
You can listen to this show in your favorite podcast app or right here:
Listen to “BAP121 Keys to an Effective Language Assistance Program ft. Khalil El-Sagir” on Spreaker.
As promised in the show, here are links to some of the things we both mentioned:
Wayne RESA (A Regional Education Service Agency in Michigan)
NAELPA (The National Association of EL Program Administrators)
The SIOP Model (A proven instructional framework for making content comprehensible and developing academic language. The framework was developed by Dr. Jana Echevarría, Dr. MaryEllen Vogt, and Dr. Deborah Short)
Boosting Achievement: Reaching Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education (A book I co-authored with Anna Matis)
Khalil’s email: (He offers it if you have questions)
Here are some of my favorite Khalil quotes from this show:
“You can’t be a good teacher if you can’t be a good learner.”
“We need to break down the silos. We don’t want walls.”
“Building a viable program is a journey, not a destination.”
“We want to make every classroom an EL classroom. It is enriching to everyone.”
“I am a language learner… [looking back] as an adult, I wish I would have had those scaffolds”
Khalil is clear that this is by no means an exhaustive list, but these are definitely important principles for a solid foundation:
My big takeaways were that collaboration, continuous improvement, support networks, and ongoing learning are key components in creating a successful Language Assistance Program that supports both the academic success and language proficiency of students.
At the end of the show, I mentioned that the ML Summit is coming up this summer again! Stay tuned for more on that! But you can go to the summit right now. There are SEVEN YEARS of past sessions right there for you!
Thank you again for tuning in to this podcast. I’d love to hear your thoughts about it.
Or just reach out to me at Carol@SeidlitzEducation.com if you’d like to know more about how we work with districts to support their teachers who teach Multilingual Learners.
Take good care,
Carol
Rising number of Newcomers? Happened to me too. Mid-year/Winter break was a great time to hit the reset button. This was always the time of year that behavoir and sheer number of students coming in regularly made me do a hard stop to reset things. But what worked for me can be implemented any time of year. You can listen to the show on the podcast app of your choice or right here:
Listen to “BAP120 ESL Classroom Reboot” on Spreaker.
If you are not at a holiday break, a great time is after a long weekend, or even a regular weekend. Just come back to school ready to reset expectations, reinforce the reasons we do certain activities or maybe try new things. I thought you might like to see my top tips for getting a class back on track. Some of it is about behavior expectations but some of it is just GOOD newcomer classroom activities that keep everyone engaged. I did this same show back in 2019 but I’ve added some stuff here as well.
For example, recent data from the UNHCR shows a drastic increase in the number of forcibly displaced persons worldwide.
I also promised to share the free resources from the Boosting Achievement book. You can find it here. (note that it is called a ‘book study’ but you can do it without the book!)
Below is recycled from the 2019 show but it all holds true today.
Routines. Have them and spend time training your students on the routines. What should they do when they come in? Where do they turn in homework? What should they do if we finish their work early? Spend some time explicitly teaching routines and then stick by them.
s teachers choice in their PD. That strategy is critical for the ESL classroom. Just practice it a lot and get your students comfortable talking a out engaging topics so you can establish the routine. I also mentioned W.I.T. That structure is to question with more rigor. It is a great way to differentiate. You’ll find a WIT graphic on that padlet as well.
5. Teach Students What to Say Instead of “I Don’t Know” Explain to your students that it is totally OKAY not to know the answer to a question. But from now on, we won’t be saying “I don’t know” anymore. From this point forward, they can use one of these questions to be able to find more information. By teaching students what to say instead of I don’t know, you’re empowering all students to be successful and also giving kids a life skill they can use immediately in other areas of their lives. It is incredibly important for newcomers to have phrases like these so they are not stressed out when they start being ready to participate and be called on. They are also the type of questions /phrases that help as these students become the language brokers for their families (at the doctor’s office, at the grocery store, etc..)
https://x.com/DrCarolSalva/status/925171885008179203?s=20
Use Kahoot! A lot! Don’t just review with this awesome platform. You can do so much more! Here is a page with many ways to use the platform. ESL teachers can use some of the Kahoot Studio quizzes to pre-teach vocabulary for content teachers. You can let your students create Kahoot quizzes and more. Did you know that there is now a single-player app? Any of your Kahoot quizzes can be played by a student 3 questions at a time so they can review concepts on their own. If you’re the Newcomer teacher, you’ll love this video on Kahoot for Non-English Speakers:
You can even review those classroom norms by creating a Kahoot out of them!
