This week, we share a Digital Library article written by Tasha Tropp Laman entitled “Talking With English Language Learners About Their Writing.” Tasha encourages teachers to use writing conferences—in spite of the “messiness” of trying to communicate with students whose native language is not English—to help students communicate and express themselves.
She presents some simple but effective communication tools to use with emerging English Language learners: learning key phrases in the student’s native language, encouraging drawing as a means of communicating, and smiling! It’s amazing what a warm smile can do to ease a student’s anxiety.
Tasha offers strategies and positive language to help bring multilingual learners from the periphery of the classroom to the center of learning by engaging them in writing conferences, including:
Click here to download the PDF
Be sure to share this post with any colleagues who may also benefit from considering these strategies when working with multilingual students.
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