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Learning Outcomes By the end of this chapter you will be able to accomplish the following objectives:

• Describe the significance of the Common Core Reading: Informational Text Standards for ELLs.

• Articulate the challenges of and opportunities for teaching science to ELLs.

• Identify and evaluate the unique opportunities that social studies provides for meeting English language standards and for increasing cultural awareness.

• Argue coherently for linking math and language in the instruction of English language learners.

• Evaluate the role and importance of the arts in the curriculum for ELLs.

7Content-Area Teaching

Stacey Newman/iStock/Thinkstock

CO_TX

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Introduction

Introduction We learned in Chapter 6 that to succeed in school, ELLs must learn language and content simultaneously and that reading comprehension is central to both. In this chapter we take a closer look at the subjects in the school curriculum—social studies, science, math, the arts, and because it is foundational to all of these, English language arts. This perspective is consistent with the organization and focus of the Common Core State Standards. The CCSS provide a useful frame for our discussions, not only because they are a practical reality in education but also because they embody the reality that language and literacy are central to all learning. They represent an opportunity to develop elementary school curricula that are truly cross-disciplinary, or inter-disciplinary, and that are also consis- tent with the principles of communicative language teaching. For kindergarten through fifth grade, the CCSS provides standards for only two areas—math and English language arts because “they are areas upon which students build skill sets that are used in other subjects. Students must learn to read, write, speak, listen, and use language effectively in a variety of content areas . . .” (CCSS, FAQ). For later years, the standards for science and social studies/history specify discipline-specific skills, but they are embedded within the standards for comprehension of informational text. Math has a separate set of standards that pertain to content rather than language, but, as we shall see, even math requires lan- guage proficiency.

Before delving deeper into the CCSS, we need to be clear about what the standards are and, especially, what they are not. Perhaps the most important point to make about them is that they are not a common curricula. Standards set the expectations for the minimum level of knowledge a student must master at each level. Curriculum, on the other hand, is a road map that specifies content, resources, environment/context, and possibly methods or techniques for achieving those standards. The Common Core has not been without controversy. Much of the controversy is rooted in misunderstanding, misinformation, and even to residual ill will over the accountability requirements imposed by No Child Left Behind. Misconceptions abound, but the information included in Table 7.1 can help teachers to understand the intent and assess the magnitude of change that adopting the standards implies for schools, teachers, and learners.

Our purpose in this chapter is to understand the intersection of English language learning, content-area learning, and the goals established by the CCSS. The relationship between lan- guage and teaching the arts is not demarcated in the Common Core standards themselves, but the CCSS does support teaching of the arts, and as we shall see, there are many opportunities for integrating teaching of the arts with the English language arts standards, especially for listening and speaking.

Although some examples of techniques are given for illustrative purposes in this chapter, it should not be thought of as an instruction manual or set of directions—we will see more of these in the next chapter. Rather, it is a discussion intended to provoke teachers’ own creativ- ity, a guide to ways of thinking about how to meet the needs of ELLs.

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Section 7.1 Teaching English Language Arts

7.1 Teaching English Language Arts With the goal of ensuring that all learners have the skills and knowledge they will need to succeed in school, higher education, and careers, the English language arts (ELA) standards represent three shifts in emphasis from traditional curricula. They have a greater emphasis on content-rich nonfiction in the earliest years, regular practice with complex texts and the academic language they require, and reading, writing, and speaking, grounded in evidence from texts, both literary and informational text. The ELA standards themselves are defined in four strands:

1. Reading

a. Foundational skills b. Literature c. Informational texts

2. Writing 3. Speaking and listening 4. Language

Table 7.1: Myths and facts about the Common Core

Myth Fact

The CCSS are mandated by the president and/or the Department of Education.

The CCSS were not handed down by the federal government but were developed and adopted by the majority of the 50 states working in concert under the auspices of the National Governors’ Association together with the chief education officers of those states.

Every school in the country that adopts the CCSS will have to fol- low the same curriculum.

The CCSS do not constitute a curriculum. Rather, they represent a framework on which a curriculum can be built.

Literature will be abandoned. The confusion on this point likely results from the fact that the CCSS integrate history/social studies, science, and technology within the informational reading standards, perhaps leaving the impression that literacy involves only those areas. In fact, the CCSS outlines standards for reading literature at all grade levels.

Every child in the country will be reading exactly the same texts in each grade level.

The CCSS do specify that certain critical content should be mastered. This includes classical myths from around the world, foundational U.S. literature, United States’ founding documents, and Shakespeare. But except for providing a list of suggested texts, the CCSS do not dictate content.

Teacher autonomy will be lost. For the most part, in using the CCSS, teachers retain the autonomy to choose content and the curricular path they will take. Where they do not, it is not because of the CCSS but because of local or state strictures. Districts and states may choose to establish common curricula in some areas or to specify particular content or materials, but the CCSS them- selves are mostly silent on the issue of how and what to teach.

The CCSS require even more assessment.

Schools will need to assess how well their pupils are doing in order to adjust their curricula and practice, but the CCSS does not “come with a test.” There two consortia of states currently developing assessment instruments to measure how well learners are meeting the CCSS (Chapter 10), but the CCSS itself does not focus on testing.

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Section 7.1 Teaching English Language Arts

While all the skills these standards capture are important for ELLs, in this section we focus mainly on standards for reading: foundational skills and informational text, for two reasons. First, ELLs are more likely to start school with fewer foundational skills in English than their native speaking peers, and second, the standards for social studies and science are embedded in the standards for reading: Informational text for grades K–5 and are closely aligned with them thereafter. As noted above, we will examine some of the standards for speaking and listening within our discussion of the arts. Most of the practical suggestions for helping ELLs to meet these standards are found in Chapter 8, but there are also some practical suggestions included in the next section on foundational skills because they address specific early skills and are not as generally applicable across the content areas.

Foundational Skills We learned in previous chapters that language structures are not learned in a vacuum—students do not learn the individual sounds of the language by practicing them in isolation from words, nor words in isolation from sentences and meaning. And yet, sometimes this is exactly what ELL learners need to do—to focus on segmenting words into individual sounds and to see how they are represented in print. This fact does not go unnoticed by the creators of the CCSS who acknowledge that these foundational skills are “important components” of reading comprehen- sion but “are not an end in and of themselves” (CCSS Initiative, Introduction, 2015).

The CCSS and Foundational Skills For kindergarten and first grade, the standards for foundational skills fall into four strands:

1. print concepts, 2. phonological awareness, 3. phonics and word recognition, and 4. fluency.

Standards for third through fifth grades cover only the latter two categories. At any grade level, however, ELLs may lack the skills related to print concepts or phonological awareness in English. Many will need to acquire these lower-level skills before they can progress to the higher-level skills required for reading fluency and comprehension. Fortunately, these skills can be taught. We know, however, that they should not be taught in isolation, but in the con- text of a broader reading program, and embedded in meaningful language activities.

Learning to read involves, first, phonemic awareness, or the understanding that words are made up of individual sounds, and that these sounds can be reorganized or manipulated to form new words (Chapter 6). Although phoneme awareness differs from phonics, which is a method of teaching beginners to read and pronounce words by learning the relationship between sounds and letters, letter groups, and syllables, it is good practice to teach the two together or to follow phoneme awareness activities with those centering on sound-symbol correspondence. For example, showing children that fat, cat, hat, mat, sat, and pat not only share similar sounds (phonemic awareness) but also share the same spelling of the vowel sound (phonics), is a way of providing dual input (oral and visual) to aid retention.

The reading fluency standards are subsumed under the general goal that learners “read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension” (CCSS Initiative, 2015), specifying that first graders, for example, be able to read grade level text with purpose and

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Section 7.1 Teaching English Language Arts

ELLs and Foundational Skills The real challenge for ELLs is to acquire these foundational skills quickly. Most ELLs require practice with a variety of language activities to increase phonemic awareness. Many different techniques used with younger English speakers are effective with ELLs if they:

• are of short duration, • are related to other language objectives, and • are focused on the needs of individual learners—it is counterproductive to have an

ELL practice the /p/b/ distinction if she has already demonstrated that she knows it.