Reinforce the Social Contract + speaking/reading/listening practice @GetKahoot. So many benefits 2 doing this! #ellchat #BoostingAchievement pic.twitter.com/DNNDssld11
— Carol Salva (@MsSalvac) September 15, 2017
The Boosting Achievement Classroom Management Reboot chat happened back in 2018 and here is a collection of input from so many people on what to do if behavior is getting out of hand mid year:
Something I ended the show with back in 2019 was a quote from Emily Francis. I had recently heard her say that tf your students FEEL valued and important they WILL be successful. I agree 100%. Their timeline may be different as they grow in bilingualism or gain literacy.
But eventually, if they don’t give up, and if they believe it’s possible, they will experience success. Thank you for supporting that.
Hey, Newcomer Teacher: YOU ARE DOING GREAT WORK!! You are amazing and you ARE making a difference. I know things get so stressful when your caseload increases. Please remember that we know how to serve them. Kindness, patience, and holding them in high regard has the biggest effect on their long-term success.
So get yourself a reboot too. Please take care of yourself.
{{HUGS}}
Carol
PS: Did you know that our Newcomer division is getting results when districts work with us to implement systemic change? Please email me at Carol@SeidlitzEducation.com if you’d like to know more.
Are you letting the perfect ruin the good?
Image credit: azquotes.com
You can listen to this show in your favorite podcast app or right here:
What does this quote mean to you? To me, it has meant that I was not producing this show for a while because I have not had time to make the show notes as extensive as I normally do.
How unfortunate that is when I get SO MUCH good from putting out any show. My learning is on overdrive every time I re-listen to a show to post it. So expect more shows. And expect them to be even MORE imperfect than ever before. But for me, they will be good enough. 🙂
In this show, I mention a great book by author and educational consultant (and my mentor), Nancy Motley.
Every educator should own Small Moves, Big Gains
Thanks for listening. You are really helping me in my journey.
I hope you have a takeaway that helps you in your journey!
All the best!
Carol
I have some really great, free education for us in this show! The wonderful Jessica Lander is here to share about her book (that I LOVE), Making Americans: Stories of Historic Struggles, New Ideas, and Inspiration in Immigrant Education. I’m thrilled to tell you that she shares so many ideas from the book in this interview.
You can find this show in your favorite podcast app or listen to it right here:
Listen to “BAP118 Making Americans ft J Lander” on Spreaker.
Jessica is not only the author of this great book, she currently teaches history and civics to recent immigrant students in an urban Massachusetts public high school. Read about the many awards she has won and more about her impressive background right here.
I was honored when Jessica called me a few years ago to get ideas for her research. I was even more excited to see my suggestions appear in her book! In this show, we talk about this and several other innovative ideas that are happening right now. She shares several!
In the show, Jessica explains that school communities must work to nurture a sense of belonging for immigrant-origin students. I couldn’t agree more! So then the eight chapters of the book are organized by the eight essential principles she details on the show. Here is a peek at the chapters so you can see what she is talking about:
Making Americans: Stories of Historic Struggles, New Ideas, and Inspiration in Immigrant Education
Introduction, Part 1 & 2 from the Table of Contents:
I loved listening to her share about the past, the present, and the personal examples from the book. She has really captured what we need to focus on from those three angles.
I also mentioned Dr. Marie Moreno who was mentioned in the book and was the principal of a newcomer center here in Houston, Texas. I am super excited that I suggested Jessica connect with Dr. Moreno when she was doing her research on folks doing interesting, innovative work for recent immigrants.
