Supporting English Language Learners: A Guide for Teachers and Administrators

From New Mexico to Nebraska to New Hampshire, virtually every school and every classroom contains English language learners—but not all teachers and administrators have the background to meet these students' needs effectively. With Supporting English Language Learners that's about to change.

Supporting English Language Learners is a comprehensive guide to English language instruction that both helps you understand the broad themes behind successful ELL programs and gives you hands-on teaching ideas. The book is organized into three parts:

• Creating a Context describes how to work with administrators or teachers to create an ELL program, as well as how to create home-school partnerships that support it.
• Classroom Matters offers explicit strategies for implementing best-practice ELL instruction, including suggestions on assessment, content study, and oral and written language development.
• Advocacy outlines the politics of ELLs, with ideas on advocating for your students, your curriculum, and your school or district's program.

Smart, passionate, practical, and filled with experience-honed thinking, Supporting English Language Learners is an ideal resource for all education professionals who are looking for the best ways to help nonnative learners. And with millions of English language learners entering America's classrooms, chances are that one of those education professionals is you.

Farin A. Houk is an elementary teacher in the Seattle area who has worked extensively with English language learners and their families in bilingual, dual language, and English-only programs. She lives in Seattle with her two sons Gabriel and Camilo.