Reading Informational Text The ability to read and comprehend informational text is central to other academic learning, particularly social studies and science. There are four standards for reading: informational text, related to:

1. key ideas and details, 2. craft and structure, 3. integration of knowledge and ideas, and 4. range of reading and level of text complexity.

understanding, and to read aloud, accurately, with expression, and without hesitation. The standards also require that learners be able to use context to confirm or to self-correct their word predictions and reread as necessary. Again, ELLs are less likely to have acquired these first grade fluency standards even by third grade.

Building Phoneme Awareness There are many ways of helping ELLs to recognize and identify the individual sounds in words. For example,

a. Questions such as “What is the first sound in dog?” b. A sound/picture identification task: The words rat, cat, hat, and pat are written or

shown on flash cards and learners are asked to match the word with the picture of a cat (or a hat or a rat).

c. Questions such as “What sound is the same in all of these words: mouse, mix, mom, and moon?”

d. Questions such as “Which word does not belong? Dog, log, rock, hog?” (How would adding clog to the list complicate it for beginners but possibly not for more advanced learners?)

e. Questions that require “subtraction:” “What is stop without the /s/?” or “What is block without the /b/?” Would the question “What is black without the /l/?” be harder or easier for more advanced learners? Why?

f. Rhymes play an important role in making infants aware of individual sounds, and they are also useful for ELLs. Children’s books featuring rhymes are good because they provide authentic context and teachers can expand the rhymes in the stories to other words.

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Section 7.1 Teaching English Language Arts

Because the standards for history/social studies and science are embedded in English lan- guage arts standards, we will examine each of them here before turning to discipline-specific variations later.

Key Ideas and Details Broadly, the objective of this standard is for students to learn to identify main topics and supporting details. The progression of skills from kindergarten to third grade is shown in Table 7.2.

Table 7.2: Key ideas and details: Progression of skills K–5

Skills to be mastered

Kindergarten With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.

With prompting and support, identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.

With prompting and sup- port, describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information in a text.

First grade Ask and answer ques- tions about key details in a text.

Identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.

Describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information in a text.

Second grade Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

Identify the main topic of a multi-paragraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text.

Describe the connection between a series of histori- cal events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text.

Third grade Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they sup- port the main idea.

Describe the relationship between a series of histori- cal events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect.

Fourth grade Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.

Determine the main idea of a text and explain how it is supported by key details; summarize the text.

Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a histori- cal, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on specific infor- mation in the text.

Fifth grade Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explic- itly and when drawing inferences from the text.

Determine two or more main ideas of a text and explain how they are supported by key details; summarize the text.

Explain the relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas, or concepts in a histori- cal, scientific, or technical text based on specific information in the text.

Source: Author created from CCSS data

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Section 7.1 Teaching English Language Arts

As we look at the progression of skill development, there are a few things to keep in mind for ELLs. First, it is likely that they will need “prompting and support” well beyond kindergarten, and so teachers may need to tailor instruction for ELLs to develop the skills a grade or two below their actual grade level. Second, there is much presumed knowledge entrenched in these standards that ELLs might not have. Some of it relates to linguistic content and some to cultural content, where text may refer to events or people unfamiliar to them. Teachers will have to do a great deal more scaffolding with ELLs in order to keep them from falling behind.

Craft and Structure This standard is concerned with how different kinds of text are structured, vocabulary in context, and perspective and point of view. Learners are expected not only to understand what they read but, by the end of fifth grade, to begin to think logically and critically about it. Table 7.3 shows the growth expected between kindergarten and fifth grade as well as the expectation of ability by the end of high school.

Table 7.3: Expected growth in craft and structure

Kindergarten 5th grade 11th–12th grade

With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text.

Determine the meaning of general academic and domain- specific words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade five topic or subject area.

Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, con- notative, and technical meanings; analyze how an author uses and refines the meaning of a key term or terms over the course of a text (e.g., how Madison defines fac- tion in Federalist No. 10).

Identify the front cover, back cover, and title page of a book.

Compare and contrast the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect, and problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts, or information in two or more texts.

Analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of the structure an author uses in his or her exposi- tion or argument, including whether the structure makes points clear, convincing, and engaging.

Name the author and illustrator of a text and define the role of each in presenting the ideas or information in a text.

Analyze multiple accounts of the same event or topic, noting important similarities and differ- ences in the point of view they represent.

Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text in which the rhetoric is particularly effective, analyzing how style and content contribute to the power, persuasiveness or beauty of the text.

Source: CCSS

Not surprisingly, the increased emphasis on the different ways in which informational text is structured corresponds with expectations of the writing standards. By the end of fifth grade, for example, learners should be able to “Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons and information” (CCSS Initiative, 2015). These are high level literacy

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Section 7.1 Teaching English Language Arts

expectations for fifth graders, and for ELLs they are especially important. Remember what we learned in Chapter 6: The best predictor of academic achievement is an ELL’s reading ability at the end of third grade, and the lack of reading skills is the major language barrier to ELLs’ achiev- ing academic success. An ELL who hasn’t even begun to learn English until third grade has a great deal to accomplish to meet these literacy standards by the end of fifth grade.

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas To develop research skills, this set of standards addresses how readers and

writers use visual and textual evidence to support an argument or conclusion. By the end of fifth grade, learners are beginning to analyze and synthesize different kinds of data from a variety of sources. A great deal of growth is expected in the elementary years to reach the standard expected for high school graduation, see Table 7.4. To meet the standards, teach- ers of ELLs will need to help learners to organize information from different sources and to understand the difference between conclusions and the details that support it. Teachers may find helping ELLs to meet these standards a less daunting task because the reliance on non- text sources relieves some of the linguistic burden for ELLs; they also provide an additional medium for understanding and remembering.

Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity The purpose of this standard is to grow learners’ skills with increasingly more complex texts so that they can function effectively with content-area texts. The range of skills is shown in Table 7.5.

How do we know the level of text complexity or that it is intended for third or fifth graders? The CCSS identifies a number of measures for determining the reading level of text, one of which is the Lexile measurement system, as described in Lexile Measurements and How They Are Used. The Lexile measure for the Introduction section of this chapter is 1470, and the mean sentence length is 29.3.

Moodboard/Thinkstock This teacher is helping her students with a writing task that requires them to express and support an opinion on the material they have just read.

Table 7.4: Expected growth in integration of knowledge and ideas

Kindergarten 5th grade 11th–12th grade

Skills to be mastered

With prompting and sup- port, describe the relation- ship between illustrations and the text in which they appear (e.g., what person, place, thing, or idea in the text an illustration depicts).

Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, demonstrat- ing the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a prob- lem efficiently.

Integrate and evaluate mul- tiple sources of information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words in order to address a question or solve a problem.

Source: CCSS

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Section 7.1 Teaching English Language Arts

Table 7.5: Expected growth in range of reading & level of complexity

Kindergarten 5th grade 12th grade

Skills to be mastered

Actively engage in group reading activities with purpose and understanding.

By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 4–5 text complexity band indepen- dently and proficiently.

By the end of grade 12, read and comprehend liter- ary nonfiction at the high end of the grades 11-CCR text complexity band, inde- pendently and proficiently.

Source: CCSS

Lexile Measurements and How They Are Used The Lexile Framework for Reading measures both reader ability and text difficulty on the same scale. It is not an intervention, but is a tool for gathering information on which to base inter- vention that offers a “. . . ‘big picture’ view of growth of student reading ability from preschool through graduate school. Although the measure does not purport to establish grade level equivalencies, because there is so much variability among learners at any one grade level, the publishers of Lexile do provide data to illustrate where the “middle 50% of readers for each grade fall on the Lexile scale. These data are shown in Table 7.6.

