Nation of Communities, Blended Together

Having grown up in a bilingual home, I agree with the text’s support for diverse learners outlined in Chapter 3. My father met my mother in South Korea while he was deployed there as a Marine. My mother continues to work on her English. It helps that my hometown has a large, supportive Korean community to help make America more home-like for her. I was raised with both Korean and English in my home, but I received no support from my schools for my multicultural background. Much of the chapter summarized the importance of recognizing and accommodating to ELLs (English Language Learners) in the classroom. As a teacher, I hope to break down the barriers of diversity in my classroom to create a rich learning environment for my students.

On page 70, the text states “differences do not mean deficits”. I believe it is important for educators to view their students’ diverse backgrounds as positive additions to the classroom. Being inclusive of student backgrounds creates a supportive community of learners who are willing to help one another succeed. The students will be able to better understand each other if they are aware of what makes them different and unique.

There is a section in the text that mentions and lists helpful strategies for teaching ELLs to read and write on pages 72-81. Three strategies I believe will be most helpful to me as a future teacher are:

• ·      Make your classroom predictable with routines that will help ELL students feel safe and accepted in their new environment.
• ·      Demonstrate sincere interest in learning about your ELL child’s native language, customs, and traditions. Allow this discussion to play an important role in your activities.
• ·      Have ELL children collect new vocabulary on their “Very Own Words” cards kept in a container. On one side, write the word in English, and on the other, write it in their native language. Use an accompanying picture for visual reinforcement.

I found these strategies to be especially useful to my studies, because I have an extra major in early childhood education. I believe these strategies could be easily adapted for use in both a classroom with ELL students and in an early childhood classroom.

What strategy(s) do you find to be the most useful for implementation in your future classroom? All strategies were helpful, but try to pinpoint ones you truly believe you would use. I’m interested in seeing what others have to share on the topic of diversity in teaching literacy!