T.ELL.E-gram

This month's highlights

Featured Articles

Teaching English language learners to be successful writers depends on the quality of the instructional process and practices, and on the classroom climate for learning. Standards-Based Writing for ELLs discusses key principles for writing instruction for English language learners and provides practical ideas for incorporating those principles into any classroom.

The current issue of Colorín Colorado's Spanish-language newsletter for parents, the Boletín informativo, includes lots of tips for parents who want to help their children develop strong writing skills. Check out the English-language summary, and then share the Spanish version with your ELLs' parents!

Blog Entry: Grammar Myths for the ELL/ESL Classroom

This blog entry from the NCTE Inbox (published online by the National Council of Teachers of English) talks about the grammatical and writing rules that make English such a frustrating language to learn. The blogger writes, "For an English language learner, the voice of the right way may be a teacher, a correcting peer, or a family member, but the effect is similar. Students mistrust their own literacy skills and sometimes learn it's better not to try." The blogger then offers some ideas of ways to support writing instruction in the ELL classroom.

Research and Reports

The Education Alliance at Brown University has just published the latest in a series of research reviews on issues concerning equity and diversity. Approaches to Writing Instruction for Adolescent English Language Learners: A Discussion of Recent Research and Practice Literature in Relation to Nationwide Standards on Writing* examines writing standards in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. It also identifies key issues in writing instruction for adolescent ELLs and discusses those issues in relationship to current research and practitioner literature. The report is available in pdf format and can be downloaded free of charge.

Making Writing Instruction a Priority in America's Middle and High Schools*, a 2007 policy brief published by the Alliance for Excellent Education, explores current writing instruction practices in American schools and offers suggestions for improvement. The report warns that middle and high school students currently do very little writing in school, and few receive adequate writing instruction. The Alliance offers recommendations for both teachers and policymakers and provides a list of eleven effective strategies for teaching writing.

In the Classroom

Bright Ideas that Work
Writing a Winning Essay

As part of assessments and/or high school graduation requirements in many states, students must pass a writing test. For ELL students, the writing test often poses one of the biggest challenges in testing and in meeting graduation requirements. In this month's Bright Ideas article, we offer strategies for overcoming those obstacles and writing a strong five-paragraph essay. The article outlines the process from start to finish, suggesting ways to help students develop a deeper understanding of writing test requirements, as well as tips for planning, organizing, and editing their essays.

Frequently Asked Questions

In this era of research- and standards-based instruction, teachers of English language learners recognize the need for creative, effective strategies to help their students succeed. As you plan instruction for your ELLs, you may want to consider the following:

• What is "scaffolding" and how does it help ELLs?
• We are receiving a large influx of Hispanic families into our community. What can be done to address a fair grading practice as most of our non-English speaking students struggle?

Find the answers to these and many other Frequently Asked Questions about teaching ELLs on Colorín Colorado.

Achieving Success: From the Heart

Inès Millin Mevs is an ELL teacher at Boca Raton Community High School in Florida. She has just published an ELL student writing workbook entitled Think Write Book: A Sentence Combining Workbook for ELL Students, published by AuthorHouse, which offers language development exercises designed to improve ELLs' writing skills. The student edition is accompanied by a teacher edition, which features information about the research base supporting each of the teaching strategies. In this interview with Colorín Colorado, Ms. Mevs discusses the book, her motivation for writing it, and the many ways in which her students — her "heroes and sheroes" — inspire her each day.

Book Recommendations

This month we are pleased to recommend two writing guides for teachers of ELLs!

Think Write Book: A Sentence Combining Workbook for ELL Students

By Inès Millian Mevs
Grade: Middle and High School

Sentence combining is a great technique that has been used for many years as an alternative to traditional grammar instruction. Now Inès Millin Mevs has created a sentence combining workbook designed specifically for English language learners. Students combine two or more short sentences into one longer, more interesting sentence, using conjunctions, relative pronouns, and other function words. In the process, they learn about English grammar and syntax, and they improve their writing skills.

Highlights of Think Write Book include clear, concise directions, comprehensive lists of function words, and exercises that focus on using sentence combining techniques to construct paragraphs. The workbook is accompanied by a teacher's edition that includes the research base for all strategies, examples of scoring rubrics, and many excellent suggestions for incorporating sentence combining into classroom instruction.

Purchase teacher edition >>
Purchase student edition >>

All Write: A Student Handbook for Writing and Learning

By Dave Kemper, Patrick Sebranek, and Verne Meyer
Grade: Upper Elementary, Middle and High School

All Write is the only writing handbook your students will need. Each chapter is stuffed with information on topics ranging from prewriting techniques to taking lecture notes. A variety of writing forms are discussed, including letters, journals, and news stories, as well as reports and creative writing. Particularly useful is the "Proofreader's Guide," which offers comprehensive but concise information on punctuation, spelling, grammar, and idioms. There is also a "Student Almanac" with maps, charts, math tables, vocabulary lists, and other useful resources. The user-friendly format and attractive layout will have your students returning to All Write again and again.

Purchase book >>

Beyond the Classroom

Book of the Month

My Name Is Celia / Me llamo Celia (bilingual)

By Monica Brown

It's Women's History Month, so we thought it was the perfect time to celebrate a Latina legend! The beautiful artwork of this award-winning picture book about salsa queen Celia Cruz practically jumps off the page, and conveys the spirit and rhythmic energy of her music. Readers learn about Cruz's childhood in Havana and her entry into the world of salsa music from vibrant illustrations and text presented in English and Spanish.

In a Word: Collaborative Writing

This month's glossary term refers to an instructional approach in which students work together to plan, draft, revise, and edit compositions.

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