I have one student who is a newcomer who needs to learn basic, functional English. I have two other students who are writing paragraphs and reading at a level F or higher. They are all in the same ESL class. My newcomer student has started expressing feelings of isolation because he can't communicate as well as he would like with his peers during lunch and recess. I want to teach my newcomer phrases and basic language for interacting with his peers to boost his confidence and get him excited about school like he was when he first came here a few weeks ago. I am currently (almost) having centers in my room to manage the different needs of the two groups in my classroom. What can I do to make sure my other students' needs, which are mostly writing and reading based, are met, while teaching my newcomer the language and phrases he needs? If I had the opportunity, I would pull him in a newcomer group for more targeted instruction, but that is not an option at this point.
I think that the individualized centers will really work. I have about 4 NEP's, and I have a plan to teach them functional and academic language every day. I've seen an increase in engagement with having that plan for functional language
If you go to the pinned thread that is free resources for teachers, I just posted several resources about Differentiated Instruction, among several other things that could be useful. When I say the links go to free resources, you can count on it. There is a wealth of information available, and since my son and I earned our MEd. TESOL together, I do try to find ESL links, and I try to list that they are ESL links/resources at the top of those posts. Hope there is something there that may help.