Table 7.6: Lexile reader measures

Grade Lexile reader measures Mid-year

25th to 75th percentile

2009 text demand study

25th to 75th percentile

2012 CCSS text measures

1 Up to 300L 230L to 420L 190L to 530L

2 140L to 500L 450L to 570L 420L to 650L

3 330L to 700L 600L to 730L 520L to 820L

4 445L to 810L 640L to 780L 740L to 940L

5 565L to 910L 730L to 850L 830L to 1010L

6 665L to 1000L 860L to 920L 925L to 1120L

7 735L to 1065L 880L to 960L 970L to 1120L

8 805L to 1100L 900L to 1010L 1010L to 1185L

9 855L to 1165L 960L to 1110L 1050L to 1260L

10 905 to 1195L 920L to 1120L 1080L to 1335L

11 & 12 940L to 1210L 1070L to 1220L 1185L to 1385L

Sources: CCSS, Appendix A; The Lexile® Framework for Reading, http://www.lexile.com/about-lexile/grade- equivalent/grade-equivalent-chart/

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ELA

Social Studies

Science

Math

Section 7.1 Teaching English Language Arts

Readability measures can also be used to obtain information about the level of a student’s writing and can be used to track growth. The Lexile measurement can be used for this pur- pose, but since using it requires the text to be converted to plain text, it may be easier to use the Flesch-Kincaid measure within MS Word 10. The Flesch-Kincaid measure is easy to use and can give teachers a rough indication of a writer’s level of sophistication. Keep in mind, however, that these measures are not designed primarily to evaluate expression but to evalu- ate readability, and so they can serve only as rough indicators of writing growth. Also, because of slight variations within the two measurements, teachers using them to track students’ writing progress should be consistent and use only one.

A Note on Basal/Core Readers Basal readers, also known as core readers, are textbooks created specifically for the teaching of reading. Typically they come with a set of instructions and suggestions for teachers to use in teaching reading at various levels. They are a time-honored tradition in U.S. classrooms. Whether they will continue to enjoy such prominence in an increasingly diverse classroom in the era of the Common Core remains to be seen. What seems indis- putable is that basals alone will not be sufficient for meeting Common Core standards, especially for ELLs. They may have utility for beginning teachers: “The structure of a basal program—its units, materials, and lesson plans—can guide the thinking of novice teach- ers, but as a teacher grows in knowledge and experience, she can modify and augment the program to meet her students’ needs” (Kersten & Pardo, 2007). “Even the most expe- rienced professionals can find within a basal program materials and ideas to solve some instructional problems, but it is not the best set of tools for educating avid readers or those who struggle with the basics” (Dewitz, P. & Jones, J., 2013, p. 391). Moreover, for ELLs, the potential shortcomings of following a basal/core program without significant augmenta- tion are especially serious: “Unfortunately, the typical ESL series uses decontextualized language, bizarre sentence patterns, strangely repetitious language, and stories that do not contain familiar cultural content. Generally, basal readers are inappropriate for begin- ning “ESL” students” (Gunderson, Odo, & D’Silva, 2014, p. 185).

These last two sets of standards, integration of knowledge and ideas, and range of read- ing and level of text complexity, are especially good illustrations of the interdisciplinary nature of the CCSS for grades kindergarten through fifth grade, represented in Figure 7.1. As noted earlier, the ELA Standards for read- ing, writing, speaking, and listening apply to all the subjects in the K–5 curriculum. For grades six–twelve, standards are articulated in two sections—those that pertain exclu- sively to English language arts and those that pertain to social studies/history, science and technology.

ELA

Social Studies

Science

Math

Figure 7.1: The interdisciplinary nature of the language arts

Standards for reading, writing, speaking, and listening apply to all subjects in the curriculum.

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Section 7.2 Teaching Science

7.2 Teaching Science The science classroom can be a frustrating place for English language learners. The com- plex language of science is often problematic even for native English speakers. Although it is important to distinguish language problems from an inability to think scientifically or to learn scientific concepts and procedures, eventually the two have to work together: a functional knowledge of science requires facility in the language of science.

Science in Grades K–5 The CCSS for K–5 science are integrated into the ELA Standards, but many states and dis- tricts that have adopted the CCSS have also adopted the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), which outline the science based content and skills that students should acquire throughout the school years. While these standards are independent of the Common Core standards, they are also highly compatible:

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for Literacy were written to help students meet the particular challenges of reading, writing, speaking, listen- ing, and language in their respective fields—in this case, science. The literacy standards do not replace science standards—they supplement them. The NGSS lay out the disciplinary core ideas, science and engineering practices, and crosscutting concepts that students should master in preparation for col- lege and careers. (NGSS, 2013)

Table 7.7 lists the goals and objectives for Earth and human activity in grades three through five as well as the alignment of their expectations with Common Core fifth grade standards.

It is easy to see how the two sets of standards work together in the following text, the opening paragraph from Pythons Invade the Florida Everglades, which describes the changes caused to the Florida Everglades by the introduction of the Burmese python.

When Tommy Owen, a tour guide in the Everglades National Park, saw the ani- mal, he immediately went after it. Owen was giving a tour of Florida’s famous national park wetlands. He and a group of tourists were floating in a boat through the shallow water that makes up the Everglades. One of the women in the boat he was steering saw a snake in the water. She got Tommy’s attention and pointed the snake out to him. When Tommy saw the snake, he acted fast. He reached into the water and grabbed the animal by the head. He got a good grip and didn’t let go. Tourists in the boat were worried when the snake wrapped itself around Tommy’s arm. After several minutes, he got control of the animal and removed it from the water. The snake was a ten-foot-long Burmese python. It was a snake not native to Florida and, quite simply, it didn’t belong there. (ReadWorks, 2015)

By the end of the unit this paragraph introduces, the teacher will have had ample opportunity to give students practice in:

• separating fact from opinion, • quoting accurately from text, • drawing on and integrating information from multiple sources and media, and • making connections with their previous knowledge and experience.

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Section 7.2 Teaching Science

Table 7.7: Alignment of NGSS core ideas and CCSS

5-ESS3-1 Earth and Human Activity

Students who demonstrate understanding can:

5-ESS3-1. Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earth’s resources and environment.

The performance expectation above was developed using the following elements from the NRC document A Framework for K–12 Science Education:

Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information Obtaining, evaluating, and commu- nicating information in 3–5 builds on K–2 experiences and progresses to evaluating the merit and accu- racy of ideas and methods.

• Obtain and combine information from books and/or other reliable media to explain phenomena or solutions to a design problem.

ESS3.C: Human Impacts on Earth Systems

• Human activities in agriculture, industry, and everyday life have had major effects on the land, vegetation, streams, ocean, air, and even outer space. But individuals and communities are doing things to help protect Earth’s resources and environments.

Systems and System Models • A system can be described

in terms of its components and their interactions.

Connections to Nature of Science Science Addresses Questions About the Natural and Material World

• Science findings are limited to questions that can be answered with empirical evidence.

Connections to other DCIs in fifth grade: N/A

Articulation of DCIs across grade levels: MS.ESS3.A ; MS.ESS3.C ; MS.ESS3.D

Common Core State Standards connections: ELA/Literacy

RI.5.1 Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text. (5-ESS3-1)

RI.5.7 Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, dem- onstrating the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a problem efficiently. (5-ESS3-1)

RI.5.9 Integrate information from several texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably. (5-ESS3-1)

W.5.8 Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from print and digital sources; summarize or para- phrase information in notes and finished work, and provide a list of sources. (5-ESS3-1)

W.5.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, ref lection, and research. (5-ESS3-1)

Source: Next Generation Science Standards, Human Impact on Earth Systems

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Section 7.2 Teaching Science

Because there is no specialized or technical vocabulary in the first part of the paragraph, which reads much like a story, with characters and the suggestion of a plot, it will appeal to young read- ers. And yet the passage goes on to make an important point about the impact of human inter- vention on an ecological system; the content is scientific but the language is not. In sixth grade, however, the Common Core standards require learners to cope with more demanding text.

Science in Grades 6–12 From sixth to twelfth grades, learners are expected to broaden and deepen their knowledge of science and technology. Not only do ELLs have to learn increasingly detailed technical con- tent, they have to learn more abstract and complex language to do so; there is much to learn and not a great deal of time in which to learn it.

The Standards The NGSS identify a wide range of core ideas within four disciplines that students should learn in middle and high school:

• Physical sciences • Life sciences • Earth and space sciences • Engineering, technology and applications of science

The NGSS are aligned with the CCSS, which are organized around the now familiar four strands for reading informational text. One of the first challenges, and one of the reasons that reading comprehension of scientific texts requires special attention for ELLs, is that the language of science has its own set of conventions. Educators working on the Stanford Data Science Initia- tive identified four features of science language that may cause learners more difficulty than other kinds of informational text—science vocabulary, science discourse, multiple modes of representation, and science texts (Quinn, Lee, & Valdés, 2012, p.5).