In case it is helpful, here is a link to my dissertation that I talked about briefly.
And I often talk about Dr. Ilene Winokur when I talk about belonging. She is a great person to follow as well!
Jessica suggests that we find more ways to connect and share. She has given us seven schools/examples, that are so important to know about, but she tells us to go beyond reading this book. The more connected we are, the more we will learn. And the more we can share.
She poses the question: How do we create more communities of practice so we can collaborate? She tells us that this is the work of now.
So please connect with her and with me. We are both passionate about learning and sharing with our online networks. That is at least a start!
Jessica encourages us to support local bookstores. It is also available at bigger book stores and you can click here to see that Amazon has the hard copy and audio versions available. I am listening to it AGAIN because it is just a fantastic education for me and it is such a lovely read. I really appreciate her writing and storytelling.
You can also find the book and more at Jessica’s website: JessicaLander.com
.
You can follow her on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/jessica_lander
and she also mentioned Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/jessicalander9
I appreciate Jessica and this book so much. Big thanks to her again for all the work and everything she puts into the world.
How we can connect:
At the end of the show, I mention how you can register for the ML Summit if you are reading this real-time (Summer 2023). That info is below. HOWEVER, if you see this after July 15, 2023… the sessions should be streaming at the website for free so still go & check it out: www.MLSummit.net
Larry Ferlazzo and I are excited to be Masters of Ceremonies. We are all excited to learn together. Just check out the lineup!
Hope to see you in the Zoom or on Twitter using the #MLSummit hashtag! You can find me here:
THANK YOU again for being a passionate EduHero. I appreciate you so much!
Hugs,
Carol
Want to support grade-level content learning for newcomers? I’ve got you! The school year may be winding down or over in many places but this is a great time to reflect on how you might use co-created text next year with your emergent bilingual students. Or use it as part of an effective summer school routine.
This show follows Episode 115, where I explained how to use co-created text to teach literacy and accelerate language acquisition. In that show, I promised to do a show about how to use it to support content area learning. You can listen to this show in your favorite podcast app or right here:
Listen to “BAP117 CoCreating Text for Grade-Level Content Learning” on Spreaker.
I often share about a practice called Language Experience Approach. I try to be clear that I don’t do it exactly as it was/is intended. I am not an LEA purist because I adapt this technique based on the kids in front of me and the reason we are doing it. But here is more on what LEA is:
Steps to Language Experience Approach (See photo for more detailed explanation)
The LEA [Language Experience Approach] is as diverse in practice as its practitioners. Nonetheless, some characteristics remain consistent (Hall, 1970): Materials are learner-generated. –All communication skills–reading, writing, listening, and speaking–are integrated. –Difficulty of vocabulary and grammar are determined by the learner’s own language use. –Learning and teaching are personalized, communicative, and creative. – Can be found at https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED350887.pdf
I have written about this strategy in Ep 26 and Ep 115. Again, I don’t carry out this technique exactly as it is explained by researchers and there are many folks who know more about it than I do. But I DO know that some form of co-creating text *AFTER MY STUDENTS HAVE BEEN ENGAGED IN A CONVERSATION* has really helped accelerate language acquisition.
I am here today to tell you that it can also help you differentiate, it can help you be inclusive in content classrooms, and it can help all the students with grade-level learning.
I mention all the reasons we want writing in content areas for the average learner. You can read about that at this post I wrote for Seidlitz Education’s blog:
Some of the research I mention on the show is from John Hattie’s Visible Learning work. Writing can help us reflect and Hattie’s work suggests that Reflection and Evaluation have a strong effect on learning (.75 effect size).
I always mention Joseph Maurer when I talk about effective content teaching. Joseph was a math teacher when I trained with him and he was also my own son’s Algebra teacher. We all marveled at what a skilled math teacher he was with newcomer and low socioeconomic students. But he was also effective with gifted and grade-level learners. In his trainings, Joseph explained that writing in Math (or any content area) is important for learners because it is basic to thinking, it promotes introspection and speculation, and it individualizes instruction (Fulwiler 1979, 1983).
