Though MRNUSSBAUM has many rich features to it, I would like to focus on the academic games first. Often times, ELLs spend countless hours trying to hold on to all the content data teachers delivered throughout the year, but sometimes fall a bit shy of retaining most of it when they are under pressure in taking tests.
Here students are offered a wide range of content based online activities to build self-confidence and thereby demonstrate their competence to their teachers (and to themselves). Since the activities here resemble video game formats, students jump at the chance to WIN. How does one win? By getting the highest number of correct answers possible, students need to avail themselves of all the skills they were taught during the year by their teachers. It is also amazing to see them coach each other navigate the more challenging questions. My favorite was TORTURE THE TEACHER. Here spelling is the focus. In selecting incorrect answers, students can force the teacher to resign. Academically, students are reviewing spelling rules, but having fun doing so.
The video section is also quite impressive. Take the one on TRAVEL (for GEOGRAPHY). What could be more exciting than actually seeing stunning shots of Yosemite, or checking out a woman's trip around the world, and much more? Breathe life into any curriculum with such video clips. For ELLs, it provides vital context and that context makes content accessible.
Think of this as one more tool to add to your library of student supports:)
Denise
ELL TEACHER PROS
Showing posts with label reading comprehension. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reading comprehension. Show all posts
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Common Core Standards--English Language Arts and USE OF PRIMARY SOURCES
With the new common core standards being rolled out for English, teachers at the high school level will need to spend 70% of instructional time on informational text/non-fiction materials. This is long overdue since universities have been urging schools to spend more time better preparing students for college. In fact, most incoming freshmen must take remedial writing classes in their first year to prepare them for university work.
What will be quite different for students will be working with primary sources on a regular basis. Many students are foggy on what they are, but this site explains what they are on a student level and then provides examples of primary sources throughout the site. To offer an overview of the key forms primary sources, go to OVERVIEW. Each form is explained in detail and then students take on "detective" roles to search for evidence to use for solving "problems." Isn't that what is asked of students in many universities--to THINK, ANALYZE, SYNTHESIZE, PERSUADE, etc.? Notice that PERSONAL NARRATIVE is no where to be found and yet this writing style is still heavily used in all grades.
In the SPEED ROUND, students have to use their knowledge of all forms of primary sources addressed throughout the site to answer questions against a timer. If you have struggling learners mixed in your mainstream classes, you could do a numbered heads together (cooperative learning in mixed ability groups) and then do a team competition. It would be a WIN-WIN opportunity for all (and a bit of fun in the process).
PRIMARY SOURCES --- Here is the link to the entire site. Bookmark it to hold for the unveiling of common core standards:)
Denise
ELL TEACHER PROS
PS If you would like a detailed view of the common core ELA standards and how they will be implemented in school, you should subscribe to ELL TEACHER PROS to receive our monthly newsletter. I will be providing both overall description of the process as well as providing videos and sample unit lessons in our JUNE NEWSLETTER to be released on May 31st.
What will be quite different for students will be working with primary sources on a regular basis. Many students are foggy on what they are, but this site explains what they are on a student level and then provides examples of primary sources throughout the site. To offer an overview of the key forms primary sources, go to OVERVIEW. Each form is explained in detail and then students take on "detective" roles to search for evidence to use for solving "problems." Isn't that what is asked of students in many universities--to THINK, ANALYZE, SYNTHESIZE, PERSUADE, etc.? Notice that PERSONAL NARRATIVE is no where to be found and yet this writing style is still heavily used in all grades.
In the SPEED ROUND, students have to use their knowledge of all forms of primary sources addressed throughout the site to answer questions against a timer. If you have struggling learners mixed in your mainstream classes, you could do a numbered heads together (cooperative learning in mixed ability groups) and then do a team competition. It would be a WIN-WIN opportunity for all (and a bit of fun in the process).
PRIMARY SOURCES --- Here is the link to the entire site. Bookmark it to hold for the unveiling of common core standards:)
Denise
ELL TEACHER PROS
PS If you would like a detailed view of the common core ELA standards and how they will be implemented in school, you should subscribe to ELL TEACHER PROS to receive our monthly newsletter. I will be providing both overall description of the process as well as providing videos and sample unit lessons in our JUNE NEWSLETTER to be released on May 31st.
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
A Look at Ancient Egypt Via The British Museum:)
With Howard Carter's 138th birthday in the news, why not take a look at the wonders of ancient Egypt? Carter's discovery of King Tut's tomb was a major event of the 20th century. It opened a window to the past of how the ancient Egyptians lived. Thanks to the British Museum, students can actually explore many facets of life then through this site.