Science Vocabulary One of the reasons that ELLs have difficulty with scientific text is that words they think they know from everyday usage—cell, space, work, energy, for example—have more precise mean- ings in science. Similarly, the academic vocabulary of higher-order thinking—compare, ana- lyze, infer—may have precise usage in science that ELLs without prior knowledge of science will find difficult. For example, analyzing a political issue differs from analyzing an unknown chemical to determine its identity, and the two activities require different behaviors. Highly specialized vocabulary created for the discipline can also cause problems for learners who have not have encountered them before. Words such as biome, alleles, and dizygotic are likely unfamiliar even to fluent English speakers, and it is difficult to work out the meanings from context for the simple reason that understanding the context might depend on understanding the word.

Science Discourse “Learning the register of discourse of a discipline is a form of socialization into how members of the discipline talk, write, and participate in the knowledge construction” (Quinn, Lee, &

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Section 7.2 Teaching Science

Valdés, 2012, p. 6). Different specialties within science have their own conventions, but there is also a level of scientific discourse that is understood by scientists in all disciplines (as one can discover by watching almost any episode of The Big Bang Theory). In order to read sci- entific text with comprehension and to write and engage in conversation about the subject matter, learners must learn to pay attention to precise meanings and be able to explain and to construct evidence-based argument orally and in writing.

Multiple Modes of Representation Both oral and written language are important for conveying and discussing scientific knowl- edge, but science also uses mathematical and visual representations. Diagrams, graphs, tables, charts, maps, pictures, equations, are all used to convey information. Students need to make sense of all these different modes and to integrate all of it into a single coherent understand- ing of the content. For ELLs, this is good news because the content is not entirely dependent on language. The harder task for them will be to analyze and summarize this information in their own writing.

Science Texts Scientific writing typically follows a gen- erally agreed upon set of conventions that differ in fundamental ways from other kinds of writing. Nonscientists might find the resulting prose dry or lifeless, but that is, in part, the point; scientific dis- course strives for authoritative objectivity by removing the human “observer” and “packing” information into grammatical bundles. Linguists have found that the key features of scientific text include

1. �Removing�human�agents�from�the� actions or discoveries being described and using the passive voice (It was found that . . . ), or by using general- ized or anonymous participants (sci- entists conclude . . . the research team discovered . . .).

2. �The�use�of�nominals to summarize an entire sentence into an abstract noun phrase. Consider this sentence:

Specifically, we were interested in the qualitative ecological differ- ence in emphasis between changes in composition vs. changes in rela- tive abundance. (Academy of Sci- ence, 2005, as cited in Biber & Gray, 2013)

Shironosov/iStock/Thinkstock ELLs have to learn to read and write science text but also to interpret graphs, charts, and tables in many formats.

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Section 7.2 Teaching Science

This structurally and conceptually complex sentence is not likely to be found in an eighth grade science book, but it bears some resemblance to middle school texts. Consider this excerpt from A Brave New Climate by Edward I. Maxwell (2013) intended for eighth graders:

These historically beneficial Oceanside locations may prove detrimental to the future growth and viability of these cities in a warmer world. Higher sea levels and climate change have combined dramatically to create historic hurricanes that have peppered the East Coast. Harbors that have been bustling ports for centuries, with booming growth during the post-industrial 20th century, may need dramatic fortification against surges, super storms and rising tides. (http://www.readworks.org/passages/brave-new-climate)

While structurally simpler, this passage contains many of the features of science writing described above. For example, words such as booming, super, and peppered all have different meanings here than they would have in conversational English. Notice, too, the absence of human agents in historically beneficial ocean-side locations (to whom?) and future growth and viability of these cities (for whom?). The 67 words in this passage comprise three sentences while the first 66 words of the Everglades passage contain four sentences. The writing in this passage has more of the characteristics of professional science writing than does the earlier passage on Burmese pythons in the Everglades.

Even though the vocabulary and writing style can be challenging, science abounds with oppor- tunities for visual representations, demonstrations, and experiments that help to make explicit the meaning behind the language the learner hears. In addition to vocabulary building, it is important to develop listening, reading, and writing skills, simultaneously. Some of the strate- gies described in Techniques for Teaching Science to ELLs may be useful along with the more general ideas for providing support in all the content areas found in the next chapter.

Techniques for Teaching Science to ELLs There are many techniques for teaching science to ELLs, including the following:

Visualization. Graphs, pictures, diagrams, charts, tables, or other media with minimal language, reduce reliance on language and make input comprehensible. Science videos may feature new terminology. Play the video all the way through without stopping, then play it again and pause as needed to explain or discuss key concepts or terms. Don’t hesitate to bookmark and replay sections as needed.

Writing. Although there is always a great deal of emphasis placed on reading comprehen- sion, writing is also important. Students will become more effective writers only by writ- ing. Provide sentence frames for beginners to complete. A few short questions in advance of a science lesson serve not only as advance organizers, but as writing practice for slightly more advanced students. Journaling, lab notes, and lecture notes, also encourage writing.

Demonstrations. Science requires precision. Procedures for conducting experiments, dissection, or other science activities, must be made clear and precise, either through demonstration or in writing, with pictures, or drawings on the board, on posters, or on individual handouts.

(continued)

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http://www.readworks.org/passages/brave-new-climate

Section 7.3 Teaching Social Studies

7.3 Teaching Social Studies In one sense, social studies can be a difficult subject for ELLs because they may lack background knowledge of U.S. government structures and history. On the other hand, social studies presents an excellent opportunity for ELLs to integrate knowledge of their own cul- tures into the new content while learning vocabulary that has more immediate nonacademic use than the language of science. It is also an opportunity for the English speakers and teachers to learn about other cultures and to understand how many of our perspectives are culturally determined. As Dorina Sackman, Florida’s 2014 teacher of the year put it, “I get to travel the world every day without ever leaving my classroom because I teach ESOL (2014)”. Teachers such as Ms. Sackman also ensure that all the learners in the classroom have the same experience, because social studies provides an ideal opportunity for learners to learn from other learners.

Grade K–5 Social Studies The Common Core standards for reading: informational text are basically the same for sci- ence and social studies, but social studies may provide even better opportunities to develop the skills required for meeting these standards:

A Courtroom in the Classroom

Miss Blake wanted to show her third grade class what it’s like inside a court- room of the United States, so she decided to stage a role-play. There are many different people in the courtroom during a trial. All of them have different but important jobs or roles. Miss Blake put her students’ names inside a hat. Next to the hat, she had a list of the different people who participate in a trial. As she went down the list of courtroom jobs, she picked a student’s name out of the hat. She then assigned the student to act out that role in the class role-play. Miss Blake thought it would be fun, and it was! (Stahl, 2014)

This third grade passage goes on to describe what happens in a courtroom and roles played by everyone present. It even explains the difference between a bench trial and a jury trial. Notice how the passage is personalized with the name of the teacher and how it reads much like a story. Reminiscent of the Everglades passage, the structure is familiar to young learners, but the material introduced will likely be new, as will much of the vocabulary—evidence, bench

Techniques for Teaching Science to ELLs (continued) Hands on! Doing is generally more effective than seeing or hearing. Participation in

science activities, whether in the laboratory, classroom, or on the school grounds, are very important for ELLs. Kinesthetic learning activities provide ways for learners to make personal connections with the material as well as an additional memory “peg” for remembering concepts.

Adapted from Norman Kerr, Ph.D. Strategies for Teaching Science to English Language Learners, http:// www.csun.edu/science/ref/language/teaching-ell.html

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Section 7.3 Teaching Social Studies

trial, jury trial, random. Even so, the material can be related to other knowledge that ELLs may have.

Key Ideas and Details English language learners will have to follow the same path as native speakers to meet pro- gressively more demanding goals, but they will be doing so within a compressed time frame, and while they are learning English. Moreover, because much of the social studies curriculum is specific to aspects of U.S. history and culture, ELLs may have less background knowledge on which to draw.

Craft and Structure One of the key standards relating to craft and structure is the ability to distinguish the author’s point of view from one’s own. Unlike science and math, the information in social studies texts may represent points of view that differ, sometimes radically, from the ELLs’ own. These texts provide an excellent opportunity for discussion of the differences, and many “teachable moments” on the language used to indicate opinion as opposed to fact.