I mention this math lesson where the teacher is using Seidlitz’s Seven Steps to a Language Rich, Interactive Classroom. It shows what I mean by writing in Math being effective for thinking:
I also quote Tom Romano from his book Clearing the Way: Working with Teenage Writers. He explains that we are not asking Math teachers to teach writing. We are asking them to USE writing to teach Math. That is key for effective math instruction.
This show offers ideas about co-creating text with students prior to teaching, during a lesson or after instruction. Here are a few examples of what co-created content writing can look like:
Don’t forget to follow the incredible HS educators, Kim Thyberg (@KimberlyThyberg) for more secondary examples!
Co-created text in a high school SIOP math class with #mll #ell #newcomers #slife. I co-teach with an awesome math teacher! Students acquire language as they learn math content. @DrCarolSalva #BoostingAchievement pic.twitter.com/w832yX01rb
— Kim Thyberg (@KimberlyThyberg) February 14, 2023
We write and read about math content with content vocabulary everyday in our math class, grades 9-11 #mll #ell #slife . These examples are from our daily warm-up. #BoostingAchievement @DrCarolSalva pic.twitter.com/31qlSHGFJD
— Kim Thyberg (@KimberlyThyberg) May 1, 2023
I also mentioned the amazing Aly Averitt (@AlyAveritt) as someone to follow. She is a great Elementary teacher sharing a lot on co-creating text.
Another way of using co-created texts powerfully and purposefully. Ss were amazed when they realized that they just needed to change some words to create a new text! Tomorrow, they’ll finish this one👇🏽and then, write their own text in their notebooks! Inspired by @DrCarolSalva pic.twitter.com/ZbFbYwFpxN
— A Averitt_ESL (@AlyAveritt) March 13, 2023
Here is the video of Ali I mentioned as a great activity we do at the end of each school year.
Here is how Gisele Belyea (@GiseleBelyea follow her too!) and her students improved on this idea using heritage language:
Also gave Alan November a shout out! He wrote, “Who Owns the Learning.” That is a great book that shaped how I partner with students.
Thank you for tuning in or for checking out the show notes on Ep 117. I appreciate you so much!
Hope to see you over on Twitter (@DrCarolSalva) or Facebook (www.facebook.com/SalvaBlog). I’d love to be connected!
Take good care,
Carol
PS: If you missed this workshop, check out Upcoming Events to see what else we might be offering through Seidlitz Education.
And please email me (Carol@SeidlitzEducation.com) if we can come to your district to help you develop a plan for serving Newcomers! One day of consulting is making a huge difference for our clients! Reach out if you’d like to hear!
"Preparing for Rising #Newcomer Enrollment" in @VancouverSD was a joy with Lucy Estrada-Guzman & the ML Dept! We started with a full day of planning. 💥
I am inspired by their passion to honor their #MLLs & support their teachers. ✨💫⭐️#BoostingAchievement #Seidlitz7Steps pic.twitter.com/OwyCNjud5k— Dr. Carol Salva (@DrCarolSalva) May 26, 2023
Listen to “Ep 116 The Student Motivation Handbook ft Larry Ferlazzo” on Spreaker.
Welcome Back! This episode is full of ideas for what we can do to support language acquisition through the re-purposing of co-created text.
You can listen to this episode right here or in your favorite podcast app:
Listen to “BAP115 Five Ideas to Go Beyond Language Experience Approach” on Spreaker.
Re-using the text we created in class was foundational to accelerating language acquisition in my Newcomer classroom. We saw our biggest gains when our routines supported a culture of conversation and students were willingly reading, discussing, and writing without my prompting. Here are five ideas for how to re-use text you have created with your students.
