Working with ELLs, Newcomers and SIFE

Resource Compiled by ESL at NCDPI

The websites of NCELA, OELA, CAL, and other agencies offer numerous suggestions for working with English learners (ELLs), especially new immigrants including unaccompanied minors, students with interrupted formal education (SIFE), and refugees.This DPI resource lists topics in alphabetical order related to the education of ELLs and gives relevant websites. Topics included are

Birthdate and Grade Placement / Parent Involvement
Build Empathy and Connection to the Immigrant Story through Cultural Exchange Programs / Parent Meetings
Community Partners / Scholarships
Financial Aid for College / School Culture
Identifying English Language Learners (ELLs) / Secondary Newcomer ELLs with Interrupted Schooling
Instructional Best Practices / Teaching Materials/Lesson Plans
Language Assistance Program / Unaccompanied Minors
Legal Issues / Writing/ Videotaping Immigrant Stories
Math and Science Learning

Also entered in this resource are connectionswith the information in these websites to the North Carolina Professional Teacher Standardsand the WIDA Standards Framework plus three NCDPI initiatives: SIOP, ExC-ELL, and LinguaFolio. These connections are in boxed inserts for easy access. The Professional Teacher Standards are boxed in blue and the WIDA/NCDPI initiatives are boxed in green. Whether or not an educator has met the addressed professional teacher standard will depend on the artifacts submitted during the teacher evaluation process and other evidence of the teacher’s performance. These connections, however, can serve as a guide for educators as they reflect upon and improve their effectiveness.

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Birthdate and Grade Placement

The Birthdates of Refugee Children and the Impact on Grade Placement ( )

This site discusses why refugee children may have incorrect date of birth on their documentation, factors to consider when assessing a child’s age, possible questions to ask, and documentation to record.

Build Empathy and Connectionto the Immigrant Story through Cultural Exchange Programs

Note p. 8 in toolkit: The Center for International Understanding at the University of North Carolina provides opportunities for North Carolina leaders to develop a greater understanding of immigration through its Latino Initiative, which has brought 700 people to Mexico since 1998. Teams visit Mexico together and return to North Carolina inspired to launch new activities that address immigrant integration. Visit to learn more. Note: updated website is

Community Partners

On this site connect with resources below:

Quick Start Organizing Tool: Begin here to identify which neighborhood, community or geographic area you will focus on and why, establish short and long-term goals, decide who you want to involve, andprepare a timeline.

Welcoming Committee Members and Partners Identification Tool: This tool fleshes out the skills, resources, individuals, and organizations identified in the Quick Start Organizing Tool. It offers a 4 step approach to partner identification:

1) Inventory - needs/haves

2) Identify who is already involved

3) Identify who else you would like to have involved

4) Review and compare to inventory (#1)

See School Culture to learn how one partner in Charlotte is helping schools.

Financial Aid

Graduate! A Financial Aid Guide to Success

Also available in Spanish

This guide is part of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics. It outlinescollege application and enrollment information, federal financial aid and public and private scholarship resources available to students in their efforts to enroll in and afford a postsecondary education. It also has checklists from elementary through high school to help students prepare for college or career school. Some items on these checklists:

  • Participate in extra-curricular activities like sports, clubs, and the arts
  • Establish strong relationships with your teachers and counselors so that each can write your letters of recommendation later on
  • Think about college as an important part of your future. Discuss your thoughts and ideas with your family and with people at school.
  • And for parents - Help your child develop good study habits, such as studying at the same time and place every day and having the necessary materials to complete assignments.

Identifying English Language Learners (ELLs)

“Tools and Resources for Identifying All English Learners

This is the first chapter of the English Learner Tool Kit published by the Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA), U.S. Department of Education. The Tool Kit is intended to help state and local education agencies (SEAs and LEAs) in meeting their obligations to ELLs. It should be read in conjunction with the joint Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) on "English Learner Students and Limited English Proficient Parents" from the Department's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), which outlines SEAs’ and LEAs’ legal obligations to ELLs under civil rights laws and other federal requirements.

This chapter details

(1)Key points for Identifying Potential English Learners

  • LEAs must identify in a timely manner ELL students in need of language assistance services.
  • Explanation of law regarding identifying and assessing ELLs and examples of compliance issues on pages 10-11 of the Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) on "English Learner Students and Limited English Proficient Parents"
  • The home language survey (HLS) is the most common tool used to identify potential ELLs.
  • An HLS must be administered effectively to ensure accurate results

a)Checklist with suggestions for content of HLS,

b)Translation of HLS,

c)Procedures for administering, interpreting, and managing results of the HLS

  • Check with SEA’s policies to ensure compliance with state requirements

(2)Key points for Determining which Students are English Learners

  • All potential ELLs must be assessed with a valid and reliable assessment to determine if they are in fact ELLs.
  • Parents and guardians must be informed in a timely manner of their child’s ELP level and ELL program options.
  • LEAs are required to communicate information regarding a child’s ELP level and ELL program options in a language the parent understands.
  • Examples of process to ensure communication with LEP parents on pages 37-39 of the Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) on "English Learner Students and Limited English Proficient Parents"

