We’ve teamed up with our friends at West Chester University to bring you two new lesson plans that bring multicultural education to your classroom! Download the free lesson plans and adapt them to the unique needs of your classroom. Homeschooling parents, use the activities to build literacy skills and explore new languages and cultures with your kids! Continue reading 2 New (Free!) Multicultural Lesson Plans
Category Archives: Teacher Resources
Parents Night for Bilingual ELL Families
Have you thought about hosting a Parents Night event just for your bilingual families? It’s a great opportunity to create a personal connection with parents who have a unique set of concerns, as well as a valuable skill set to bring to your classroom. Continue reading Parents Night for Bilingual ELL Families
Preparing Your Classroom for Bilingual Students
It may be hard to believe, but summer is coming to an end. Beach days and family barbecues will soon be behind us. You find your mind is full of lesson plans and an incoming class of new faces. As you’re organizing shelves and deciding on the optimal classroom layout, remember to consider the needs of your bilingual students. Now is the perfect time to create a welcoming classroom that reflects acceptance and diversity right from the start. Continue reading Preparing Your Classroom for Bilingual Students
Using Cognates to Support Second Language and Literacy Learning
by guest blogger Karen Nemeth EdM
Cognates are pairs of words that sound alike and have the same meaning in two different languages. They are useful first steps in learning a new language.
How Do Cognates Work?
In English we say “elephant” and in Spanish we say “elefante.” English and Spanish speakers can easily make the connection between these cognates to learn and remember the animal’s name. In English, we say “frog” but in Spanish we say “rana.” Frog and rana are not cognates, and the lack of connection means learners will find those words harder to use and remember. We know that people need to use their new language to really learn it. Cognates make it possible for language learners at any age to use their new words right away. By starting with the cognate words, a learner can build their vocabulary and gain the confidence to add more words in their new language.
Find Cognates in Your Target Language
Spanish and English share hundreds of cognates and have borrowed from each other for centuries. There are also many cognates that connect German to English, such as “mouse” and “maus”. Other languages, like Chinese and Arabic, have fewer cognates with English words. Lists of cognate words in different languages can be found online. I created a resource for Spanish-English cognates in preschool and kindergarten called Language Castle Cognate Guide. It has user-friendly lists of simple cognates in the different educational domains to support early learning. Other cognate resources can be found at colorincolorado.org. Bilingual children’s books, or matching books in two or more languages, can also be great resources to find vocabulary connections.
Learning Activities Using Cognates
Research shows that teachers and families can help children learn a new language successfully when they use cognates to explain the meanings of words in conversations and stories. Look for examples of cognates to support the language learners you work with. Use the pairs of words to help children understand the characters, stories and facts in books. Plan activities around the cognates you have found. Add cognates to familiar songs. Use cognates in puppet shows or pretend play to give children more opportunities to practice and use the words. Highlight cognates on word walls or classroom dictionaries. Plan science and math lessons that use cognates to strengthen children’s comprehension. Building connections through cognates is a sure path to success.
Read more about what experts are saying about the importance of using cognates to build second language learning:
August, D., Carlo, M., Dressler, C. and Snow, C. (2005) The Critical Role of Vocabulary Development for English Language Learners. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 20: 50–57
Collins, M.F. (2010) ELL preschoolers’ English vocabulary acquisition from storybook reading, Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 25(1), 84-97
Gillanders, C. & Castro, D.C. (2011) Storybook reading for young dual language learners, Young Children, January 2011, 91-95
Lugo-Neris, M.J., Jackson, C.W., Goldstein, H (2008) Facilitating Vocabulary Acquisition of Young English Language Learners, Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 41, 314-327
Pérez, A.M., Peña, E.D., & Bedore, L.M. (2010) Cognates facilitate young Spanish-English bilinguals’ test performance, Early Childhood Services, 4(1), 55-67
Wallace, Christopher, (2007) Vocabulary: The Key to Teaching English Language Learners to Read, Reading Improvement, 44.4 , 189-193
Be sure to check out languagecastle.com, Karen Nemeth’s website that offers a wealth of resources for anyone who teaches young children who speak different languages.