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas Although this standard addresses reading comprehension, we know that even if it were possi- ble to teach reading independent of the other language domains, it would be inefficient to do so. Integrating writing and speaking activities into the lesson makes good pedagogical sense for all learners, and especially for ELLs. We have not examined the writing standards, but it is useful to do so here in order to see how well social studies is suited to developing all literacy skills. In the category of text, type, and purpose, the CCSS require that students be able to:

1. write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons, 2. introduce the topic or text they are writing about, state an opinion, and create an

organizational structure that lists reasons, 3. provide reasons that support the opinion, 4. use linking words and phrases (e.g., because, therefore, since, for example) to connect

opinion and reasons, and 5. provide a concluding statement or section.

Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity One of the difficulties with many of the topics covered in social studies is that the writers sometimes omit concrete or anecdotal details that help learners to relate unfamiliar facts or ideas to their own experience. Pythons Invade the Everglades used several mechanisms to

Meilum/iStock/Thinkstock How could Miss Blake use these graphics to develop deeper understandings of the procedures used in the justice system? Suggest kinds of language skills that could be acquired or practiced simultaneously.

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Section 7.3 Teaching Social Studies

bridge the gap between the factual information and the reader’s experience—the tour guide’s name and reference to a particular snake, for example. But not all Social Studies text is so “user friendly”. Let’s consider another passage, 7 Billion and Counting!, which may be more typical of social studies texts.

7 Billion and Counting!

19 50

19 60

19 70

19 80

19 90

20 00

20 10

20 20

20 30

20 40

20 50

P o

p u

la ti

o n

i n

B il li o

n s

World Population 1950–2050

9 10

7 8

5 6

3 4

Leigh Haeger

We live in a jam-packed world. In fact, more people live here than ever before. The population recently hit a whopping 7 billion! The big news was reported by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The number of people on the planet has doubled since 1960. And that num- ber continues to grow. As you can see from the graph, experts estimate that by 2030, Earth will be home to over 8 billion people. That is not surprising when you consider that 261 people are born each minute. (Weekly Reader, 2006)

This passage would be appropriate in a unit on world population growth, and is intended for use with a third grade class. Let’s take a closer look at how this passage could be used in a way that would support the goals of the Common Core standards.

A Third Grade Example 7 Billion and Counting! demonstrates the alignment of the CCSS with the content of social stud- ies. There is opportunity to distinguish fact from opinion and for further discussion about, for example, whether the U.S. Census Bureau deals with facts or opinions. There is also ample opportunity to address the key ideas and details standards shown in Table 7.8.

Table 7.8: Third grade CCSS for reading

Third grade

Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.

Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in tech- nical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect.

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Section 7.3 Teaching Social Studies

The vocabulary in 7 Billion and Counting! provides practice with general academic and domain-specific words and phrases. It provides good opportunities for expanding vocab- ulary and expressions well beyond the words in the text. It is also a good passage to inspire writing assignments that reinforce the cognitive and reasoning goals infused into all the standards, and there are many assignments that can be modified to suit the abili- ties of ELLs.

What Accommodations Can Be Made for ELLs? When she used this passage, Mrs. Whitcomb adapted it for ELLs, concentrating on building background knowledge in pre-reading activities, as we see in A Teacher’s Story: Preparing Carmella to Learn. While working toward meeting the standards, teachers can help ELLs to

A Teacher’s Story: Preparing Carmella to Learn

Mrs. Whitcomb was concerned that 7 Billion and Counting, which she planned to introduce in a unit on world population to her third grade class, would be difficult for Carmella. She had been in the United States for only a few months, and while Mrs. Whitcomb was impressed with her English, she knew that this social studies unit might prove challenging.

Most of her third graders would be able to read the passage with only a little vocabulary assis- tance, but she wasn’t sure about Carmella. Mrs. Whitcomb began to plan by identifying the key ideas and details and creating a graphic organizer for them. She also wanted to use the pas- sage to help learners to differentiate fact from opinion, but she knew that before they could do that, they had to understand the passage. Her first thought was that her class would have little concept of what a billion is, not to mention the time indicated by 1960 or 2030. Then there was the vocabulary, whopping which most of her children would know or be able to figure out, population would likely be a new word for most, but she could point to the previous sentence as a clue to its meaning. And then there was jam-packed which a few would know and most others would be able to figure out. But what about Carmella?

Knowing that Carmella’s spoken English is much stronger than her reading, she talked to the class first about what they are going to read. She told them that it was about the number of people who live in the whole world, using the globe in the front of the room to identify all the countries they know and making the point that the word we use for all of the number of people living in any defined area is population.

She then went on to talk about the population of their city, of the school and the classroom, counting each child to demonstrate. She continued to develop the underlying concepts in the passage, and each time, she began at a point that is comprehensible to most, and very nearly so for Carmella (remember the notion of comprehensible input). She wrote on the board syn- onyms for world—earth, this planet, Planet Earth, the globe. When it came to how big a billion is, she built on their understanding of multiplication by drawing a shape (a town, she called it) with seven stick figures in it. “What if we had ten times as many people in this town?” she asked. She started to draw stick figures, but stopped and said “This takes too long! Why don’t we just write the number?” She multiplied 7 times 10, then 70 times 10, and kept doing so until she got to 7 billion. In this easy demonstration, she neatly transitioned from stick figures to numerical ones. What Mrs. Whitcomb did was to create a graphic organizer for vocabulary. This kind of organizer helps ELLs to prepare for reading, and also serves as a resource for review later. Finally, Carmella was ready to read.

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Section 7.3 Teaching Social Studies

distinguish fact from opinion, and, to identify and understand the ideas and details, teachers may want to:

• use a graphic organizer to capture the main ideas and separate fact from opinion; • introduce key vocabulary in advance, including idioms/idiomatic expressions

such as jam-packed and slang such as whopping; • build background knowledge such as the concept of billion. A teacher might, for

example, tell the class that the passage is about the number of people who live in the whole world, using the globe that sits in the front of the room to identify all the countries they know and making the point that the word we use for all of the num- ber of people living in any defined area is population;

• use multiple modes of presentation: reading, writing, speaking, listening and graphic, thus providing multiple channels for learning;

• build the questioning incrementally from simple to more complex; and • do regular comprehension checks.

Social Studies Grades Six–Twelve The Common Core State Standards for these grades focus on the same four informational text skill sets. There are slight differences, however, in the specific standards within each skill set, as shown in Table 7.9. The differences reflect the distinctive discipline-specific text features and purpose for reading. For example, the social studies standards emphasize the ability to distinguish between primary and secondary sources, something all learners will need for higher education, even if they are not social science majors. Arguably, it is also a skill set that is required for an educated citizenry whether or not they attend college or university.

Table 7.9: Standards for informational text, key ideas, and details, in three content areas

Grade six, ELA Informational Text Grade six science Grade six social studies

Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explic- itly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts.

Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources.

Determine a central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through par- ticular details; provide a summary of the text distinct from personal opinions or judgments.

Determine the central ideas or conclusions of a text; provide an accurate summary of the text distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.

Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.

Analyze in detail how a key indi- vidual, event, or idea is introduced, illustrated, and elaborated in a text (e.g., through examples or anecdotes).

Follow precisely a multistep procedure when carrying out experiments, taking measure- ments, or performing techni- cal tasks.

Identify key steps in a text’s description of a process related to history/social studies (e.g., how a bill becomes law, how interest rates are raised or lowered).

Source: CCSS

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Section 7.4 Teaching Math

There is no universally adopted framework for aligning standards with social studies content, but the New York State Framework is a useful one from which to launch a discussion of how the CCSS are articulated in practice. One of the social studies “practices” in that framework relates to “gathering and using evidence.” The expectations for sixth graders in this theme are to:

1. develop and frame questions about topics related to historical events occurring in the Eastern Hemisphere that can be answered by gathering, using, and interpreting evidence;

2. identify, effectively select, and analyze different forms of evidence used to make meaning in social studies (including primary and secondary sources such as art and photographs, artifacts, oral histories, maps, and graphs);

3. identify evidence and explain content, authorship, point of view, purpose, and for- mat; identify bias; explain the role of bias and potential audience;

4. describe the arguments of others; 5. identify implicit ideas and draw inferences with support; and 6. recognize arguments on specific social studies topics and identify evidence to

support the argument, and examine arguments related to a specific social stud- ies topic from multiple perspectives (New York State Common Core Social Studies Framework, 2013).