After a while, the Newcomer class could look like this:
If you want more specifics on HOW to create text with your newcomers, please refer to episode 114 or go back and revisit episode 26. I offer a great deal of information on the Language Experience Approach to co-creating text and how I adapted it for my class of older newcomers. Here is a snap of p. 83 of the Boostin Achievement of SLIFE book to refresh your memory on how Anna Matis and I recommend doing this:
In the show go over just five ideas (of MANY) that are being done for newcomers in language-rich, interactive newcomer classrooms. I talk about each one in depth:
Remember, so much is possible because we are creating a culture of conversation. For that, I recommend:
I hope this episode was helpful. Please comment or tag me on Twitter (@DrCarolSalva) or Facebook (@SalvaBlog) with more ideas! There are so many. I know that I and other teachers would benefit from all the sharing.
How can foundational literacy skills be taught to older Emergent Bilingual students? This show is in direct response to educators and education leaders asking about phonics instruction (based on what we are hearing from the Science of Reading) and how that makes sense for our Multilingual Learners. I have lots of resources and practical ideas for you!
You can listen right here or in your favorite podcast app:
Listen to “BAP114 Literacy for Older Newcomers, What is Practical and Effective” on Spreaker.
I completely agree that every child needs to learn essential elements of reading. But I would also offer you that our Multilingual Learners need more. And please know that I was making all of this harder than it needed to be. This show will outline what I did why I did it, why the students were learning so quickly, and where the research is that supports all of this.
Here are the links I mentioned in the show:
Much of what I talked about was from the Boosting Achievement book I wrote with Anna Matis.
I promised the link to my blogpost on using writing in content classes:
From that webinar, I mentioned Dr. Denise Furlong, Emily Francis, Margarita Cruz and Elise Diaz. I recommend following all of them!
Here is the video recording Here are the slides with the Links
I also discussed what I use to guide my literacy instruction. This is a visual of what I was explaining in the show:
Below is an example of a recent co-created text I did with a class full of middle school newcomers. I explained this one in the show. I am also sharing some video clips of my high school students using co-created text in different ways. (of NOTE: I did not have my own classroom in these videos. My class was conducted in other teachers’ rooms during their planning periods.)
Newcomers (all students) *NEED* to talk before we begin writing together. I promised resources for helping newcomers speak if you need that. Episode 108 has a TON of resources on QSSSA. That is our top tip for structured conversations and it works great for newcomers:
Stuck on what to write about? You may want this post by Larry Ferlazzo which has great videos for using with Newcomers. Larry has SO MANY resources. ProTIP: Subscribe to his blog!
I use assessments like the ones below to get a quick formative assessment on what a child can read. I just highlight what they can decode and file it away. I pull out a clean copy every few weeks to see if we have more sounds, words, etc. I am looking to show them growth. Dyslexia Logic has many free printables.
Honetly, I pick ONE that is a challenge for a student and track that one but the other forms at this website can help guide what you show the student or your class:
For me, the key was to use text they cared about to teach foundations. So these are assessments to show them growth. But my lessons done with co-created text, shared reading or text we have made comprehensible for context.
I mentioned a super-powerful idea which is teaching phonetics from print in the learner’s environment. Here is an example of an environmental alphabet made by Amanda McLaughlin in Omaha Public Schools.
And here is that FANTASTIC MLSummit (previously VirtuEL) session by Dr. Harvey Oaxaca.
I also mentioned that I did a show a while back with Jordan Mayer. He has great insight for teaching foundational skills. I learned a lot from him in that episode.
I hope this has been helpful.
Please connect with me on Twitter or Facebook. I’d love to hear from you.
Check out my Rapid Literacy padlet. It links to other padlets with many literacy resources. Look for a video of a newcomer doing a “personal playlist” project. (Thanks to Noa Daniel for all her wisdom in HOW we do projects!)
THANKS and HUGS!!
Carol
Did you know that I am part of an amazing team of Newcomer specialists? I am! We would love to talk to you about supporting your district’s needs so that you can support your Multilingual Learners and SLIFE in practial, powerful ways. Just email me at Carol@SeidlitzEducation.com to learn more.