This blog post is linked with the monthly Creative Kids Culture Blog Hop. Be sure to check out other bloggers’ tips, teaching strategies, and resources!
Holi Festival + World Folktales & Fables Week: New Lesson Plans & Discount
We’re excited to share new, free multicultural lesson plans you can use to celebrate two fun upcoming holidays:
Holi “Festival of Colors” (March 13, 2017)
Holi [pronounced houli], also known as the Festival of Colors, is a popular springtime festival celebrated in many parts of South Asia and around the world. This festival celebrates the coming of spring and the end of winter. It is also a day to give thanks for a good harvest. It’s a time to forgive and forget, be with your friends and your family, and have a whole lot of fun.
The Holi Festival lasts two days. The first night, there’s a big bonfire that everyone gathers around. The next day is when all the fun begins! Ranwali Holi—as day 2 is called—is the day of colors. People, old and young, friends and strangers, carry spritzers and balloons filled with colored water, and they spray each other until everyone is multi‐colored and beautiful.
World Folktales and Fables Week (March 19-25, 2017)
World Folktales and Fables Week is dedicated to encouraging children and adults to explore the lessons and cultural background of folktales, fables, myths and legends from around the world.
Reading world folktales and fables is not only a wonderful way to entertain and bond with children, it is also an effective way to educate them. The stories in classic folklore offer both social lessons as well as an opportunity to teach about cultures and languages. Be sure to enjoy a good folktale in your classroom or home!
Celebrate with Free Lesson Plans & Discount
It’s easy to download these lessons, along with other multicultural lesson plans that you can use throughout the year!
As a special bonus for World Folktales & Fables Week 2017, Language Lizard is offering a 10% discount on the following bilingual folktales and fables available in English with multiple other languages: Buri and the Marrow, The Crow King, The Dragon’s Tears, Goose Fables, Lion Fables and Yeh Hsien: A Chinese Cinderella.
Simply enter coupon code FABLES2017 to receive the discount (valid through March 31, 2017).
More Resources
To celebrate World Folktales and Fables Week, check out these blog posts for great ideas you can use in the classroom and at home:
World Folktales and Fables: Effective Teaching Tools to Educate and Entertain Children
Celebrate World Folktales and Fables Week in the Classroom and at Home
“Holi Celebrations” by wonker via Flickr is licensed under CC BY 2.0 https://flic.kr/p/4CL6qE
How to Create a Classroom Listening Center
If your classroom or library makes use of learning centers, you may be thinking about setting one up as a listening center. Students of all ages and levels, especially English language learners, benefit from this type of interactive, multi-sensory learning. Below, we offer some tips to help get your listening center up and running.
Make a Listening Center Plan
What type of Listening Center best suits your classroom? Would you like your students to focus on literacy gains and improve comprehension and vocabulary? Or do you want to focus on increasing their motivation to read, and improving their self-esteem and interpersonal skills? What are their reading levels? Do you want to rotate themes throughout the year to supplement your lesson plans?
What kind of seating will you have? A large rug, bean bags and chairs are good options. How much space do you have available, and how many students will fit? Having a separate set of learning materials for each student is ideal; but if they must share, you generally want to limit groups to no more than 3.
What listening technology will you use? You can opt for books on CD, MP3 players, ipods, or an interactive audio learning set.
How will you keep items organized? It’s best to clearly label books, buttons and learning materials. An interactive learning product like the PENpal Audio Recorder Pen allows teachers and students to record messages onto stickers with recordable labels, so your listening center can be fully customized.
Gather Your Listening Center Supplies
Now that you have a materials list for your center, it’s time to gather the supplies! Let parents know about your plan, and ask them to donate cash or supplies. Families may have unused MP3 players or ipods at home, as well as rugs, bean bag chairs and storage bins. You may want to implement a BYOHP (Bring Your Own Head Phones) policy for your students.
