Multilingual Momentum: Accelerating Literacy for Diverse Learners

Literacy Talks

This episode of Literacy Talks delves into the unique strengths and needs of multilingual learners (MLLs). Hosts Stacy Hurst, Donell Pons, and Lindsay Kemeny share valuable insights and practical strategies for effectively teaching phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, and reading comprehension to MLLs. They emphasize the importance of honoring students' home languages, building on their existing linguistic knowledge, and creating a welcoming, celebratory environment that empowers all students.

Listeners will appreciate the cognitive advantages of learning multiple languages and come away with concrete ideas for supporting the literacy development of this rapidly growing student population. Whether you're a classroom teacher, literacy specialist, or administrator, this episode offers essential guidance for ensuring multilingual learners thrive.

Show Notes
Literacy Leaders:

• Stanislas Dehaene

Resources:

• What’s the Difference Between ESL, EFL, ESOL, ELL, MLL, and ESP?—Reading Horizons Blog
• English Learners in Public Schools—NCES
• What Languages Do We Speak in the United States?—US Census Bureau
• Mylanguages.org
• Colorin Colorado
• Acadience
• Wordsmyth
• Stanislas Dehaene Summit 2024 Virtual Keynote
• The Syntax Project

Terms:

• ELL: English Language Learners
• ESL: English as a Second Language
• ESOL: English for Speakers of Other Languages
• ML/MLL: Multilingual Learners
• BIC: Basic Interpersonal Communication
• Text engineering: a strategy that modifies grade-level texts to help students understand them better. The goal is to make the text more accessible without simplifying it or lowering its complexity.

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