- the essential elements of a story
- the steps of the writing process from planning to drafting, to revising, to editing, to publishing
- narrowing the focus of their story
- developing details
- choosing an appropriate beginning and ending point
- drawing their readers into the story
- writing dialogue in a story
- using punctuation
- giving and using feedback
- AND how AMAZINGLY SUPER they really are!
Students in Ms. Valezy's group completed their personal narrative writing about a time they did something that made them feel Super! Through this writing assignment, students learned about: Ask your child to share his/her story with you!
Welcome to a new school year!
We're looking forward to supporting your children in their social and academic success in English this year. In the coming weeks and months we will be working cooperatively and collaboratively to further develop the language skills necessary for success at AISB. We will be reading, writing, listening and speaking about science, social studies, and language arts; extending our academic vocabularies; and using language to help us make our thinking visible to teachers and classmates. We hope you'll join us on Wednesday, September 2nd at 3:45pm to learn more about how we do that, and how you can help your child at home. Please use the 'Subscribe By Email' button on the right to receive our website updates in your email inbox. We are looking forward to a great year ahead! All students at AISB are here to learn, but our EAL students are not just learners - they are SUPER Learners!
Why? Because they are learning the same content (math, science, social studies, etc.) as everyone else, and the language (English) at the same time! And they are learning the content in the language they are still learning! WOW!! That is really amazing! As your child is working this year, please be aware of how hard this is for your child. The academic language and content of their classes is challenging for all the students, even the native English speakers. So just imagine what it's like for our EAL learners! They are truly SUPER learners to be able to learn as much as they do! Be sure to congratulate your child on this huge achievement! We have been reflecting on our learning and setting goals for ourselves; thinking and talking about where we are now in our English language development, and where we want to be; setting up plans for how we are going to get ourselves there. In our goal-setting conferences, we took a look at the WIDA EAL framework - the basis of our EAL program - to help us to think about where we are now, and where we need to get to. In class we are having discussions about this question: What do successful language learners do? Ask your child to tell you about our 'Chalk Talk', below. Here is a useful resource for adults: The Keys to Good Language Learning. Here is a kid-friendly version: The Keys to Good Language Learning - Kids The pencils are sharpened, papers are neatly organized, and students and teachers are excited about the new school year beginning! We have started the year by trying to make new students feel welcome in our school, interviewing each other to get to know each other a little better, and by assessing students' language needs. In the coming weeks and months we will be working cooperatively and collaboratively to further develop the language skills necessary for success at AISB. We will be reading, writing, listening and speaking about science, social studies, and language arts; extending our academic vocabularies; and using language to help us make our thinking visible to teachers and classmates. We are looking forward to a great year ahead! |
Learning Links
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