Check if any materials can be borrowed from your school and local libraries, or create a classroom project donation request on donorschoose.org and ask parents to promote it on social media.
It may be a good idea to team up with other teachers of the same grade level, to create a shared listening center. While this cooperative method comes with additional scheduling and maintenance concerns, it eases the initial burden of fundraising for any one classroom. And remember, it’s ok to start your Listening Center small, and build over time!
Do you have an outstanding Listening Center at your school? Comment below and share what makes it so great!
“Audio Book” by Jeff Golden via Flickr is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 https://flic.kr/p/88og6h
Language Lizard is co-sponsoring a Listening Center giveaway… Enter below by January 14, 2017 for a chance to win!
Newcomer Toolkit: Supporting New Immigrant Students
In the past, we’ve written about online resources that can help educators trying to accommodate an increasingly diverse student population, as well as tips to make the critical first days of school go more smoothly for bilingual students in your classroom.
Today, we take a look at the US Department of Education’s recently updated, detailed Newcomer Toolkit, designed to help educators (teachers, principals and school staff) working with foreign-born students who have recently arrived in the US. In addition to providing general background information like correct terminology, census data and the many contributions of immigrants to our society, the toolkit offers a wealth of additional resources and extensive chapters on a wide array of topics.
Welcoming Newcomers
We know it’s crucial to create a safe and inclusive environment for new immigrant students arriving at your school. The Toolkit’s second chapter provides guidance on the most effective ways to communicate with parents of newcomers, so they understand their children’s rights, as well as the way your school operates. There is a close look at developing a safe and supportive framework at your school that includes engagement through strong relationships, safety from bullying and other dangers, and creating an environment with appropriate facilities and disciplinary policies.
Provide High Quality Instruction
This chapter in the Toolkit is focused on ways to identify and build on a student’s strengths, and how to help each student reach his/her full potential. Some highlights are addressing common misconceptions about newcomers, and helping the entire school community appreciate the unique global view that newcomers can contribute.
Social Emotional Needs
In the fourth chapter, the importance of addressing a newcomer’s social and emotional needs is examined. Strategies that are specific to teachers, other students, an entire classroom, and the whole school are discussed. There is also a look at the most common social emotional stressors newcomers face.
Partnering with Families
The final chapter of the Toolkit looks at the importance of collaborating with the families of newcomers. You can learn about the 4 stages of parent involvement (survivor, learner, connector and leader), and how each type requires a different approach.
Another section is dedicated to the role of the Parent Center, where families can connect with each other, and parents can feel safe seeking answers from a volunteer or staff member.
The Toolkit is not only a detailed guide for educators working with newcomers and their families, it also offers a wealth of further online resources within, and at the end of, each chapter. We strongly recommend this Toolkit as an important resource for all educators working with newcomers.
What outstanding resources does your school offer families that have newly arrived in the US? Share them below!
“Classroom” by Allison Meier via Flickr is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 https://flic.kr/p/5KRnrx
We’re linking up with other educational bloggers to bring you fun ideas and a great giveaway too!
Supporting Oral Language Development in the Classroom & At Home
The process of language development in children is an amazing one, and full of so much complexity. Here, we offer 5 fun activity ideas that can help the oral language development of the kids in your home or classroom.
Oral Language and Literacy
So much of language is learned in the early years of life, simply by listening to and interacting with those around us. As time goes by, our oral language skills improve through practice and formal instruction. Oral language is made up of three parts: phonological (how sounds are combined), semantic (the smallest components of words), and syntactic (how sentences are put together).
Literacy begins with good oral language skills. In a classroom setting, it may feel counter-intuitive for a teacher to allow students more time to talk in groups, but there are a number of advantages to doing so. They gain valuable practice with new vocabulary, enhance conversational proficiency, and improve their ability to express their ideas. Also, kids often feel more relaxed when speaking to their peers because they aren’t so worried about giving the “wrong” answer. As such, they are more open to absorbing and learning from what’s being discussed, in turn improving their overall language skills.
