I have 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.

Reflection and Evaluation  – This show covers:

1. Research and Resources about Reflection
2. The Newcomer Students
3. US!  Educators who Teach Newcomers
4. The Content Area Teacher

1) Research and Links for Resources on Reflection and Evaluation

• DIYpd for Educators of MLs is a teacher resource I wrote with Dr. Katie Toppel and Tan Huynh.  The book and the training are powerful resources for helping teachers of language learners to personalize their learning.  Reflection is a big part of it.  Reach out if you have questions about the training!

• John Hattie’s Research  on What is Effective (I mention his findings on: Reflection and Evaluation; Teacher Clarity; and Clear Goals)
• Comprehensible Input + Low-Stress Output = Language Development
• Researcher Stephen Krashen’s Theory on Comprehensible Input is HERE
• For practical ways to show students their growth  Episode 114: Literacy Instruction for What is Effective and Practical
• Larry Ferlazzo‘s work on Intrinsic Motivation.  He has SO much published on this topic!  His new book, The Student Motivation Handbook, is here and I interviewed him here.  You can find more on the topic here and more on his blog
• Daniel Pink’s Book:  Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates us

2) Reflection activities for the Newcomer Students:

• At the end of the school year, Newcomers record messages of encouragement for the following year’s newcomers.  Example video here:

• Throughout the Year, your Newcomers can make videos on the classroom routines.  Things like the Social Contract would be great to have videos about.  Social Contract Episode
• Use Co-constructed Text *about* how we learn so that students can re-read longer text with messages that remind them of what they can be doing to accelerate their language acquisition.
• Newcomers should be reflecting on their progress daily.
• Newcomers should be reflecting on how this all becomes easier every day and that they are becoming BILINGUAL.

Newcomer Teachers, Ideas for OUR OWN Reflection:

• Are they making progress?  Likely yes.  First and foremost, pat yourself on the back.🙌  Do the students understand more than they did on their first day? They ARE making progress in your care.  🎉
• Are you focusing on Kindess, Patience and holding students in high regard?  My doctoral research on SLIFE suggests that these are THE MOST important things we can do to support persistence in school with students who have missed education.
• To improve, I always wanted to reflect on: How much are the students speaking in our ESL Time?  The ESL time exists for FLUENCY.  They should be speaking more than I am.
• Reflection Video to help teachers see what Newcomers (at all different levels) can own their learning.  Some are SLIFE, others are highly educated.  But all are using English and re-reading the English text we have created together. They are talking, talking, talking and using the walls  different ways:

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.”

Content Teachers, Reflection for Their Students:

• As stated earlier, ALL students benefit greatly from reflection and evaluation.  Ideas for content teachers include things like can a 90 second quick write, a Turn & Talk (with QSSSA) or an Exit Ticket as ways to support students’ reflection.
• This blog post offers research and ideas for USING writing in content classrooms

• In the show I describe how ONE SENTENCE STARTER in the content classroom can be powerful to pair with an Exit Ticket.  And there are powerful added benefits of sharing that with the students at the beginning of class.  Now you’ve framed the lesson with clear goals and set everyone up for a strong opportunity for a quick reflection on their learning.

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