ELL News Headlines

After months of deliberation, the editors of School Library Journal and their insightful reviewer committee members have selected 139 titles addressing topics — such as climate change, racism, and history — that are more relevant than ever. They also include a balance of fantasy, historical and realistic fiction, and, for the first time in years, a breakout list of poetry. There’s a nice sprinkle of story time picks and slice-of-life tales.

American Indian storytelling has enjoyed a major resurgence over the last 20 years. It has survived several attempts at eradication, largely by external forces. Here are some of the incredible difficulties it’s been through in the past 100 years or more, followed by a closer look at some of the traditions of American Indian storytelling.

Book sales are soaring among teenagers and young adults nationally. So, the Burlington Public Library is targeting young readers with improved facilities and programs. The library has remodeled and expanded an area designed for young readers, and programming has been introduced to offer teens everything from yoga to cooking classes.

On a sunny day in early November, teacher Trish Curran wasn’t corralling elementary phys ed students as she normally would be. Instead, she was educating her colleagues at Taos Municipal Schools on the benefits of walking. Technically, it was a normal districtwide professional development day: one without students, where school staff members are expected to come and learn something new, refine existing skills or plan upcoming lessons. But with teachers and custodians walking the track together in one session, and counselors and administrators learning about homeopathic remedies side by side in another, it was obvious that this had little in common with traditional professional development days.

This webinar illuminates the challenges English learners have experienced over the last two years. Speakers describe state- and district-level efforts to help ELs re-engage in high school, recover academically, and address mental health needs. Participants also hear the results of new research on the postsecondary aspirations of immigrant-background Latina/o students and how the pandemic may have helped shape their decisionmaking.

In this question of the week, educators respond to the following: "What are the most important lessons you have learned from your students?"

In a school district comprised of almost 30 percent Latinx students, Poughkeepsie City School District offers no bilingual education program to support its Spanish-speaking students, a violation of state regulations.

A bipartisan group led by two former governors is urging President Biden to help an estimated 167,000 children who have lost parents or caregivers.

Elected school board members make decisions that impact every aspect of a student’s education. Though Latino students make up a quarter of America’s student body, most school boards have no Latino representation.

Decatur students in the bilingual/ESL/dual-language program juggle English and Spanish in and out of the classroom. While the languages carry many similarities, one sound that transcends language is the ding of a bell at spelling bees. Next week 61 elementary students will compete to see who can avoid the ding the longest at a districtwide bilingual spelling bee Dec. 16 at Rann Elementary.