George Lucas Educational Foundation

English Language Learners

Discover ways to optimize instruction to address the needs of students who are learning English.

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  • 5 Ways to Ensure Clarity for ELLs

    Teachers can build check-ins during instruction to gauge whether students understand the key points of the lesson.
    Alex Brouhard
    503
  • A group of high school students gathered at a table in a circle, doing a language game together

    12 Fun Speaking Games for Language Learners

    Every teacher has faced the struggle of encouraging students to speak. Here's a list of a fun activities to get your students to talking.
    97.6k
  • A diverse elementary ELL classroom sitting in a circle

    6 Essential Strategies for Teaching English Language Learners

    We interviewed educators with decades of experience in teaching ELLs and tapped a network of experts and observers to find the strategies that work.
    48.8k
  • Highlighting the Benefits of Being Bilingual 

    By pointing out the benefits of bilingualism, teachers can give students learning English a boost in confidence.
    442
  • 4 Strategies to Help English Learners Master New Math Skills

    Developing new math skills for students learning English means keeping them on grade level and building on their existing speaking, reading, and writing abilities.
    460
  • Supporting Multilingual Students in the Early Grades

    Five ways teachers can celebrate and extend the linguistic expertise of young students who speak two or more languages.
    10.1k
  • 10 Strategies That Support English Language Learners Across All Subjects

    Teachers of any subject can use these tips to help English language learners be more engaged and at ease in class.
    4.6k
  • How to Use English Learners’ Primary Language in the Classroom

    It’s important for multilingual students to feel that their first language is valuable, seen as an asset, and a welcome part of their identity.
    757
  • Preparing for Cultural Diversity: Resources for Teachers

    How can teachers prepare for diverse classrooms? There isn't a definitive answer, but there is a wealth of resources online. Discover some helpful links for teachers.
    16.3k
  • 8 Strategies for Teaching Academic Language

    Ideas for developing students’ capacity to understand and use discipline-specific terminology and the language used in instruction.
    22.5k
  • Do’s & Don’ts for Teaching English-Language Learners

    In an excerpt from his book with fellow teacher Katie Hull Sypnieski, blogger Larry Ferlazzo looks at a few basic ways to reach students who are learning English as well as the subject at hand.
    13.2k
  • Activating Prior Knowledge With English Language Learners

    Students learn better when they first access what they already know—and this plays a big role in improving English language learners’ academic literacy.
    10.2k
  • The Necessity of Having High Expectations

    Conveying compassion for students while holding them to high standards can help improve equity in education.
    7.4k
  • 5 Effective Modeling Strategies for English Learners

    Providing English learners—and all students—with examples of how to do learning tasks is particularly useful during distance learning.
    5.1k
  • Encouraging Students to Be Storytellers

    Students in kindergarten through second grade can develop the ability to share original stories, strengthening their literacy skills.
    485

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George Lucas Educational Foundation

Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.
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