Challenges ESL Students

The authors discuss special challenges that ESL students face in the science classroom. I love that they acknowledge that academic language takes much longer then conversational English. Thi... See More

The authors discuss special challenges that ESL students face in the science classroom. I love that they acknowledge that academic language takes much longer then conversational English. This challenge is important to know because it may take longer for the student to become knowledgeable of academic. This article also provides four great strategies helpful for ESL students.

The Special Challenges of ESL Students

At the beginning of this article, the authors provide details of the special challenges our ESL students have in our science classrooms. That information alone is worth the time it took to ... See More

At the beginning of this article, the authors provide details of the special challenges our ESL students have in our science classrooms. That information alone is worth the time it took to read this rather lengthy article. The authors used an inquiry-based lesson on bird beaks to model four specific teaching strategies helpful to ESL students. Copies of the worksheets were included as well as a chart containing a list of teaching strategies for use with ESL students. The end of the article offered ideas on how to glean valuable insights and information about ESL students from the ESL teachers. I also found the reference list extremely rich in resources for any science teacher looking for additional reading material on this topic.