Some of the topics addressed are geography, writing, gods and goddesses, mummification, daily life, and much, much more. Each topic covered appears as a hieroglyph. Click on one and you will be transported to a new link with photos and easy to read details on the item you selected. I went to the one on writing and found a picture of the Rosetta Stone along with details on the writing system. I then dug a bit deeper and found a story on the routine of scribes. Students of all ages would be fascinated here since it covers a highly respected "job" at the time. Next, I explored the section on where writing was used. Apparently, if you could write, you were in high demand in the society! Last, but not least, is a challenge on completing a message using the ancient writing system. This type of activity would be a fun approach to see how much your students understood from your lesson and the site.
ANCIENT EGYPT
HOWARD CARTER'S DISCOVERY OF KING TUT'S TOMB
This site is a mixture of real silent film footage and event re-enactments. It provides a very well-rounded view of the event.
KING TUT'S TOMB TOUR
What did the tomb look like? This is a virtual tour. Here you will find pictures of artifacts along with short descriptions of the tomb's contents.
Denise
ELL TEACHER PROS
Some of the topics addressed are geography, writing, gods and goddesses, mummification, daily life, and much, much more. Each topic covered appears as a hieroglyph. Click on one and you will be transported to a new link with photos and easy to read details on the item you selected. I went to the one on writing and found a picture of the Rosetta Stone along with details on the writing system. I then dug a bit deeper and found a story on the routine of scribes. Students of all ages would be fascinated here since it covers a highly respected "job" at the time. Next, I explored the section on where writing was used. Apparently, if you could write, you were in high demand in the society! Last, but not least, is a challenge on completing a message using the ancient writing system. This type of activity would be a fun approach to see how much your students understood from your lesson and the site.
ANCIENT EGYPT
HOWARD CARTER'S DISCOVERY OF KING TUT'S TOMB
This site is a mixture of real silent film footage and event re-enactments. It provides a very well-rounded view of the event.
KING TUT'S TOMB TOUR
What did the tomb look like? This is a virtual tour. Here you will find pictures of artifacts along with short descriptions of the tomb's contents.
Denise
ELL TEACHER PROS
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Free Online Access to 365 Short Stories for ELLs!
With summer fast approaching for many students, teachers might wish to start compiling some activities to help students maintain (or grow) in their English skills over the summer. Since leaving students on their own to locate such language supports online might not work for many of them because knowing where to look even takes teachers some time to accomplish:) Why not start putting together some good sites that are easy to navigate and will improve their English skills before the end of school?
You have your own sites to be sure so I am going to just provide you with a few over the next few weeks that you may like to add to your own collection:) 365 SHORT STORIES is geared to those who are intermediate in their language skills. Students may listen to the story as they read along. The stories cover a wide range of everyday subjects where students will also be provided with practice with idioms, slang, and more. To build even more on their English, students have the option to do a CLOZE (example) with or without any HINTS. If you would like them to practice their question answering skills, have them try YES/NO QUESTIONS . Care for them to try out some crossword puzzles for vocabulary development, look no further. Have them click on CROSSWORD. Because students can access help at any stage in trying to do the assignments, anxiety will be low AND they will be having fun!
I hope your students like the site.
Denise
ELL TEACHER PROS
You have your own sites to be sure so I am going to just provide you with a few over the next few weeks that you may like to add to your own collection:) 365 SHORT STORIES is geared to those who are intermediate in their language skills. Students may listen to the story as they read along. The stories cover a wide range of everyday subjects where students will also be provided with practice with idioms, slang, and more. To build even more on their English, students have the option to do a CLOZE (example) with or without any HINTS. If you would like them to practice their question answering skills, have them try YES/NO QUESTIONS . Care for them to try out some crossword puzzles for vocabulary development, look no further. Have them click on CROSSWORD. Because students can access help at any stage in trying to do the assignments, anxiety will be low AND they will be having fun!
I hope your students like the site.
Denise
ELL TEACHER PROS
Monday, April 16, 2012
Adjust English Language Instructional Activities With Ease Here
This site is one that has it all: grammar, word forms, reading comprehension, writing, editing/proofreading, spelling, and much more. ELLs need support in all areas here, but instructional delivery must be differentiated since most ELLs are at many different levels of English language proficiency in their classes. Adjusting assignments to meet every student's personal need can sometimes appear to be overwhelming; however, thanks to ENGLISH FOR EVERYONE, this need not be the case.
