Common Core for ELLs: Resource Roundup

With the beginning of the new school year, this week I’ll share some recently developed Common Core materials for English language learners that have been updated or that I have recently become aware of.

If you know of others or would like to share your feedback on these materials, we'd love to hear from you!

Recommended Resources

• The Northeast Comprehensive Center: The NCC, in conjunction with the Connecticut Department of Education’s Bilingual and English Language Learner Department, developed a series of short videos and resources to support the implementation of the CCSS for ELA/Literacy for ELLs. The video series provides instructional strategies for teachers working with middle school ELLs and focuses in on the topic of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad. The ELL videos contain an introductory module, a video on previewing vocabulary, one on a double entry journal strategy, and a video on informational writing for ELLs. The Northeast Comprehensive Center was formerly called the New England Comprehensive Center.
• New Jersey: I first mentioned New Jersey’s resources for ELLs back in one my first blog posts about a year ago. NJ has developed five model six-week-long ELA units in Kindergarten through 12^th grade that include student learning objectives, scaffolding for ELLs, and formative assessments. The state has been updating its resources and is accepting comments on the materials from NJ educators.
• The Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium: SBAC recently launched a Spanish webpage (Smarter en Español) that contains a wealth of information beginning with general info about what the consortium is. The webpage also features a section that describes what SBAC is doing to support students learning English and special needs students, several Spanish resources created by SBAC for parent, students, and teachers. The page also includes Spanish resources about the CCSS developed by organizations outside of SBAC (such as the Council of Great City Schools). The webpage ends with three questions and answers about the standards and assessments in Spanish.
• Colorín Colorado: Just in case you missed it, Colorín Colorado uploaded a series of resources on the CCSS for ELLs over the summer. The resource begins with a section titled “What Does the CCSS Mean for ELLs?” It also contains ELL classroom video modules and lesson plans for ELA lessons in grades 1, 4, and 8. Two additional sections are Common Core in Your School District and Resources for Parents.

What resources am I missing? It's heartening to see that more states and organizations are developing materials to support ELLs with the Common Core. I suspect that there are more projects of this nature underway at the local and state level during the current school year that I may be unaware of. Please let me know what you're working on by commenting here or emailing me directly: [email protected]. Thanks!