Activities for Oral Language Development
No matter the type of activity, keep these guidelines in mind when planning:
- Keep the activity free from anxiety by creating a positive environment to limit the fear of embarrassment.
- Provide clear instructions, possibly in different formats, so that all learning types can understand what’s expected.
- Keep activities engaging by introducing fun or dramatic elements.
- Lastly, remember that kids will need lots of repetition to practice their oral language skills.
Here are 5 activity ideas, from our post about language development in the classroom:
- Mini Circle Chats: Have your students sit in circles of 4 or 5. Give them a list of fun questions that encourage more than single-word answers. Let students know that they can engage in discussions together so they can talk about similarities and differences. If you have a very diverse classroom, ensure that each circle includes a mix of cultures.
- Word Play: Ask students to write 5-10 words (in any language). Have each student share one of their words with the class, and ask the student to explain why he or she chose to write down that word. Does it represent a feeling or an event that took place?
- Memory Drawings: Have students draw their favorite memories, then share with the rest of the class, explaining the different elements of their picture. Or, spread out a long piece of paper and have students draw their memories at the same time on a wall mural. When the time is up, hang the mural up on the wall and let everyone spend a good amount of time looking at it up close and talking about it. Eventually you can have the students sit down on the floor in front of the mural and talk as a group about what they see and what thoughts come to their minds.
- Multicultural Traditions: Have students sit together in a circle to share one of their cultural or family traditions. Then ask others in the circle if they also participate in the tradition with their family and if so, whether or not they celebrate it in the same way. Help students notice that not everyone has the same traditions, and that even the same traditions can be celebrated in different ways.
Differentiated Instruction
For those times when group or peer interaction isn’t realistic, an individualized learning tool like the PENpal Audio Recorder Pen can be invaluable in providing the differentiated instruction needed to help teachers reach every student, of all skill levels, in an effective way. Free video and print resources on the Language Lizard website help educators and parents use the Talking Pen to effectively develop and assess oral language skills, as well as build fluency and improve phonemic awareness with their students.
“Girl Talk” by Dean Wissing via Flickr is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 https://flic.kr/p/6r3SmY
We’re linking up with other bloggers to bring you fun ideas and a giveaway!
Enter here for a chance to win a gift card in our Rafflecopter giveaway!
Educational Resources for Student Immigrants, Refugees
The number of immigrant and refugee children has increased over the past decade, and is now the fastest-growing segment in the US youth population. These students face many challenges when adapting to a new life in the US: culture shock, making friends, and learning a new language, just to name a few. All too often, schools lack the resources to research the best ways to help these students, and miss out on methods developed by other districts that have faced similar issues. Below are some online resources that can help educators trying to accommodate an increasingly diverse student population.
Refugee or Immigrant?
An immigrant is “someone who chooses to resettle to another country.” For example, a foreign national who is issued a visa to live and work permanently in the US via a legal process to attain citizenship.
A refugee is “someone who has been forced to flee his or her home country.” Refugees apply for asylum in the US, and must prove that they will be injured if they return to their home country due to their race, religion, nationality, social group or political opinion.
How to Prepare Your Classroom
New York’s Bureau of Refugee and Immigrant Assistance offers a straightforward guide with tips to prepare your classroom for new immigrant and refugee students. The tips include discussing the advantages of having students from around the world in the classroom, showing on a map where the students are from, and how far they have traveled, and the importance of watching out for signals that newcomers are being bullied, since many refugee students won’t voluntary speak up about these issues.
The US Department of Education has a website dedicated to “Educational Resources for Immigrants, Refugees, Asylees and other New Americans.” There, you can find the latest news and guides that focus on the importance of integrating newcomers into the classroom community. You can also find resources like a toolkit for school districts serving English language learners, and services for unaccompanied children.
