Academic Language in Diverse Classrooms: English Language Arts, Grades 6-8

Make every student fluent in the language of learning.

Language has always been the center of English Language Arts, but with most states adopting CCSS, the focus on language and literacy across the content areas is required. Today it’s more essential than ever that English language learners and proficient English learners have the supports to access and achieve the language of school.

The Common Core and ELD standards provide pathways to academic success through academic language. Using an integrated Curricular Framework, districts, schools and professional learning communities can:

• Design and implement thematic units for learning
• Draw from content and language standards to set targets for all students
• Examine standards-centered materials for academic language
• Collaborate in planning instruction and assessment within and across lessons
• Consider linguistic and cultural resources of the students
• Create differentiated content and language objectives
• Delve deeply into instructional strategies involving academic language
• Reflect on teaching and learning

With dynamic classrooms and units of learning, this book gives you a streamlined path for designing and implementing curriculum that leads to student mastery of academic language—the key to school success.

"These volumes are packed with practical ideas that will help all teachers attend to language within their classrooms from the discourse level to word/phrase levels. This is a road map for teaching Common Core content in language rich classrooms, and hence a resource every teacher needs within arm’s reach! It’s all here and clearly presented; this is pure gold for everyone who teaches students to speak, listen, read and write in school, with special attention to English language learners."
—Tim Boals, Executive Director of WIDA