In today’s episode, we continue our coaching session from last week and discuss reading, writing, and phonics with ELs. For teaching literature, like Romeo and Juliet, it can be helpful to let students read in their native language first to let them access the content. You can also pre-teach vocabulary, or summarize chunks of the story and focus on key parts of the story, the balcony scene in Romeo and Juliet, for example.
We also discuss using novel studies to keep kids interested and engaged. I share a few of my favorite novels to teach this way. Remember that even when students are from the same country and speak the same language, their personal interests can be very different. You will never find a book that perfectly suits every students’ interest, but if even 50 percent of your class is engaged, you’ve won half the battle.
One of my favorite ways to keep kids engaged is through short stories and short films. I share some lesson resources I have for teaching literary elements with short stories and short films.
Next in the coaching session, we talk about writing. It can be tough to find good resources to teach writing to older EL students, so many teachers often end up finding resources from teacher pay teachers. I also recommend mini lessons in grammar and phonics lessons like consonant vowel consonant or silent e. There is also a phonics program from Saddleback that I use. It was too hard for beginners, but is great for level 2 and 3 students. Ultimately, the only way to improve writing is to write, so Incorporate writing into every unit in some form, even if it is journaling.
What you will hear about in today’s coaching session:
- Resources you can use to teach literary elements
- How to teach grammar and phonics to our ELs in a practical way
- Ways to incorporate writing in daily instruction
- How to give feedback in a meaningful and efficient way
Resources
As mentioned in the episode, I am linking some useful resources!
- ESL Teacher Support – 1:1 coaching session with Ieva Grauslys (©Simply Ieva)
- ESL Teaching Roadmap – membership community for middle and high school ESL/ELL teachers. As a thank you for listening, use code ESLPODCAST for 10% off when you join
- 25 Authentic Speaking Activities for Your ESL Classroom
- Simply Ieva ESL Teachers Pay Teachers Store
- Teachable Platform – Courses and Workshops
- Follow me on Instagram
- Join the Simply Ieva Facebook Group
- Simply Ieva Youtube Channel
You may also be interested in:
- Episode 51 – Teaching English Content: Here Are 3 Ideas How To Make It Accessible To ELs
- Episode 53: Coaching Session Part 1- How To Teach Research To ELs
- Romeo and Juliet Meets West Side Story
Books mentioned in this episode (affiliate links)
- A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi
- Love in English by Maria Andreu