Here teachers will find a wide selection of English materials covering grades 1-12. Within many of those categories, activities are divided into beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels. Such a breakdown benefits ELLs because assignments can be tailored to their specific language needs at any given time. If the assignment is too easy at the beginning level, the teacher can bump him/her up to the next level and vice versa. This site also offers practice in skills that most students are tested on annually in state academic performance assessments. The more practice the ELL especially receives here, the higher his/her self-confidence will be in taking the test! By the way, answer keys are provided with each assignment so no need to worry about creating them:)
The site is free (as is everything else I have in the blog) so add it to your instructional toolkit!
Denise
ELL TEACHER PROS
PS The blog has been nominated for MOST FASCINATING BLOG OF 2012. If you like what I do here, please vote for me by clicking on VOTE FOR ME badge. Thanks!
Here teachers will find a wide selection of English materials covering grades 1-12. Within many of those categories, activities are divided into beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels. Such a breakdown benefits ELLs because assignments can be tailored to their specific language needs at any given time. If the assignment is too easy at the beginning level, the teacher can bump him/her up to the next level and vice versa. This site also offers practice in skills that most students are tested on annually in state academic performance assessments. The more practice the ELL especially receives here, the higher his/her self-confidence will be in taking the test! By the way, answer keys are provided with each assignment so no need to worry about creating them:)
The site is free (as is everything else I have in the blog) so add it to your instructional toolkit!
Denise
ELL TEACHER PROS
PS The blog has been nominated for MOST FASCINATING BLOG OF 2012. If you like what I do here, please vote for me by clicking on VOTE FOR ME badge. Thanks!
Thursday, April 12, 2012
FREE Online Reading Comprehension Activities for ELLs:)
If you teach ELLs, you are probably always looking for ways to improve their reading skills beyond mastery of the textbook passages. In this day of lean school budgets, teachers are continually looking for free or almost free resources to support their ELLs in this area. Though the internet offers much, not everything there is geared to ELLs. More times than not, teachers have to adapt materials for their students. This site is geared to ELLs at beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels of English.
Click on READING COMPREHENSION and you will find a wide variety of reading passages geared to 3 levels of English proficiency-beginners, intermediates, and advanced. Please note that these passages offer students the opportunity to also prepare for high stakes tests. Teachers have the option to print out the passages which helps if access to computer labs is limited. Printing them out also has the advantage of discussing test taking skills and then using them as a way to answer the questions.
Further some of the reading passages offer students the opportunity to write paragraphs. If teachers avail themselves of this option with their students, they will also be provided with a clearer idea of areas where students are weak in writing. Also, since 3 reading levels are listed, differentiation of instruction comes with ease. Assign students to reading passages that the teacher thinks they can handle. As skills improve, more challenging passages can be assigned. Another option for teachers is to make the reading assignment a partner or small group one. With clear rules and time limits, partners or teams can not only find the correct answer, but also be able to explain or show where they found the answers. The more practice ELLs have in this area, the higher their test scores will be.
ENGLISH MAVEN even offers practice in spelling, grammar, sentence completion, punctuation, synonyms/antonyms, etc. for ELLs. Students can never have enough practice here as we all know. With each tab, you will find anywhere from 10 to 40 activities/quizzes. Computers are non-judgmental so students are free to practice as many times as they like without fear of receiving a grade:) These activities must be done online though since there is no print option.
I hope the site works for your students:)
Denise
ELL TEACHER PROS
Click on READING COMPREHENSION and you will find a wide variety of reading passages geared to 3 levels of English proficiency-beginners, intermediates, and advanced. Please note that these passages offer students the opportunity to also prepare for high stakes tests. Teachers have the option to print out the passages which helps if access to computer labs is limited. Printing them out also has the advantage of discussing test taking skills and then using them as a way to answer the questions.
Further some of the reading passages offer students the opportunity to write paragraphs. If teachers avail themselves of this option with their students, they will also be provided with a clearer idea of areas where students are weak in writing. Also, since 3 reading levels are listed, differentiation of instruction comes with ease. Assign students to reading passages that the teacher thinks they can handle. As skills improve, more challenging passages can be assigned. Another option for teachers is to make the reading assignment a partner or small group one. With clear rules and time limits, partners or teams can not only find the correct answer, but also be able to explain or show where they found the answers. The more practice ELLs have in this area, the higher their test scores will be.
ENGLISH MAVEN even offers practice in spelling, grammar, sentence completion, punctuation, synonyms/antonyms, etc. for ELLs. Students can never have enough practice here as we all know. With each tab, you will find anywhere from 10 to 40 activities/quizzes. Computers are non-judgmental so students are free to practice as many times as they like without fear of receiving a grade:) These activities must be done online though since there is no print option.
I hope the site works for your students:)
Denise
ELL TEACHER PROS
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
