SEL for English Language Learners: What Educators Need to Know

Examples

ELL considerations

Strategies

Reflect on the following for your setting:

• Do ELLs' regularly hear the message that their languages, cultures, and experiences are assets and strengths?
• Do teachers and peers respect ELLs' diverse perspectives and multilingual skills?

Welcome students' languages and cultures by:

• posting signs in their languages
• inviting them to teach classmates new phrases
• inviting families to share their traditions on a regular basis

ELLs may still be learning:

• vocabulary words for different emotions
• nuances between different emotions (such as "annoyed" and "angry")
• cultural concepts around emotions that may be new or different

Teach ELLs vocabulary words for different emotions. Ask them how to say those words in their language.

Give them lots of practice using emotion words, especially through check-ins like mood meters and feelings charts.

Ask colleagues who share students' cultures if there are cultural nuances you should be aware of.

Give young students or newcomers opportunities to draw pictures about how they are feeling.

This complex topic can go both ways. Students may have experienced discrimination and bias against them based on a number of factors.

At the same time, students will likely have their own biases as well.

Look for ways to create safe spaces for talking about identity in your classroom.

If you note that additional support or communication is needed around these topics for your or your class, look for resources or colleagues that can support you in this work.

Examples

ELL considerations

Strategies

As noted above, a first step in helping ELLs manage their emotions effectively is identifying and naming emotions.

In addition, students will benefit from:

• learning how to manage different emotions
• practicing new strategies they learn

If you are introducing emotion management strategies, be sure to:

• clearly name and identify the target emotions you are addressing
• provide students with lots of different hands-on way to show and practice the strategies through puppets, role play, stories, and more

Students may have a wide range of stressors during their days, whether at school or at home.

You may wish to introduce the concept of stress and ask students:

• how they currently manage stress
• how they see other people manage stress
• what helps them to calm down when they are upset

Note: For students who have experienced trauma, these conversations may be triggering. Plan activities with care and stay attuned to the needs of your students. Stay flexible and seek additional support for students if needed.

If you are introducing stress management strategies, be sure to:

• clearly explain the strategy and show lots of examples of it in action, such as photos, videos, or play-acting with toys for younger children
• talk about when you might use a strategy
• explain that not all strategies work for everyone and it's important to find the ones that feel good for you

As noted above, ELLs may be overwhelmed by what can feel like mountains to climb in terms of learning a new language, acclimating to a new culture, and keeping up in their classes. Reaching some smaller goals, however, can build confidence over time, as can doing activities related to their strengths.

In addition, keep in mind that many ELLs may come from "collectivist" cultures that focus on the well-being of the group over the individual. Use this to your benefit in planning group work and setting goals for the class.

• Help ELLs set small, specific goals that they can reach to build confidence.
• Incorporate activities that connect to students' interests.
• When talking with the class about goals, offer the options of "collective" goals along with individual goals and encourage creative thinking about how to reach those goals.
• Share examples of success stories, such as immigrants, ELLs, or others your students may relate to.

Examples

ELL considerations

Strategies

ELLs bring a rich diversity of perspective to the classroom. The opportunity to learn from those perspectives can be lost if ELLs aren't encouraged to share their ideas as part of a respectful class community.

In addition, ELLs have the opportunity to learn from their peers when classroom communication is working well.

• Give ELLs scaffolds to support their participation in class discussions, such as sentence frames and sentence starters (e.g., "I agree that...because...")
• Give ELLs lots of practice discussing informal topics so that they can become comfortable with using these structures.

• Ask students to share special talents or interests as part of icebreakers early in the year.
• Look for ways to incorporate students' interests in the classroom.

There are many ways to develop empathy in the classroom. Keep in mind that some of ELLs' life experiences will be shared, universal experiences; others will be very different from what their peers have gone through.

Using culturally responsive materials that reflect students' experiences can also open opportunities for students to share and provide teachable moments that develop empathy in peers. While it's important not to put students on the spot or force a point, being mindful of how your students see themselves in the classroom can open valuable doors.

• Introduce the concept of empathy and help students understand it before any empathy-focused activities.
• Teacher Paul Barnwell describes an activity in which students write three statements about themselves. The teacher then reads them anonymously to the class and students begin to get an idea of the “range of intense experiences and perspectives (the) classroom community contains.”   
• Regularly using questions such as, "What do you think that was like?" or "How do you think she's feeling right now?" can also help strengthen empathy muscles!

There are so many ways to express and lift up gratitude in the classroom. Asking students to reflect on when and why they feel gratitude is a valuable opportunity for growth.

You may be surprised at who in the school community or their own life is making a difference!

• Introduce the concept of gratitude and help students understand it before any gratitude-focused activities.
• Invite students to share how they say "Thank you" in their language and make a poster board with signs of all of their translations!
• We have lots of other ideas in our article Making Space for Gratitude: 15 Ideas for Schools During Challenging Times, which include appreciation boards, thank you note campaigns, and writing prompts.