It is easy to see how the CCSS map onto these skills and how teachers can use a variety of dif- ferent topics to develop them. But what about ELLs? Just as the skills here build on those that we examined earlier for third grade, so do the adaptations for ELLs apply to older learners. The same strategies will work for older learners, as will all of those described in the section on language arts earlier in this chapter, and the techniques in Techniques for Teaching Science to ELLs, all of which are easily adaptable for social studies.

7.4 Teaching Math Teaching ELLs math in ways that align with the CCSS involves “First and foremost . . . teaching mathematics for understanding” (Moschkovich, 2012, p. 11). More precisely, math instruc- tion for ELLs should:

1. balance conceptual understanding and procedural fluency; 2. maintain high cognitive demand; 3. develop productive beliefs; and 4. engage students in mathematical practices (CCSS Mathematics Standards; Moschkov-

ich, 2012, p. 11).

Although it is tempting to assume that math is a universal language and that math skills trans- fer across language boundaries, there are, in fact, potential differences. Number formation and the use of commas and decimals are different in some other cultures, and the U.S. mea- surement system poses challenges for much of the world. Moreover, the methods by which ELLs learned math in other countries may differ significantly—they may never have worked with manipulatives, for instance, and may have spent more time memorizing than learning processes, and may be more familiar with calculation than problem-solving. ELLs who have

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Section 7.4 Teaching Math

had prior experience in math may encounter all these differences and also face the language problem: They have to know sufficient English to understand and ask questions about word problems.

The CCSS for math differ fundamentally from other standards because specific concepts and content are delineated, and they are not based in, nor directly aligned to, the Standards for English Language Arts. But we know that math learning does not occur for ELLs independent of language learning. Even if we were to accept the view that math is a universal language, learners need to be able to understand the language in which math instructions are given and to comprehend word problems.

Because ELLs learn language and math simultaneously, much of what we have learned about teaching social studies and science to ELLs, though not directly aligned with the standards we examined, applies equally to teaching math. Vocabulary development, reading comprehen- sion, building background knowledge, and the integration of oral language all play central roles in the teaching and learning of math.

The Importance of Oral Language We have seen in this and earlier chapters that oral language comes first. That is true, no matter what the task, even when the task involves another symbolic system, as math does. Why? Talking through problems before attempting to solve them gives the teacher a chance to:

• identify and define unfamiliar vocabulary, • clarify what the intent of the problem is, • relate it to previously learned concepts or to real life situations, and • identify any gaps in mathematical reasoning that might interfere with solving the

problem.

Teachers should encourage learners to ask questions. When faced with a word problem, ask- ing and answering questions such as the following can be very helpful:

• What do we know for sure? • What do we need to find out? • What do we need to do with the numbers? • Is this like another problem we’ve solved?

The Importance of Academic Vocabulary There are two very important aspects of math vocabulary—the technical vocabulary par- ticular to math and the precise and different definitions of familiar words as used in math. An everyday word such as find has a meaning in algebra or geometry different from its com- mon usage—asking Julio to “find Paris” in a geography lesson might require him to point to it on a map, but in the equation 3x=30, the direction to “find x” does not require him to point to the letter. As Figure 7.2 illustrates, technical words are learned after learners have acquired some general academic vocabulary which, in turn, is built on a foundation of social language.

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Math- specific language

General academic language

Non-academic language

Section 7.4 Teaching Math

While helping ELLs to cope with the language of math, teachers should:

• Choose key words to pre-teach. For example, it is helpful to ELLs to know that less than implies subtraction and more than implies addition in order to choose the correct math function to apply.

• Demonstrate that words have mul- tiple meanings. Many words are used in mathematics with meanings that are very specific. With some, such as quarter, it is easy to see the relationship between the general and technical uses. With others, however, the relationship is harder to see. The word table is a good example.

• Take advantage of visual media, manipu- latives, and realia to demonstrate the concepts represented by vocabulary. Cutting an apple into sections provides an authentic opportunity to demonstrate the meaning of half, quarter, eighth, for example.

Reading Comprehension in Math Word problems cause problems for all ELLs. For those who have had formal education in math, the problem is understanding the language of the problem. For those who have not learned math in another language, the problems are the math concept and the language to understand the problem. Working on reading comprehension helps—as learners become more proficient readers they will become more proficient in reading math problems. But teachers will need to work specifically on comprehension of math problems with daily prac- tice, working and reasoning aloud while demonstrating or paraphrasing to make math prob- lems comprehensible, and simplifying the language of the problem. Look at the following two word problems:

1. The school is ¾ of a mile from Maria Louise’s house and ¼ of a mile from Marc’s house. They both walk to school. How much further does Maria Louisa have to walk?

2. Mrs. Sanchez wanted to make a salad. She spent $4.50 for a bag of spinach, $5.30 for red peppers, $4.00 for two pounds of tomatoes, $8.00 for a bottle of olive oil and $5.69 for a carton of feta cheese. She gave the cashier $50. How much change will she get back?

The first problem is simply worded and may need only minor modification, even for begin- ners, but it is almost always helpful to provide alternative language for the same problem. It can be rephrased as “Maria Louise walks ¾ of a mile to school and Marc walks ¼ of a mile to school. How much further does Maria Louise walk than Marc?” The second one is long and, in

Math- specific language

General academic language

Non-academic language

Figure 7.2: Tiered vocabulary

Technical words, such as those used in math-specific language, are learned after the learner has a firm grasp of both nonacademic and general academic vocabularies.

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Section 7.4 Teaching Math

terms of the math alone, contains a lot of extraneous information. Rephrasing it as a series of statements will simplify it for learners:

Mrs. Sanchez went to the store and bought:

• Spinach $4.50 • Red peppers $5.30 • Tomatoes $4.00 • Olive oil $8.00 • Cheese $5.69

She gave the cashier $50. How much change did the cashier give her?

It is also useful to have students translate math symbols into words, including numeric prob- lems. Teachers can demonstrate alternative ways of “reading” a numeric problem. For exam- ple, –3 x 2 = can be read or spoken in many different ways, including

• minus three times two equals • minus three multiplied by two equals • minus three times two is equivalent to • negative three multiplied by two is equal to

The Role of Background Knowledge In teaching math, scaffolding on existing knowledge, whether mathematical or general, can make concepts and the language for expressing them easier to understand. Creating a math problem from a familiar situation, for example, builds new knowledge on old. For example, the following ways of presenting a problem require the same mathematical operations but will pose different levels of difficulty for ELLs:

1. What is its perimeter of a rectangle that is 8′ by 4′? 2. Find the perimeter of a rectangle that is 8′ long and 4′ wide. 3. We need to put a fence around the vegetable garden we planted last week. What is the

shape of our garden? How do we know how much fence to buy? Do we have to mea- sure all four sides?

In this problem, the longer third version will be easier for most ELL learners to understand than the first two; it is grounded in prior knowledge and builds sequentially to the correct computation and provides a concrete “hook” for learning and recalling the concept and word perimeter.

Writing in Math A good ELL teacher uses every opportunity to integrate language and content teaching. One technique that helps learners to understand math concepts and to practice writing skills is to have them create word problems from numeric ones. Asking them to create a story that cor- responds with 6 + 3 + 4 – 2 = allows the teacher to lead ELLs through practice with story and sentence structure, work on general and math-specific vocabulary, to see everyday applica- tions of math, and to connect with their own experience.

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Section 7.5 Teaching the Arts

7.5 Teaching the Arts Because ELLs are under so much pressure to learn English and the core content of the curric- ulum on which they will be assessed, teachers are sometimes tempted to forgo the arts—the creation and appreciation of music, dance, drama, and all of the visual arts including graphics, digital design, video, crafts, etc. As a result of some of the “accountability” measures discussed in Chapter 1, some teachers believe that the emphasis on literacy and math has pushed the arts out of the curriculum. Experienced teachers know, however, that this is a mistake. Not only is study of the arts integral to a well-rounded education and to the overall quality of life, it has significant academic benefits as well.

The Arts Increase the Capacity to Learn Studies have confirmed what teachers have long suspected, that learning about and practic- ing art has a broad effect on children’s cognitive development. For example, students gain increased observational skills:

Meaningful appreciation and study of works of art begins with close observa- tion. The Core Standards in Literacy similarly describe reading as the product of sustained observation and attention to detail. Particularly when encounter- ing complex art, or reading the level of complex text, students will need to be ready for college and careers, students will need to learn to reexamine and observe closely. (Coleman, 2012, p. 1)

Randy Kennedy, a researcher in New York City, studied the impact of the Guggenheim’s Learn- ing Through Arts program on children’s learning in other areas. He found that children in the program showed improved skills in six categories of critical thinking and literacy— including description, hypothesizing, and reasoning—not found in nonparticipants in the program (Kennedy, 2006).

