http://www.colorincolorado.org/ A bilingual site for families and educators of English language learners en-us Administrator hourly 1 http://backend.userland.com/rss http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57173 Fri, 24 May 2013 12:13:43 GMT More than a dozen New York City Council members, the presidents of New York's three library systems, and several hundred librarians, library staff, supporters, advocates, and children from nearby schools rallied today on the steps of city hall to protest $106 million in proposed funding cuts. Council members Jimmy Van Bramer and Vincent J. Gentile also pledged to introduce legislation that would create a baseline of stable funding for the city's public library services. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57173 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57169 Fri, 24 May 2013 12:08:16 GMT Melissa Block talks to teacher Shelly Hoisington. Hoisington teaches fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth grade at McCormick Elementary School — a one-room school in Troy, Mont. Hoisington recently convinced Gov. Steve Bullock to speak at the graduation ceremony for the five students in eighth grade. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57169 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57168 Fri, 24 May 2013 12:07:51 GMT Passion for geography runs deep in Sathwik Karnik's family. When he was about 6, his mother began challenging Sathwik and his older brother, Karthik, to her own version of hide-and-seek — using an atlas. The games paid off when Karthik, now 15, made the finals of the National Geographic Bee in 2011 and 2012. But it was 12-year-old Sathwik, of Plainville, Mass., who finished the job, calmly answering questions about obscure island chains, bodies of water, global trade and culture to win the 25th annual geography bee Wednesday. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57168 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57172 Thu, 23 May 2013 14:09:20 GMT The following excerpt from a letter to New York Education Commissioner John King from a number of New York principals explains the problems educators and administrators found with recent tests aligned to the Common Core: "Because schools have not had a lot of time to unpack Common Core, we fear that too many educators will use these high stakes tests to guide their curricula, rather than the more meaningful Common Core Standards themselves. And because the tests are missing Common Core's essential values, we fear that students will experience curriculum that misses the point as well." http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57172 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57171 Thu, 23 May 2013 12:08:57 GMT Schools in Indian Country are starting to feel the effects of across-the-board federal budget cuts known as sequestration. For the Navajo Nation that means larger class sizes, putting off building repairs and fewer buses — which is a big deal in a place where children travel up to 70 miles to get to school. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57171 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57170 Thu, 23 May 2013 12:05:37 GMT Football, zumba, softball and boxing are some of the fun activities children said they do for exercise at the first annual Muevete USA event. Combating childhood obesity was the focus at the Muevete USA project held Saturday at Cesar Chavez Elementary in Calexico, CA. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57170 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57151 Wed, 22 May 2013 15:31:35 GMT The U.S. Department of Education's process to find a new contractor to manage the National Clearinghouse for English-Language Acquisition seems to be one without end. For the second time in the past six months, a protest of the department's contracting process has prompted agency officials to say they will hold a "do over" of sorts in their competition to award a $1.5 million contract for the clearinghouse, known best as NCELA. That decision means NCELA won't likely have a new contractor overseeing its operations until well into the summer. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57151 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57150 Wed, 22 May 2013 15:31:07 GMT In the tornado-ravaged Oklahoma town of Moore, America's diversity was displayed in both victims and Good Samaritans. Moore, which is adjacent to Oklahoma City, reflects the growing diversity of the Sooner State, which saw its Latino community double in the last decade to comprise 10 percent of Oklahoma's nearly 4 million residents. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57150 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57149 Wed, 22 May 2013 15:30:51 GMT The YMCA of Greater Boston has created an urban swimming program that focuses on teaching poor black and Latino kids how to stay safe in the water. CEO Kevin Washington, who learned to swim at the Y when he was 9, says minority children who live in cities often don't take lessons because their families can't afford them or don't have access to a pool. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57149 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57123 Tue, 21 May 2013 14:48:22 GMT A group made up of undocumented Asian youths living in New York and other eastern states has launched a new social media campaign meant to push their stories into the public eye as the debate over immigration reform rages on in Washington. The project, called Raise Our Story, features young Asian immigrants who were brought to the United States as children. