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Chapter 1: Narrowing the Classroom Communication Gap for Academic Subjects

Chapter 1 provides an overview of teaching academic subjects to English learners, focusing on:

    • The role of input, interaction, and output in second language acquisition
    • Effect of grade level on language demands of academic subject instruction
    • Effect of prior knowledge of the subject and first language literacy on academic subject achievement
    • Assessing English learners’ knowledge of academic subjects
    • Assessing the gap between grade-level academic subject instruction and English proficiency—examples from grades K, 4, 7, and 10
    • Protocol for adapting mainstream academic subject instruction to an English learner’s proficiency level—the Academic Subjects Protocol
    • Support strategies for providing nonverbal and verbal support in curriculum, instruction, and assessment of academic subjects
      — Text simplification and elaboration
      — Leveled questions
      — Sentence frames
      — Word banks and glossaries
Below we provide additional resources on major topics addressed in or relevant to the content of Chapter 1, with links to each topic’s webpage that includes a brief narrative overview of the topic, followed by headings of subtopics with categorized, annotated links to freely available resources that can be used for further study or to activities that can be viewed or conducted in classes or workshops:
–  Getting to know Edith (interview here), Edgar (interview & read-aloud here), and Tasir (interview & read-aloud here).
Resources for Pre-Service Teachers Resources for In-Service Teachers
Basic Interpersonal Communicative Skills (BICS) vs. Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP)
Description and examples of BICS and CALP, and how to determine where tasks fall on the BICS/CALP continua.		 Example of a Lesson Plan Before and After Applying the Academic Subjects Protocol
The Strongest Boat Unmodified (PDF)
The Strongest Boat 2 (PDF)
L’Arancia (Procedure) Video Workshop for Pre-Service Teachers Testing Options for English Learners
Creating Classroom Procedures and Routines L’arancia (Procedure) Video Workshop for In-service teachers