Researchers have also found other important connections between the arts and other learning:

1. There are links between “high levels of music training and the ability to manipulate information in both working and long-term memory.”

2. Also,�“there�appear�to�be�specific�links�between�the�practice�of�music�and�skills�in� geometrical representation . . . ”

3. “Training in acting appears to lead to memory improvement through the learning of general skills for manipulating semantic information.” (Asbury & Rich, 2008, p. v)

4. The amount of musical training that children receive correlates with the improve- ment in children’s reading fluency. (Wandell et al., 2008, p. 51)

There is widespread research and anecdotal support for the notion that the arts improve children’s learning; it is also the case that teaching the arts can be supplementary or comple- mentary to the teaching of other curricular subjects. For ELLs, specifically,

The visual arts enhance language development by offering nonverbal meth- ods for communication and understanding and by providing a platform for students to create mental images. Integrating the arts into language arts and

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Section 7.5 Teaching the Arts

the content areas for ELLs can give students the opportunity to engage in new and varied approaches while gaining positive emotional responses to learn- ing, understanding others and communicating their own ideas. (New York State Education Department, 2010, p. 2)

Also, the study of art complements social studies. Students gain a deeper understanding of social, political, and cultural history by studying the art created during particular periods and in particular places. Conversely, they can better understand art by understanding the social, political, and cultural context in which it was created.

Alignment of the Arts with the CCSS There are two ways in which to consider how education in the arts fits into the goals inherent in the CCSS. One is to look for references to the arts in the language of the standards, and the other is to seek commonality in the broad goals and thinking skills required for both. The former reveals only a few references to arts in the writ- ing, speaking, and listening standards.

Writing and the Arts Only one of the writing standards is closely aligned to teaching of the arts, writing standard 2, as shown in Table 7.10.

Monkey Business Images/Thinkstock The time that children spend learning music also contributes to their becoming fluent readers.

Table 7.10: Progression of writing standard 2

Writing standard 2

Kindergarten Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to narrate a single event or several loosely linked events, tell about the events in the order in which they occurred, and pro- vide a reaction to what happened.

First grade Write narratives in which they recount two or more appropriately sequenced events, include some details regarding what happened, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide some sense of closure.

Second grade Write narratives in which they recount a well elaborated event or short sequence of events, include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure.

Third grade Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective tech- nique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences, and provide a sense of closure.

Fourth grade Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective tech- nique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences. Use concrete words, phrases and sensory details to convey experiences and events precisely.

Source: CCSS

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Section 7.5 Teaching the Arts

Although the kindergarten standard is the only one that directly references art, there are other ways to use art in fulfilling the requirements of these standards. For example, learners could do a story board as a pre-writing activity (second grade standard), they can illustrate their narratives, or a teacher could use the illustrations in books to elicit the details addressed in this standard. The eighth grade version of this standard requires learners to

introduce a topic clearly, previewing what is to follow; organize ideas, con- cepts, and information into broader categories; include formatting, graphics (e.g., charts, tables) and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.

Using multimedia, in particular, would provide an excellent bridge to between language and the arts.

Oral Language and the Arts Almost all of the CCSS for speaking and listening are highly relevant to the arts, and space does not permit us to explore all of the commonalities here. Table 7.11 shows the progres- sion of two standards that are especially applicable and relevant to ELLs. Because, as we well know, ELLs need a great deal of oral language practice on which to base all other language and content learning, the arts can be particularly significant for them. Not only does exposure to, and the opportunity to create, art and music round out and add balance to the curriculum, the arts provide valuable opportunities for ELLs to acquire broader communicative skills and to develop while they nurture their aesthetic sensibilities.

Table 7.11: Progression of two listening/speaking standards aligned with arts

Comprehension and collaboration: Presentation of knowledge and ideas:

Anchor standards Evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric.

Make strategic use of digital media and visual displays of data to express infor- mation and enhance understanding of presentations.

Kindergarten Confirm understanding of a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media by asking and answering questions about key details and requesting clarification if some- thing is not understood.

Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions as desired to provide additional detail.

First grade Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud or informa- tion presented orally or through other media.

Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions, when appropriate, to clarify ideas, thoughts, and feelings.

Second grade Recount or describe key ideas or details from a text read aloud or informa- tion presented orally or through other media.

Create audio recordings of stories or poems; add drawings or other visual displays to stories or recounts of experi- ences, when appropriate, to clarify ideas, thoughts, and feelings.

(continued)

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Section 7.5 Teaching the Arts

If ELLs are to receive maximum benefits from the integration of participation in the arts, other content learning, and language learning, it is especially important that all teachers involved in their education be working on the same goals. Ideally, the teacher who teaches language and social studies also teaches art, but if this is not the school’s practice, then collaboration between teachers becomes all the more important.

Before we leave this chapter, let’s hear from an ELL teacher who spent a productive summer learning a simple technique that could be used across all content areas in Why I Teach: What I Did Last Summer.

Comprehension and collaboration: Presentation of knowledge and ideas:

Third grade Determine the main ideas and sup- porting details of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quanti- tatively, and orally.

Create engaging audio recordings of stories or poems that demonstrate fluid reading at an understandable pace; add visual displays, when appropriate, to emphasize or enhance certain facts or details.

Fourth grade Paraphrase portions of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.

Add audio recordings and visual dis- plays to presentations, when appropri- ate, to enhance the development of main ideas or themes.

Fifth grade Interpret information presented in diverse media and formats (e.g., visu- ally, quantitatively, orally) and explain how it contributes to a topic, text, or issue under study.

Interpret information presented in diverse media and formats (e.g., visu- ally, quantitatively, orally) and explain how it contributes to a topic, text, or issue under study.

Author created, based on Source: CCSS

Why I Teach: What I Did Last Summer Colleen Williams is a fourth grade teacher in an urban environment. She typically has between 20 and 25 children in her classes, and most years, at least a third of them are ELLs. When the Common Core State Standards were adopted in her state, Colleen decided that she needed professional development, especially in the teaching of math. Here is her story:

I was always pretty good at math even though I didn’t much like it, but when I read the Com- mon Core standards for math, I panicked. For a little while I even thought about changing careers. Instead, I listened to my principal’s advice and went to a workshop in New York where we spent a week observing, discussing, and practicing what we learned in a sheltered class- room. It was an eye-opener! One of the methods we learned for math, which could be used for any content area, was a pre-reading activity called Possible Sentences. The purpose is to activate and connect with ELLs’ prior knowledge, and it’s really very simple. First, you choose

(continued)

Table 7.11: Progression of two listening/speaking standards aligned with arts (continued )

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Summary & Resources

Summary & Resources Faced with the dual task of acquiring English while learning all the content of the curriculum, ELLs are under a great deal of pressure to learn more and learn faster. Their teachers face the same pressures but they have the added stress of preparing their learn- ers to meet the rigorous requirements of the Common Core State Standards. But where there is challenge, there is also opportunity, and we have seen in this chapter that the interdisciplinary focus and organization of the CCSS actually accords with communicative language teaching with its emphasis on authentic, purposeful language use and practice. Careful planning is needed to build language and content skills incrementally and it is important to know the abilities and skills of each learner in order to know when and how to adapt reading or writing tasks to the appropriate level without compromising the content. In the following chapter, we will delve deeper into this notion of differentiated instruction in the context of teaching practice informed by research and by the experi- ence of others.

Key Ideas

1. The Common Core State Standards for K–5 are written only for English language arts and math, which means that there are many opportunities for ELLs to learn lan- guage in context.

2. The most relevant standards for content-area teaching and learning are those asso- ciated with reading for information.

3. The language of science presents particular challenges for ELLs, but science also presents opportunities to integrate knowledge from other media such as graphics, tables, charts, demonstrations, and hands-on experiments.

4. Similarly, social studies challenges ELLs because they might lack background knowl- edge in U.S. government and society, but the subject also affords many opportunities for cross-cultural comparisons.