Welcome & Orient Newcomers
To help smooth the transition for newcomers arriving at a new school, create a welcome process for teachers, administrators and students. Include a school ambassador program, where newcomers are paired with a “buddy” who is a trained peer, and try to integrate information about the new student’s culture and country into your classroom routines. Or, find appropriate activities to keep the new student engaged in learning while their English skills are still developing.
Reach out to Parents
The Center for Health and Health Care in Schools offers a detailed guide that focuses on the importance of successfully engaging the parents of immigrant and refugee students. It gives many ways to partner with those families, and reminds us that “refugee parents resettled here for their children. They are fully invested in their children’s future.” Some tips include having regular meetings with families that include bilingual support, food and childcare.
All children go through a transition period when first entering school. Immigrant and refugee children, in particular, need clear and dedicated support from their schools. By doing this right from the beginning, the year is sure to progress more smoothly and comfortably for everyone in the classroom.
“I <3 2 read” by Kate Ter Haar via Flickr licensed under CC BY 2.0 https://flic.kr/p/dRpekF
This blog post is linked with the monthly iTeachBilinguals linkup. Be sure to check out other bloggers’ tips, teaching strategies, and resources!
PENpal Audio Recorder Pen: Tap & Listen to Bilingual Books & Recordable Labels
Language Lizard is proud to announce the PENpal Audio Recorder Pen… The pen that’s bringing sound to paper!
What is PENpal?
An award-winning digital audio “pen” that promotes reading, speaking and listening for a diverse student population. PENpal supports dIfferentiated instruction and inclusiveness.
- Listen to content in many languages by simply touching the pen to interactive books, charts, labels and other learning resources.
- Record your own narrative, music or sound effects with Recordable Labels.
What can you do with PENpal and Recordable Labels?
- Download hundreds of pre-recorded sound files (for free) to turn many of our bilingual picture books into “talking books.”
- Animate any object with sound.
- Allow students to record, save, and playback their own recordings.
- Customize resources for children with special needs.
- Record instructions for students, role play, story tell.
- Send home with parents to support home literacy partnerships.
- The possibilities are endless!
Who is it for?
The PENpal Audio Recorder Pen, along with our multilingual resources, supports reading, writing, speaking and listening for:
- English Language Learners
- New arrivals from foreign countries
- Foreign language learners
- Learners with special needs
- Any student in need of an inclusive resource that develops literacy skills
PENpal is interactive, enjoyable and effective!
Record your own voice with Recordable Labels
- Animate any object with sound
- Record language, music, messages or sound effects
- Change recordings any time
- Record instructions for students, role play, story tell
- Allow students to record, save, and playback their own recordings
PENpal Interactive Literacy Sets
Exclusive PENpal Interactive Literacy Sets in many languages are an amazing way to support Dual Language Learners! Language Lizard offers an extensive selection of literacy sets that include the PENpal Audio Recorder Pen along with our award-winning bilingual “talking books”.
PENpal Interactive Literacy Sets are available in Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, French, Haitian-Creole, Hindi, Lithuanian, Panjabi, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Somali, Spanish, Turkish, Urdu, Vietnamese and more! Books with sound files are available in about 40 languages.
STARTER SETS in your choice of language
- PENpal Audio Recorder Pen
- 4 bilingual books in your choice of language
- A sample set of Recordable Stickers
- A beautifully illustrated picture dictionary (optional)
- USB charger, 4GB SD card and rechargeable batteries
ENHANCED SETS with 10 bilingual books and everything included in the starter sets!
SUPER SETS with 20 bilingual books! (available in limited languages)
Other Great PENpal Products
- Special Literacy & Phonics Sets
- Dictionary & PENpal Sets
- Multilingual Key Phrases Chart
- Various Charts & Posters to Support Language Acquisition
- Phonetic Magnets
- Student & Teacher Recordable Labels
- Oral Progress Reading Charts for Student Assessment
See our full range of PENpal products and exclusive sets
Get comprehensive PENpal FAQs, videos and support