ELL Language Skill Packs Tips

Why Use ELL Language Skill Packs

The ELL Language Skill Packs provide comprehensive resources for teachers to meet students' needs by teaching targeted language skills while building academic content knowledge. Each pack is highly effective for developing English language learners' skills as each includes the following:

• Multiple lessons that focus on a high-interest and key academic topic
• Interactive strategies for teaching content-based vocabulary
• Guided instruction of key language skills and functions such as describing, comparing, and classifying that are crucial to students' academic success
• Direct connection to the ELL Assessments, giving teachers the ability to address students' identified gaps in language development and increase language proficiency through structured lessons
• Best practices for scaffolding instruction for English language learners
• Tools for differentiating instruction, including dialogue frames at varying levels of language proficiency

How to Use ELL Language Skill Packs

Use Language Skill Packs two ways.

Connect assessment results with targeted instruction for each student.

1. Administer an ELL Assessment to identify students' specific language strengths and areas for improvement and opportunities for growth.
2. Record results on the Tracking Student Progress Form.
3. Select lessons within a Language Skill Pack to address identified needs.
4. Monitor students' progress by administering additional ELL Assessments.

1. Select a grade range.
2. Select a Language Skill Pack under a specific content area.
3. Use the lessons within the Language Skill Pack to teach content vocabulary and targeted skills across the four language domains of reading, writing, listening, and speaking.

Guided and Differentiated Instructional Sequence

Each of the lessons in an ELL Language Skill Pack features a two-page lesson plan that is accompanied by projectable student materials for guided instruction, independent practice, and checking for understanding.

At the beginning of each lesson, content and language objectives are listed that connect with skills in the ELL Assessments. Academic vocabulary addressed in the lesson is also indicated.

Dialogue frames differentiated by language proficiency level ranges (Levels 1-2, Levels 3-5) are included to enable all students to address the language skill orally or in writing.

Together, each lesson's resources provide a foundation for scaffolding language development and a specific language function.

Instructional Sequence

Step 1: Building Background

Introduce the targeted language skill and preview or review the content-based topic through speaking activities.

Step 2: Presentation

Explain and discuss the content and language objectives addressed in the lesson and introduce the main lesson activity.

Step 3: Practice and Application

Introduce and model the language skill and activity as well as lead students through guided practice and collaborative practice using student materials.

Step 4: Check for Understanding

Have students apply the learned language skills orally or in writing using listed strategies and/or materials.

Step 5: Review

Guide students in discussing and reflecting on the lesson in order to solidify their learning.