(3)TOOLS

  • Home Language Surveys samples and translations in Spanish, French, Vietnamese, Chinese, Amharic, and Arabic
  • Placement Test Checklist for SEA, LEA, and Administration Procedures

(4)Resources: links to publications and scholarly articles regarding ELLs and identification and assessment

Instructional Best Practices

: Updated (as of January 2015) and expanded 2007 Educator’s Practice Guide published by What Works Clearinghouse

This guide offers instructional recommendations for ELLs in grades K-8. It provides guidelines for and examples of systematically building language and literacy in four specific areas—academic vocabulary, content-area instruction, writing instruction, and small-group intervention.It also presents solutions to roadblocks educators may face in implementing these recommendations.

An overview of the four recommendations in this guide are:

Recommendation 1: Teach a set of academic vocabulary words intensively across several days using a variety of instructional activities.

  • Choose a brief, engaging piece of informational text that includes academic vocabulary as a platform for intensive academic vocabulary instruction.
  • Choose a small set of academic vocabulary for in-depth instruction.
  • Teach academic vocabulary in depth using multiple modalities (writing, speaking, listening).
  • Teach word-learning strategies to help students independently figure out the meaning of words.

Recommendation 2: Integrate oral and written English language instruction into content-area teaching.

  • Strategically use instructional tools—such as short videos, visuals, and graphic organizers—to anchor instruction and help students make sense of content.
  • Explicitly teach the content-specific academic vocabulary, as well as the general academic vocabulary that supports it, during content-area instruction.
  • Provide daily opportunities for students to talk about content in pairs or small groups.
  • Provide writing opportunities to extend student learning and understanding of the content material.

Recommendation 3: Provide regular, structured opportunities to develop written language skills.

  • Provide writing assignments that are anchored in content and focused on developing academic language as well as writing skills.
  • For all writing assignments, provide language-based supports to facilitate students’ entry into, and continued development of, writing.
  • Use small groups or pairs to provide opportunities for students to work and talk together on varied aspects of writing.
  • Assess students’ writing periodically to identify instructional needs and provide positive, constructive feedback in response.

Recommendation 4: Provide small-group instructional intervention to students struggling in areas of literacy and English language development.

  • Use available assessment information to identify students who demonstrate persistent struggles with aspects of language and literacy development.
  • Design the content of small-group instruction to target students’ identified needs.
  • Provide additional instruction in small groups consisting of three to five students to students struggling with language and literacy.
  • For students who struggle with basic foundational reading skills, spend time not only on these skills but also on vocabulary development and listening and reading comprehension strategies.

Language Assistance Program

“Tools and Resources for Providing English Learners with a Language Assistance Program”

This is the second chapter of the English Learner Tool Kit published by the Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA), U.S. Department of Education. The Tool Kit is intended to help state and local education agencies (SEAs and LEAs) in meeting their obligations to ELs. It should be read in conjunction with the joint Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) on "English Learner Students and Limited English Proficient Parents" from the Department's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), which outlines SEAs’ and LEAs’ legal obligations to ELLs under civil rights laws and other federal requirements.

This chapter details

(1)Key points for providing a Language Assistance Program

  • ELL services and programs must be educationally sound in theory and effective in practice. LEAs must
  • Ensure that qualified teachers provide ELL services
  • Explanation of staffing and supporting ELL programs with examples on pages 14-17 of the Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) on "English Learner Students and Limited English Proficient Parents"
  • Consider the student’s English proficiency level, grade level, educational background, language background for bilingual programs
  • Evaluate whether their chosen ELL services and programs meet civil rights requirements (Document provides a checklist to assist with this evaluation.)
  • Explanation of law and guidance on common civil rights compliance issues on pages 5-9 of the Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) on "English Learner Students and Limited English Proficient Parents"
  • ELL programs must be designed to enable ELLs to attain both English proficiency and parity of participation in the standard instructional program within a reasonable length of time.
  • Examples given and guidance on providing access to all curricular and extracurricular programs on pages 17-21 of the Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) on "English Learner Students and Limited English Proficient Parents"
  • LEAs must offer ELL services and programs, until ELLs are proficient in English and can participate meaningfully in educational programs without ELL support. This includes ELLs at the highest level of English proficiency.
  • Discussion of monitoring and exiting ELs (pages 21-22), meeting the needs of ELLs who opt out of ELL Programs or particular services (pages 29-32), and evaluating an LEA’s ELL program (pages32-35) of the Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) on "English Learner Students and Limited English Proficient Parents"
  • LEAs must provide appropriate special education services to ELLs with disabilities who are found to be eligible for special education and related services.
  • Discussion of services for ELLs with disabilities (pages 24-29) and evaluating an LEA’s ELL program (pages32-35) of the Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) on "English Learner Students and Limited English Proficient Parents"

(2)TOOL #1 Guiding Questions to Learn about Your ELL Population,

(3)TOOL #2 Checklist for Addressing Needs of Long Term ELLs

(4)TOOL #3 Research-Based Considerations

  • Contextual changes that create an environment conducive to implementing and sustaining districtwide reform efforts that support ELs
  • Strategic and instructional changes that promote high standards in the teaching of ELLs

(5)TOOL #4 EL Program Chart

(6)Resources: links to publications regarding ELs and literacy, assessment, legal issues, model programs, program planning, effective strategies, curricula, and numerous other topics.

