Best practices are intended to support multilingual learners (MLs) in all classes, no matter their proficiency level. These strategies are expected to be used by all teachers within lessons, assignments, and assessments to support MLs and all learners. Best practices are strategies that educators can quickly implement within daily instruction, activities, and classroom assessments.

Description

Pre-teaching vocabulary happens when a teacher selects and teaches key words from a reading text—vocabulary that is essential to understanding the text— before the students read the text. 

Knowing vocabulary words is key to reading comprehension. The more words a student knows, the better he or she will understand the text. Using a variety of effective teaching methods will increase the student's ability to learn new words.

Remember that there is a big difference between social English and academic English.

Examples:

• role playing or pantomiming
• using gestures
• showing real objects
• pointing to pictures
• doing quick drawings on the board

To ensure mastery of more complex words and concepts, you might want to follow these six ML steps:

1. Pre-select a word from an upcoming text or conversation.
2. Explain the meaning with student-friendly definitions.
3. Provide examples of how it is used.
4. Ask students to repeat the word three times.
5. Engage students in activities to develop mastery.
6. Ask students to say the word again.

Cognates - Related words like family and familia

Scaffolding - Use a graphic organizer to explain concepts and related words. Post new vocabulary on a word wall, and review the words daily. Swap out old words as necessary. Label drawings and pictures to help students make the connection between oral and written English. Point to these visuals to clarify meaning when using these words.

Using computers, televisions and audio books - Computer programs and television programs can be used as supplements to helping MLs build language and reading skills. Computers are a non-threatening way to help children work on their own or with a buddy to learn vocabulary, sounds of English, syntax, reading, and writing. MLs can build vocabulary by using audio books in a listening center. By hearing and seeing the word in context at the same time, MLs pick up its meaning.

Use a word wizard box - Ask students to bring new words into the classroom that they hear at home, on TV, or anywhere else and drop these words into a word wizard box. At the end of class, pull out a word and ask who wrote it. Have students tell you where they heard the words and how they were used. Ask students to use these new words in their discussions and writing.

Encourage oral language use - Begin by making sure that MLs know instructional words that you use every day, such as "follow directions", "describe", "start at the top of the page", "read to the bottom of page 4", "highlight the verbs only", and "use the steps in your guide."

Model correct usage - Instead of frequently correcting pronunciation or grammar, reaffirm the student's idea and then say the word correctly and in context.
 

	Teacher	Student
	The teacher teaches key vocabulary in context.	The student is able to establish a relationship between the meaning of the vocabulary and the context in which it is used.

	Teacher	Student
	"What do you think? What should we change?" (asking questions that are interactive and meaningful instead of yes and no questions) Use student friendly definitions to explain the meaning May have to explain words in the definitions  Use cognates (Spanish) Ask students to say the word in English/Spanish/etc.	A response that may not be 100% accurate, but is a foundation to build on beyond the easy out of “yes or no”. guess words  repeat words pronounce words discuss the word parts

Recommended Domain(s)	Recommended Level(s)
Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing	All levels