Finding Purpose in Teaching ESL
As I stood in my empty classroom surrounded by piles of boxes, I couldn’t help but wonder: what was I going to do now?
ESL and ELL
A Lesson on Empathy: Refugees and the UN Rights of a Child
During our staff meeting that afternoon, my colleagues and I learned our school had six new students who were Syrian refugees.
What’s in a Name? Implicit Bias of ELL First Names
These days children’s names are seldom manipulated into more “Americanized White” versions. However, first names of English Language Learners, even for the most experienced ...
Starting a Rubik’s Cube Club
Are you interested in improving student engagement with your ELL students? Here’s an idea that I tried at my elementary school that was both fun and successful—a Rubik’s Cube club.
The Promise of Bilingualism
From a young age, I wanted to be bilingual in English and French. I am not, however. It is a big regret that I am working to rectify.
Bonjour, My Friend: Understanding Minority Language Rights
It’s second nature to expect that Canada is—at certain levels—bilingual, but it wasn’t always that way.
Keeping Bilingualism Alive: A Conversation with the Official Languages Commissioner
Statistics show Canadians support children learning both official languages. Yet there is a struggle to recruit and retain French as a Second Language (FSL) teachers across Canada.
Complex Learning Environments: The ESL Challenge
For K-12 teachers of English as a Second Language, the shifting nature of the ESL population is creating a new set of classroom challenges.
Welcoming Refugees into Your Classroom
Adele Rezai recalls a few girls opening the windows of her classroom saying, “Let’s get the air of (those) kids out.” It happened quickly, as a class for students learning ...
PBS Math Club Builds Confidence for ESL Students
While tutoring non-native English speakers, instructors are not only faced with the challenge of differentiating instruction for multiple subjects and learning levels, but we ...