When it comes to social and cultural norms, there are a few different layers. First and foremost, students' own norms may be different, such as a cultural norm in which looking away from an authority perspective is a sign of respect, rather disrepect.

At the same time, different social norms may come up in classroom discussions. It is essential to create a culture of respect when discussing diverse experiences and perspectives. You may also need additional support if topics that relate to justice or differing expectations around concepts like human rights or women's rights are part of a discussion so that everyone feels safe within the discussion.

• Help your students understand that different cultures have different norms and that this is a reality around the world. Keeping that big picture view can make it easier to navigate discussions around differences.
• At the same time, be sure to highlight areas of commonality and universality, such as the ways parents care for children.
• If you need support or guidance in navigating these discussions, seek out advice from colleagues, community members, and families to broaden your own understanding.

Examples

ELL considerations

Strategies

• Pay attention to whether ELLs are able to communicate their needs and ideas to you and to peers. Give them lots of practice to do so in both informal and formal settings.
• When grouping students, you may sometimes wish to put students who speak the same language together so they can have an in-depth conversations and then summarize to the group in English.

Peer learning is a great opportunity to practice teamwork and problem-solving. Making sure that ELLs understand their role, the purpose of the activity, and the steps they need to complete to make these activities more successful.

You can learn more in our related article 6 Strategies to Help ELLs Succeed in Peer Learning and Collaboration.

Peer learning

• Review any peer learning activity carefully with ELLs and ensure they understand their role.
• Give students practice with different phrases they might use, such as "What if we try...?"
• Allow ELLs to try different roles in different activities so they can practice skills.

Problem solving

• Encourage students to try lots of hands-on activities and clubs.
• Make sure ELLs know about enrichment activities where they can focus on problem-solving, such as robotics clubs, Maker space, Odyssey of the Mind, quiz bowls, and games clubs.

Students will need practice not only with new conflict resolution strategies but also with the language they need to use those strategies.

There may also be some cultural nuances in how students approach conflict and you may wish to ask students for ideas of different conflict resolution strategies before introducing new strategies.

In addition, it's critical to make sure that all students and families have a shared understanding of what bullying is and why it is not acceptable under any circumstance.

• Introduce the concept of "conflict resolution" and any related vocabulary as needed.
• Show students models of any strategies you are using through videos, photos, or role playing.
• Give students practice with new strategies through role play or stories.
• Review the tips in 8 Tips to Protect ELLs from Bullying in Your Classroom and School.

ELLs often have hidden reserves of leadership potential. Many ELLs are resilient, resourceful, and creative students who have navigated many challenges in their life and bring a big picture view of the world to their classroom. If the teacher isn't looking for those qualities and experiences, however, they may remain hidden.

Note: Every spring, we read about high school valedictorians who started off in U.S. schools as ELLs and have achieved great things in a short time within a supportive school environment.

• Encourage ELLs to take leadership roles in pair or group work once they feel comfortable doing so. (Some may be ready to try it even if they are newcomers, while others may want a lot more practice!)
• Also ensure that ELLs have opportunity to participate in any clubs or activities that foster leadership. Don't limit their options by assuming they won't be interested!

Examples

ELL considerations

Strategies

As noted above, ELLs can show great resilience and resourcefulness when given the chance. They also understand the impacts of big social issues that may have touched their lives. For example, many ELLs were caregivers for younger siblings and relatives during school closures in the early months of the pandemic and continue those responsibilities now outside of school.

Having lived through a range of situations (often in other countries) provides ELLs with different lens and perspectives that can enrich the class.

• Give students choices to pursue topics that interest them where possible.
• You may wish to try a project-based or inquiry-led approach where students can dive deep on a particular topic of interest.

As with the other topics above, it's essential to ensure that students have the vocabulary and language they need to engage in conversations or activities related to sophisticated conversations about topics like consequences. Like their peers, ELLs will likely have meaningful examples to share when taking about the consequences of one's actions.

Note: An example of an English/Spanish cognate, or word that's related in two languages, is "consequence/consecuencia."

• Preview any important language or concepts before starting an activity focused on consequences.
• Provide examples as needed.
• If the discussion goes in a serious direction, evaluate whether the class as a whole and individual students can handle it; they may be up for the challenge. If it is too serious or even triggering, it may be time to take a break and offer students some additional support if needed.

As noted above, ELLs may come from cultures that are focused on the well-being of the group, whether it's the family, community, culture, or country.

Exploring these perspectives not only can provide interesting insights -- it can help your classroom run more smoothly and even improve family engagement, such as in the example of a teacher who switched to group parent teacher conferences with her ELL families and increased attendance dramatically.

• Be sure that students have opportunities to share how they are contributing to their families and community. Those activities and responsibilities may remain hidden otherwise.
• Students may be caregiving, working for a family business, actively participating in a community or faith institution, and supporting their family through employment, translation help, and other ways.