In this article, the authors share findings from a study in which immigrant students responded to the wordless text "The Arrival" in small-group, bilingual literature discussions. The interpretive processes of two of the children with different ethnic backgrounds, levels of English proficiency, and styles of response are highlighted as exemplary…

The Family Backpack Project provided 249 low-income, prekindergarten children and their families with opportunities to read and listen to audio recordings of 3 sets of books in their homes. Families received English or dual-language texts (English plus Spanish, Arabic, Kurdish, or Somali) matched to their home languages. Children and their…

Millions of children participate in both Qur'anic schooling and public schooling. For the majority, this double schooling entails learning (in) two different non-native languages. Seeking to understand the double-schooling experiences of Muslim children for whom the language of literacy in both of their schools is not their native language, Moore…

Immigrants currently make up over 12% of the U.S. population, with children of immigrants comprising more than 20% of the population. Consequently, English learners are the fastest growing group in U.S. schools today, accounting for 10.5% of the total public school student population in Pre-K through Grade 12 in 2004-2005, a 56.2% increase over…

Two teachers engage in assessment discussions based on an analytical rubric to assess an ELL student's writing. Discourse analysis methods were used to analyze recorded/transcribed assessments and discussions. The teachers focused on descriptors for the rubric's lowest scores, neglecting their own knowledge and experience with English learners. As…

During the 2004-05 school year, Parkview Elementary School experienced a dramatic shift from a focus on authentic assessment and responsive, individualized teaching to a one-size-fits-all approach to literacy assessment and instruction. In an effort to boost test scores, the district mandated the use of Open Court Reading, a scripted language arts…

Generative thinking is explored in this article by chronicling the development of middle school English language learners' poetry writing through their interaction with visual art. The author explains how art conversations (Reilly & Cohen, 2008) were used to help students engage in dialogue about the topic of journeys and how students' paintings…

Most new English language learners spend their school days in monolingual teachers' classrooms. This study examines the writing practices taken on and negotiated by multilingual class members within two multiage elementary classrooms. This article details the writing practices enacted and constructed in the daily writing lives of elementary…

This paper describes diverse language learners' use of dialogue journaling in an elementary school setting. The author, a teacher researcher, conducted a qualitative research study with eight participants, ranging from fourth to sixth grade; all were learners adding English to their language repertoire. Through an in-depth analysis of student…

Writing is difficult for students who are learning English, as they often struggle to express what they really want to say. Writing is difficult for their teachers, too, who often struggle to respond in ways that are helpful. In this article, the authors offer an approach that looks at students' writing from a functional linguistics perspective,…

This article describes the author's efforts to engage teachers in language study in a graduate course involving graduate students in Literacy Studies and TESOL programs. In the course "Language, Culture, and Identity: Issues for Teachers and Children," teachers study language like linguists: looking closely at language in use through in-class…

Language arts educators who teach Latino English language learners know that part of their job is to help students learn to distinguish between the vernacular varieties of Spanish (or Mandarin, or Portuguese, or Swahili), English they use at home, and the school varieties of language expected in the classroom and in other professional and…

In this article, the author reflects on his daughter's experiences at home and at school as she moves into a new culture and language. This article reflects on how he and his wife and the teachers helped their daughter, Yisha with her English acquisition. Within the year, Yisha became fluent in English and finished all her courses with straight…

Using a case study approach, the authors describe how a teacher used the tools of systemic functional linguistics (SFL) to teach her fifth grade English Language Learners how to use academic language to challenge school policies regarding recess. In reflecting on these data, we discuss the potential of SFL to support teachers in responding to…

Describes a project where children follow the natural progression of becoming literate in their native language (Spanish) before developing literacy in the language of the school. Demonstrates the manner in which social interaction is part of literacy acquisition at the early stages. (MG)