Beyond the ELL Classroom—Way Beyond

The American School of Warsaw has a fully integrated English Language Learner (ELL) inclusion program, which connects with and reaches far beyond students who are learning English. ELL students are not the only ones who benefit, as shown in these stories from the inclusion classroom.

The inclusion classroom has a new-to-English Chinese girl presenting her country report for UN Day. It is the first oral report she has ever given in her life, and it is in English. She stands in front of the room, clutching a map of China, and says, “My name Lili. I from China. China big country.” She sits down, to rousing applause.

The inclusion classroom has an Israeli boy, working on his report for the Immigration Unit. He uses Skype to call his grandparents in Israel, and then writes the story of his family’s journey from wartime Poland.

The inclusion classroom has students reading Sadako and the Thousand Cranes (modified for ELL students). At the end of the book, the Korean children teach the class how to make paper cranes.

The inclusion classroom has two American boys, who invited two Korean boys to a sleepover and computer games. When I ask what they talked about (the Koreans are just learning English...), the Americans answer, “Ms. N., when we play on the computer, we all speak the same language.”

The inclusion classroom has a Ukrainian and a German boy, who discover that they both love all things Star Wars. The next library period has them sitting together with a Dorling Kindersley Star Wars book, discussing the pictures. They make a play date to watch a Star Wars movie. Although both of them have watched each episode several times, this will be the first time either of them has seen it in English.

The inclusion classroom has a group of three girls, all speaking different first languages and enjoying varying levels of fluency in English. They discover their love of writing and art. They spend the weekend together writing a book, with the beginning-English girl doing the illustrations.

The inclusion classroom has students holding their writing notebooks, and lining up to have their names written in Japanese characters by the student from Japan.

The inclusion classroom has an end-of-the-year parent conference. As one student shows his writing portfolio to his mother, we see the first sample in August is just his name, while the last sample in June is a three-paragraph essay on the endangered tiger.

The inclusion classroom partners an ELL child with a native speaker who has challenges in writing. The native speaker helps the ELL child with vocabulary, while the ELL child helps the native speaker with writing.

The inclusion classroom has Book Talk, where students bring in and talk about the books they are reading for pleasure. The teachers bring their books as well and as we look around the circle, we see books in six languages. The biggest hit is a Harry Potter tome in Hebrew, as the Israeli girl explains why people in her country read their books “backwards.”

When all students are viewed along the same continuum of English language proficiency, teachers become more connected and programs more cohesive. By integrating ELLs into the larger school community, all teachers develop an awareness of the important role of academic language in content classes.

In this kind of instructional environment, ELL teachers can continue to help students develop English language proficiency skills, while also collaborating with colleagues to support planning, instruction, and assessment that serve all students—including ELLs!

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