Legal issues

This booklet discusses 13 legal questions commonly asked by the community and school administrators related to undocumented students. The questions and explanations go beyond merely citing Plyler or the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (NCLB).Among the points discussed are the right of undocumented students to participate in extracurricular activities or services provided to other students and whether or not school districts should report undocumented students to immigration.

Math and Science Learning

Supporting family involvement in students’ math and science learning can be challenging. Thissite presents multiple ways to foster family involvement.

  • Talk about math and science at home in the home language by discussing
  • Technical aspects of domestic tasks (weighing, measuring, calculating in following recipes and/or home repair)
  • Role of math in activities specific to the home culture
  • Play science, math, or technical problem-solving games
  • Host family math and/or science events
  • Family Science Night Activities available through this site in Spanish and English
  • Science Activities to try at home available through this site in Spanish and English
  • Ensure parents understand that math and science instruction are necessary for college and career success
  • Help parents reflect on the mathematics and science education of their children

Parent involvement

(1) Strengthening Parent Involvement: A Toolkit

This site offers strategies for reaching out to parents of English Language Learners (ELLs) and provides handouts in English and Spanish for parentstobe engaged with the school and their child.Specific communication strategies include

(1)Sponsor programs or community events that allow educators and parents to interact socially in addition to parent-teacher conferences or school/program meetings.

(2)Provide feedback opportunities for parents and family members such as surveys on current program issues or special parent interests

(3)Make explicit unstated rules and behavioral expectations (for example, that parents are expected to attend parent/teacher conferences)

(4)Invite and encourage parents to volunteer at the school

(5)Invite parents to share their culture as a literacy activity at school

(6)Offer power-sharing relationships by encouraging parents to form advocacy groups and enabling them to share in decision-making about school programs and policies

There is also a guided teacher self-reflection to help teachers improve their communication skills with parents of ELLs as well as supports that may be needed.

(2) A guidebook for increasingcollaboration betweenschools and parents ofEnglish Language Learners

Although written for Colorado public schools the information in this guidebook is useful for North Carolina’s schools. The guidebook links federal law, research, and effective practice. It provides information about the factors that hinder or support parent involvement with parents of ELLs, while also offering insights about how to break through barriers and effectively build collaborative efforts between parents and schools. It also offers policy recommendations and the parent involvement strategies which support these policies such as those in the matrix below. For each strategy, there is information about the specific link to NCLB compliance followed

by a listing of the necessary monetary, material, and human resources. There is also a comprehensive list of possible steps toward initial implementation and on-going support.

Policy Recommendation / Parent Involvement Strategy
Schools initiate opportunities for effective
communication with parents / 1. Effective translations
2. Initial parent meetings
3. Monthly/regular parent meetings
Policy Recommendation / Parent Involvement Strategy
Offer informational meetings and skill-based
workshops / 1. Initial parent meetings
2. Monthly/regular parent meetings
3. ESL classes for parents
4. Skill-based workshops
  • Making Homework Manageable
  • Activities to help
  • support children’s literacy at home
  • Supporting Writing in the Home
  • Understanding School Math

Include culturally and linguistically diverse parents in
decision-making meetings and groups / 1. Organized parent–teacher meetings
2. Parent Leadership Institute
3. District-level parent leadership classes

(3) Colorín Colorado: Reach Out to Parents of ELLs

This is a bilingual (Spanish/English) website providing information, activities and advice for

educators of English language learners. It gives a quick overview of ways to involve parents.

  • Use their preferred language

oFind a fully bilingual interpreter

oTranslate the written communications that you send home

oLearn some Spanish yourself (gives some common classroom words and phrases)

oPut parents in touch with bilingual staff.

Educate parents on the U.S. school system

oHow your school works

oYour school curriculum, standards, benchmarks, and materials

oTeacher/school expectations

oParent rights

oLanguage programs

Arrange home and community visits

Welcome parents into your school

oHost a Spanish-language back-to-school night

oArrange for a "tour" of the school

Recruit volunteers from parents of ELLs

Make parents aware of adult learning opportunities in your community

(4) Colorín Colorado: Empowering Hispanic Parents & Families at Home

This is a bilingual (Spanish/English) website providing information, activities and advice for Spanish-speaking parents of ELLs.

For parents who do not know how to read:

  • Oral Storytelling
  • "Read" wordless picture books

Say rhymes and sing songs

Make frequent trips to the public library after a “field trip” with child’s teacher.

Engage in meaningful conversation

Watch educational children's television programs together

For parents who only read in Spanish: