Teachers of multilingual learners will explore the topics of teacher collaboration and coteaching within ESL, ELD, and bilingual classrooms. This training offers highly practical strategies and authentic, successful examples of how to engage in collaborative practices effectively. The overarching theme that runs through this training and the book, Portraits of Collaboration, is the importance of all educators working together for the sake of accelerating academic and linguistic progress of multilingual learners.

Goals:

• Accelerate the academic & linguistic progress of multilingual learners.
• Overcome systemic challenges to academic growth & linguistic proficiency.
• Maximize the effectiveness of partnerships between content area teachers and ESL teachers, specialists, & coaches.
• Learn how to use collaborative planning tools to accelerate the academic & linguistic progress of multilingual learners.

Word problems can be tricky because they integrate reading and mathematics. Discover pedagogical approaches to using language to expose mathematical reasoning and foster critical thinking skills applicable beyond the classroom.

Participants will:

• Explore and engage with instructional approaches to problem solving that combine literacy and mathematics pedagogy
• Receive and interact with a copy of the book, Solved: A Teacher’s Guide to Making Word Problems Comprehensible which is designed to scaffold teacher learning and lesson implementation

Educators will explore the true meaning of sheltered instruction with research-based strategies such as the 7 Steps to a Language-Rich, Interactive Classroom. Chapter 89 of the TAC, recommends  “the integrated use of second language acquisition methods” to meet the needs of ELs. This training is designed to give teachers the tools they need to meet these requirements. It includes approaches to integrating the ELPS into instruction and ways to align linguistic accommodations to the TELPAS descriptors.

Talk, Read, Talk, Write (TRTW) is a practical approach to classroom instruction that helps students meet and exceed the state standards for learning in the core classes while also developing the literacy skills needed for success in the 21st century. Participants will experience the TRTW approach as learners themselves, and receive step-by-step instructions for how to implement the approach using actual classroom examples. Other training topics include: how to facilitate structured conversations, how to hold students accountable for active participation, how to move students toward successful independent reading and writing, and how to troubleshoot common roadblocks to reading, writing and talking in the classroom.

This innovative training will help all teachers transform their classrooms into vibrant spaces where students can use academic language to talk, read, write, and think about each lesson’s content. This 7 Steps training outlines a dynamic process for structuring, planning, and facilitating a language-rich classroom. In addition,. participants gain knowledge of helpful ways to integrate both content and language standards when planning instruction. They also receive specific strategies for differentiating instruction so that all learners within the classroom can build their ability to discuss and communicate academic concepts effectively.

ELLs in TX: What Teachers Need to Know is a comprehensive, practical resource that is essential for any Texas teacher with ELLs in the classroom. This training provides teachers, administrators, and program specialists with at-your-fingertips knowledge about Bilingual/ESL programs in Texas, second language acquisition, ELPS/TELPAS assessments and connections, and classroom instruction focused on progress and proficiency.

The 7 Steps to a Language-Rich, Interactive Foreign Language Classroom are research-based strategies designed to increase comprehensible input and provide low-stress opportunities for language output and interaction. These practical techniques provide an essential foundation that ensures students are motivated and engaged, while offering access points to any target language in a way that is easy to implement and comprehensively scaffolded. This training was created for both novice and seasoned LOTE teachers to transform the foreign language classroom into an interactive environment in which students are engaging in the target language from day one.

• Get familiar with test domains and competencies.
• See the test-item formats and gain study resources.
• Practice with sample training questions.
• Analyze the theories, research and current practices Bilingual Education and Dual Language Pedagogoy.
• Take home a copy of trainer Dr. Patricia Morales’ book: Content Review and Practice Book for the Texas Educator Certification Program:164 Bilingual Education Supplemental, First Edition.

In this training ELA teachers of English Learners will learn to foster language proficiency growth by targeting sentence level skills. This session offers an opportunity to explore a variety of techniques for sentence level instruction. Teachers will learn to introduce and practice sentence construction skills through effective grammar mini lessons and hands-on, game-like activities. 

Educators, instructional coaches and administrators leave this workshop empowered and ready to take their professional learning to the next level. In our ever-changing world, it is more important than ever to know what learning opportunities are at our fingertips as we strive to support multilingual students. This is an engaging day that will meet the needs of the novice tech user to the veteran education blogger. Participants experience a comprehensive array of interpretive, expressive, and interactive activities to support us on our paths and challenge our thinking.

This session was designed for teachers in bilingual/dual and ESL classrooms to bridge research-based pedagogies and connections in the areas of cross- linguistic and cross- academic transfer between English and Spanish. The course will provide teachers a means to empower students in the developmental process of cross-linguistic strategies, metalinguistic and metacognitive awareness, cross-academic strategies, and reinforce their linguistic, cultural, and academic background knowledge in English and Spanish.

Esta sesión presenta la importancia del dictado y expande la explicación de los pasos a seguir para implementarlo en el aula dual. También incluye algunas diferencias entre el inglés y el español y la importancia de la oralidad como base de la lectoescritura. Los participantes practicarán el dictado ye verán docentes en acción. Este taller es presentado en español.

In this training, participants will gain an understanding of how to accelerate students’ language proficiencies through effective content-area instruction. They will explore released question examples, the test format, and the ELPS to understand the expectations of the TELPAS exam. Participants will create language-focused activities intentionally designed to help move students forward in their language acquisition.

This session includes supplemental multicultural, ecological, and academic activities to optimize the fundamental PK-2 Spanish literacy components; oral development, phonemic awareness, phonetics, fluency, comprehension, academic vocabulary and writing skills. The session includes original stories, tongue twisters, rhymes, songs, and more to optimize La lectoescritura. Pedagogical resources for teachers, such as a bilingual academic dictionary by content areas, and Spanish rules and conventions are included.  

Optimizando la lectoescritura en el salón bilingüe y dual se desarrolló desde una perspectiva multicultural, diversa, ecológica y académica, pensando en el rol que los estudiantes bilingües y duales cumplen en el mundo de hoy. Las áreas que se enfatizan en esta sesión son el lenguaje oral y el vocabulario académico, la conciencia fonológica, el conocimiento de la letra impresa, la fonética, la fluidez, la comprensión y la expresión escrita. Además, este curso cuenta con una sección de recursos pedagógicos para el docente.

This session outlines simple steps that will make both Short Constructed Response and Extended Constructed Response less threatening. Participants will explore approaches for Grade 3-12 ESL and ELA teachers to scaffold instruction and to boost students’ performance in writing. The session includes an opportunity to examine the required elements of the short constructed response and the extended constructed response and learn to help students incorporate these elements into their writing. During the session we will use sentence stems, graphic organizers, and short videos. Our participants will walk away with multiple tools to prepare students of all language levels for the ELA STAAR/EOC Writing.

The literacy spaces we create for our learners and the experiences they have as readers and writers can make an impact in their learning outcomes. This training offers educators a deep dive into reading and writing instruction with a special focus for increasing the effectiveness of instructional methods to serve multilingual learners. Participants will explore and engage in techniques they can implement immediately with students.

This unique training will equip participants with 23 small moves they can make immediately to support students ability to talk more, think more, and achieve more. All the moves are both modeled and practiced throughout the session. Additionally, participants will dive into the role of habits in teaching. We will survey current research about how habits are formed and directly connect that to action steps for the classroom.  

This training will allow participants to learn effective ways to help their refugee students while meeting the needs of their families. Support and resources will be given to instruct their students with best practices for meeting language and academic needs. Participants will also receive a copy of the manual, Texas Student Refugee Framework: A Collaborative Approach.

In this training, participants dive into an immersive, engaging experience using, planning with, and learning from The Visual Non-Glossary. Dr. Stephen Fleenor, the creator of The Visual Non-Glossary, models an engaging lesson using The Visual Non-Glossary, and shows participants how they can use the resource to easily plan interactive, language-rich lessons!