Teacher Tip Tuesday: English Learner Series Tip #7

Assessment is an integral part of learning, particularly for English Learners. Having an effective strategy for ongoing formative assessment is critical to accelerate literacy development. Read on to learn how to take advantage of Footsteps2Brilliance’s advanced assessment algorithms and comprehensive Class Dashboard reports to get the most out of assessments without taking away from important instructional time.

How to incorporate assessment into your literacy instruction

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Teacher Tip Tuesday: English Learner Series Tip #6

English Learners thrive in classrooms that are asset-based. Asset-based pedagogy views the diversity that students bring to the classroom as strengths and assets, not weaknesses or deficits. English Learners bring cultural and linguistic diversity to your classroom. Creating an environment that celebrates and honors those assets will help your English Learners–and the rest of your class–thrive. Learn how to create that environment in this week’s Teacher Tip Tuesday. 

How to create an asset-based classroom environment for your English Learners to thrive in

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Teacher Tip Tuesday: English Learner Series Tip #5

Language learning, like many things, is easiest when you start with what you know. English Learners bring a rich understanding of their home language to your classroom. Read on for strategies and resources for using the valuable knowledge students already have to facilitate English language acquisition.

How to leverage English Learners' home language for effective instruction

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Teacher Tip Tuesday: English Learner Series Tip #4

Fostering a love of writing is a great way to help your English Learners express themselves! In this week’s Teacher Tip Tuesday, we talk about ways to scaffold writing to make it accessible to all students. We use a social-emotional learning (SEL) connection to encourage self-expression. You can incorporate these strategies into any writing unit to make writing less daunting and more fun! Read through the example lesson below and extend your learning about teaching writing at the end of the post. 

How to encourage English Learners to be excellent writers

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Teacher Tip Tuesday: English Learner Series Tip #3

If you’ve ever tried to learn another language, you may agree that speaking can be the scariest part. Expressing your thoughts out loud while learning a new language is daunting, especially for our students. It’s natural for English Learners to experience these feelings. It’s important to foster an environment where students feel safe speaking, even if they make mistakes, and that these mistakes will help them grow. This will empower them to use oral language and will accelerate literacy acquisition. 

In today’s tip, learn how to give students the tools they need to practice oral language with Footsteps2Brilliance.

How to empower English Learners to use
oral language

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Teacher Tip Tuesday: English Learner Series Tip #2

How to help your English Learners strengthen their background knowledge

Strengthening background knowledge is crucial for effective literacy instruction, especially for English Learners. It’s also the perfect time to tap into what excites your students most! For many, that’s Amazing Amphibians. Read on to learn how to use this book unit to help your English Learners gain important scientific background knowledge. 

Teacher Tip Tuesday English Learner Series Tip #2

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Teacher Tip Tuesday: English Learner Series Tip #1

How to help your English Learners improve their reading comprehension

If you’ve ever noticed that your English Learners (or any students) can decode like pros, but are not showing the same levels of skill in comprehension yet, read on to see how to use the Footsteps2Brilliance book unit, Get out the Clothes, and a corresponding vocabulary game to help your students thrive!

Teacher Tip Tuesday English Learner Series Tip #1

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Teaching Perseverance in the Early Learning Classroom

Do you teach perseverance in your early learning classroom? While perseverance is not the emphasis of our standards, we all know that children aren’t likely to get far in school (or life) without it. One way we can foster perseverance in our classroom is to set longterm goals, monitor our progress, and then reflect on and celebrate our success. Footsteps2Brilliance creates a wonderful opportunity to do just that.

Ms. Kathy Jacoby and Ms. Teri Spampinato in California were new to Footsteps2Brilliance this year. They wanted to make sure that their students got the most out of the program, and they understood that using it consistently would produce the best learning results. 

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How to Foster Independence in a Blended Learning Classroom

Adding technology to your early learning classroom can be stressful. However, an effective routine can turn that stress into an opportunity for children to develop independence and responsibility.

A huge thanks goes out to the great teachers in Napa County, California, for sharing this fantastic idea! Special thanks to teacher Molly Beglin.

Preparation:

  1. In preparation, create a login card for each student. Since you’ll use them all year, consider laminating these cards.
  2. Place a photo of the child on one side of the card, and the child’s Super Secret Code instructions on the opposite side of the card.
  3. Place the cards with photos facing out in a pocket chart near your Footsteps2Brilliance learning center.

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