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57123 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57122 Tue, 21 May 2013 14:47:31 GMT In this editorial about whether to launch a national search for Clark County's new superintendent, UNLV Professor Sylvia Lazos writes, "The challenge of the coming five years is to close the achievement gap of English Language Learners, or ELL students. According to the 2011 Nevada Report Card, 70 percent of ELL students in K-8 are not reading at grade level… ELL students are a large segment of the school district's population — 54,000 students, according to most recent data, a jump of 13 percent from last year." http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57122 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57121 Tue, 21 May 2013 14:47:13 GMT Salud America! The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Research Network to Prevent Obesity Among Latino Children. ]]> Latino students are widely exposed to high-fat, high-sugar snacks and drinks sold in schools, but implementing stronger nutritional standards can yield healthier school snacks for this growing population at high risk of obesity, according to a new package of research materials released today by Salud America! The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Research Network to Prevent Obesity Among Latino Children. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57121 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57086 Mon, 20 May 2013 14:10:03 GMT Disputes over Arizona's approach to educating English-language learners show few signs of abating as the plaintiffs in a 2-decade-old lawsuit continue to challenge the state's requirement that such students spend more than half their school day learning English, with little access to other academic content. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57086 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57085 Mon, 20 May 2013 14:09:35 GMT Many people were surprised when the 2010 Census revealed that 120,000 people in Hawaii identified themselves as having Hispanic heritage, about 9 percent of the state's residents. In fact, the Hispanic population in the Islands had grown by 38 percent since the previous Census, while the overall population grew only 12 percent, making them the state's fastest growing ethnic group counted by the Census. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57085 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57084 Mon, 20 May 2013 14:09:16 GMT While Bill 14 has revived many tensions between Quebec's francophone and anglophone communities, an English high school in Quebec City is offering a fresh perspective on the debate. Despite recent rifts between the two languages, St-Patrick's high school shows they're more blended than ever. In the cross-talk over Bill 14, it might be an example of how working together. Just eight blocks from the National Assembly, the bilingual high school students feel they're the lucky ones. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57084 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57044 Fri, 17 May 2013 14:55:55 GMT "Sesame Street" has announced they are introducing a new Latino character and his name is Armando. As it heads into its 44th season the classic kids show will focus on Hispanic heritage. Armando or 'Mando' as he will be known on the show is a writer from Puerto Rico. He will not be the first bilingual character on the cast, "Sesame Street" already has Muppets Rosita and Ovejita, as well as Luis and Maria, according to a press release from Sesame Workshop. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57044 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57043 Fri, 17 May 2013 14:55:28 GMT Collinsville, Alabama is a small town of approximately 2,000 people, but this past weekend a group of 22 Latino students put it on the national map. Collinsville High School's all-Hispanic soccer team won the state championship with a final score of 4:1. Principal Donny Jones, as well as the entire town, is elated because the school hasn't won a state championship in 38 years. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57043 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57042 Fri, 17 May 2013 14:55:08 GMT Through the America's Great Outdoors Initiative, Environment for the Americas offers internships to Latino youth and trains them in shorebird monitoring and environmental education. In this interview, California native Lesly Caballero talks about her experiences learning to conduct wildlife surveys and developing bilingual environmental education programs. Her upcoming project is shorebird surveys in the Copper River Delta, a crucial stopover site for migrating shorebirds on their way to their breeding grounds in the Arctic. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57042 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57007 Thu, 16 May 2013 14:54:34 GMT Supporters of the Common Core State Standards are moving to confront increasingly high-profile opposition to the standards at the state and national levels by rallying the private sector and initiating coordinated public relations and advertising campaigns as schools continue implementation. In states such as Michigan and Tennessee, where common-core opponents feel momentum is with them, state education officials, the business community, and allied advocacy groups are ramping up efforts to define and buttress support for the standards — and to counter what they say is misinformation. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57007 http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57005 Thu, 16 May 2013 14:54:13 GMT U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Wednesday told thousands of parents of English language learners to always ask for help when needed and to learn alongside their children. "They cannot do it without your help," she said at the 10th Annual ELL Parent Conference in New York City. http://www.colorincolorado.org/ellnews/57005