5. English language learners are a valuable resource for teachers because of the differ- ent perspectives they bring to subject-area study, especially social studies.

Why I Teach: What I Did Last Summer (continued) vocabulary from the text that you are preparing to read and display the words somehow—on the board, on paper, on a whiteboard. Then you ask the students to put any related words into pairs and then to create sentences using the pairs of words, explaining that the sentences should be the ones they expect to see in the text. Next, they read the text and compare their possible sentences to the actual sentences in the text, and if they are inaccurate, they rewrite their sentences to make them accurate.

It’s an easy technique, but I’ve tried it in social studies and science as well as math with my ELLs of different ability levels. It works! I learned something that helped me as a teacher and helped all my students, and that is why I teach—so that I can keep on learning, too.

(Possible Sentences originated with Moore & Moore (1986), and is a strategy which is widely used to reinforce and predict vocabulary development.)

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Summary & Resources

6. Although math is considered to have its own language, understanding it also requires English language skills to read, hear, and correctly interpret word problems.

7. The arts provide learners opportunities for expression that is not wholly language dependent.

8. Study of the arts is integral to a well-rounded education and to the overall quality of life, but it has significant academic benefits as well, including increasing the capacity to learn.

9. Although there are some teaching strategies that align especially well with each con- tent area, generally the strategies that work in one area can be adapted for others.

Key Terms

basal readers Textbooks created specifi- cally for the teaching of reading. Also known as core readers.

curriculum A road map for teaching and learning that specifies content, resources, environment and context, and possi- bly methods or techniques for achieving standards.

English language arts (ELA) The generic term for those subjects that develop stu- dents’ comprehension and capacity for using the oral and written language.

idioms/idiomatic expressions Words or groups of words established by usage as having a meaning not discernible from the meanings of the individual words.

informational text A broad category of nonfiction resources, including biographies and autobiographies; books about history, social studies, science, and the arts; techni- cal texts, including how-to books and proce- dural books; and literary nonfiction.

Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) A multistate effort to create educa- tion standards rich in content and practice and organized coherently across disciplines and grade levels to provide all learners an internationally benchmarked science education.

nominal In grammar, a phrase or a clause that functions as a noun.

phonics A method of teaching beginners to read and pronounce words by learning the relationship between sounds and letters, let- ter groups, and syllables.

social studies A curricular area concerning social relationships and the functioning of society. Subject matter may be drawn from history, government, civics, sociology, geog- raphy, economics, and anthropology.

standards Guidelines that set the expecta- tions for the minimum level of knowledge a student must master at each level.

Critical Thinking Questions

1. In the introduction to this chapter, the author states that the Common Core standards represent an opportunity to develop elementary school curricula that are . . . consistent with the principles of communicative language teaching. How?

2. Read the following excerpt from a passage called Extreme Weather.

A cold front happens when cold air is moving near the surface of Earth, and it pushes warm air up very quickly. This is often the beginning of a thunderstorm.

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Summary & Resources

Clouds form, and heavy rains begin falling. Opposite electrical charges inside storm clouds separate, causing lightning to flash towards Earth. Lightning has enough energy to heat the air all around it. This sudden burst of heat is what causes the noise we know as thunder. Thunderstorms often bring disasters with them, including floods, fires caused by lightning, damage from hailstones or strong winds, and even tornadoes. A tornado is a spinning mass of air over land that can destroy virtually everything in its path. A blizzard is a combination of strong winds and extremely low temperatures. Snowfall increases until it is so heavy it is difficult or impossible to see. People can become lost in the snow and freeze to death. Homes can be covered over with snow, trapping people indoors. (Copyright © 2012 K12reader.com. All Rights Reserved. Free for educational use at home or in classroom.)

Now, consider the following questions about the passage:

a. What is a blizzard? b. What is a tornado?

What is the difference in the reading skills needed to answer the two questions 3. Consider the meaning of the word happen in the question “Why did that happen?”

Is there a difference in meaning between these two contexts:

a. The question refers to a man stealing $14 from a convenience store. b. The question refers to a mudslide in Oregon.

Is the difference sufficient to cause confusion for ELLs? 4. Some schools have sheltered classes or ESL classes where ELLs can get additional

support. Others have neither and the classroom teacher must teach all the subjects in the curriculum, including art. How could this situation be positive for ELLs, espe- cially in the elementary grades?

5. Examine Table 7.12. How could you relate these data in 7 Billion and Counting! to expand learners’ knowledge about population growth? What specific math and lan- guage skills might be addressed at the same time?

Table 7.12: The ten most densely populated cities on Earth

Rank City Area (mi²) Density (population per sq. mile)

Country

1 Manila 14.88 111,002 Philippines

2 Titagarh 1.25 99,293 India

3 Baranagar 2.75 91,220 India

4 Serampore 2.27 87,151 India

5 Mandaluyong 4.35 75,606 Philippines

(continued)

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Summary & Resources

Rank City Area (mi²) Density (population per sq. mile)

Country

6 South Dumdum 5.23 75,069 India

7 Kamarhati 4.23 74,323 India

8 Caloocan 20.6 72,302 Philippines

9 Levallois-Perret 0.93 68,458 France

10 Le Pré-Saint-Gervais 0.27 67,047 France

Table 7.12: The ten most densely populated cities on Earth (continued)

6. Discuss the importance of background knowledge in the content areas, generally. Is it more or less important in math than in art?

7. Describe ways in which art can be integrated into the teaching of core subjects. 8. What is the particular importance of graphic organizers and other nontext media for

ELLs? 9. What is the value in asking ELLs to state or explain a math equation in words? Is the

reverse activity any more or less useful? 10. Does the shift in emphasis of the CCSS from literary to informational text have any

particular significance for ELLs? Is it positive or negative in your view?

Additional Resources For an overview of the challenges ELLs face in content learning, see http://www.everythingesl.net/inservices/challenges_ells_content_area_l_65322.php

Common Core foundational skills in reading are listed with preface and commentary at http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/RF/introduction/

Practical information for using Common Core ELA Standards for ELLs in grades K–5 can be found at http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/51433/

A good resource for using science to develop ELLs’ language skills can be found at http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/15439/

To search for reading materials at different levels, visit http://www.lexile.com/

To analyze any text for reading level, see http://www.lexile.com/analyzer/

A Common Core resource for teachers and parents can be found on LearnZillion videos available at http://www.youtube.com/user/learnzillionvideo

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http://www.everythingesl.net/inservices/challenges_ells_content_area_l_65322.php

http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/RF/introduction/

http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/51433/

http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/15439/

http://www.youtube.com/user/learnzillionvideo

Summary & Resources

Next Generation Science Standards are available in an easily searchable format at http://www.nextgenscience.org/search-performance-expectations?tid_2%5B%5D= 13&term_node_tid_depth%5B%5D=111

For a video about the teaching of science to ELLs by Dr. Okhee Lee in association with the Stanford Understanding Language Project, see http://ell.stanford.edu/publication/language-demands-and-opportunities-relation-next- generation-science-standards-ells

An illustration of how science literacy requires the ability to interpret multiple modes of presentation can be found in practice tests for the Ohio Grade 8 Achievement Test in science at http://education.ohio.gov/getattachment/Topics/Testing/Testing-Materials/Practice- Tests-for-Grades-3-8-Achievement-Tests/Grade-8-Achievement-Tests/OH8SciPT_SB_Fall06. pdf.aspx

For helpful hints on teaching math to ELLs, see http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/30570/ and http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/10-ways-help-ells-succeed-math/

For a good analysis of the importance of arts in the curriculum, see Smith, F. (2014), Why arts education is crucial, and who’s doing best, Edutopia, April 30, 2014. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/arts-music-curriculum-child-development

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http://www.nextgenscience.org/search-performance-expectations?tid_2%5B%5D=13&term_node_tid_depth%5B%5D=111

http://ell.stanford.edu/publication/language-demands-and-opportunities-relation-next-generation-science-standards-ells

http://education.ohio.gov/getattachment/Topics/Testing/Testing-Materials/Practice-Tests-for-Grades-3-8-Achievement-Tests/Grade-8-Achievement-Tests/OH8SciPT_SB_Fall06.pdf.aspx

http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/30570/

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/10-ways-help-ells-succeed-math/

http://www.edutopia.org/arts-music-curriculum-child-development

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