Category Archives: Parents and Carers

English as an Additional Language, Inclusion, Listening, Parents and Carers, Speaking

MUSIC ACTIVITIES AND EAL

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It seems that some external factors such as race, culture, religion and family we are born into define us. However, despite of our individual identity we all share the need to belong.

Belonging generates a feeling of acceptance and connection.

In Angus schools we have a diverse community of nearly 700 pupils with English as an Additional Language (EAL) and about 37 languages spoken by them collectively. We all learn from each other and this makes the environment in the schools vibrant and exciting.

The EAL Parent Group has offered support to the class teachers, as well as to the children an opportunity to learn how to sing Head, Shoulders, Knees  and Toes in POLISH. 

Głowa, ramiona, kolana, piety(Polish)

Głowa, ramiona, kolana, piety,
kolana, pięty, kolana, piety.
Głowa, ramiona, kolana, pięty,
oczy, uszy, usta, nos!

Head, Shoulders, Knees, Heels(English)

Head, shoulders, knees, heels,
Knees, heels, knees, heels.
Head, shoulders, knees, heels,
Eyes, ears, mouth, nose!

Definitely this learning experience provided an opportunity to all pupils a wider sense of community and belonging. It links to Polish language, culture and their community.  Besides, we had lots of fun and it was a good exercise for everyone.

English as an Additional Language, Parents and Carers

CHINESE NEW YEAR

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2016 THE CHINESE YEAR, THE YEAR OF THE MONKEY.

Our pupils in P5 welcomed the New Year with a lovely visit of a Chinese mum, who kindly introduced us to the Chinese culture.  

“The pupils were amazed at the intricate Chinese characters and had the chance to test their memory in a matching pairs game. It was lovely to see them trying to work out the word for ‘dog’ by seeing the image of a dog in the character. ‘How can you learn such difficult writing?’ – they asked.  And so many more questions and such a joy in the eyes of our new Chinese student in P5 as she shared her culture and her family.” EAL Teacher – Anne Goldie.

Mum left the school with a big smile – “I really enjoyed being in the class, speaking to the children and sharing my Chinese culture with them. Thank you so much!’ Lily Artur.

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EAL Support, English as an Additional Language, Health and Wellbeing, Infomation, Listening, Literacy and English, Parents and Carers, Reading

EAL PARENT GROUP PROJECT

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Our schools in Scotland are a growing multilingual environment, where each child should have the right to learn a second language or a third one according to the 1+2 approach to modern languages.

As a matter of fact, a school in Angus is piloting a project  with a Parent Group  of EAL ( English as an Additional Language) which one of aims is to ensure and explore parental engagement and support the use of other languages in the school. This project also includes consideration of the role of the students’ home language(s) as part of the process of language acquisition and development.

Our project is based on school integration and social participation of parents whose children have English as an additional language in a variety of activities, such as in the classroom, playground, assemblies or school events. We understand that parents’ participation affect children’s sense of identity, belonging and their ability to make friends and cope within the new culture and ethos of the school.

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Overall our schools need to start building capacity for the teaching of other languages in addition to English, as well as to develop staff confidence in teaching a modern language.

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Having sampled four different languages, Polish, Russian, Sinhalese and Mandarin over four weeks the children are saying:

‘It is fun.’  ‘I enjoyed it.’ ‘I am looking forward to using the language.’ ‘I might use the words if I travel to Russia or if I meet a person who speaks the language in the school.’ ‘I felt hard how to pronounce the words’ ‘It was pretty cool.’ ‘It was tricky.’ ‘I feel pretty good sharing my language.’ ‘It is a good opportunity to learn Polish.’ ‘It is a good thing to have someone who speaks the language.’ ‘It is helpful to learn three languages.’

What are parents saying?

‘It’s very positive.’ ‘The pupils were smiling and trying to say the words.’ ‘I feel pleased to see that they were interested.’ ‘They were asking questions and they wanted to write their names in Russian.’ ‘It was amazing the questions pupils asked, ‘why do write different?,’ ‘how many letters are in Polish language?,’ ‘how many languages have you learned?’

And the teachers:

‘It was really good to have dual language books and read the same story in different languages. It is achievable and fits within 1+2 languages approach.’ ‘I enjoyed having mums in class. It gives you confidence as they can speak and read in their language and in English.’ ‘It is great to see the children so enthusiastic.’ ‘It made the class busy.’ ‘It was great to have more adults in class.’ ‘We had lots of fun.’ ‘It was exciting.’ ‘I felt relaxed.’ ‘I loved it.’ ‘It was flexible and met the interests of the pupils.’ ‘The text and the repetition of the words worked really well.’ ‘The pupils were able to pick up the language easily.’ ‘Pupils broadened their view of the world.’ ‘It is hands on through experience.’ ‘Now it is less alien to everyone.’

 

EAL Support, Infomation, Parents and Carers

The Power of Native Language – Mother Tongue

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Research has shown that children learn better in their native language (Unesco, 2008a). Many educational systems in the world insist on adopting languages that are believed to have more privilege. As a consequence children  are finding difficult to engage successfully with learning  and the teachers are feeling overwhelmed by children’s poor achievement.

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Unesco (2008b) attests growing interests in mother tongue-based education through a wide variety of models, tools and resources that have being developed  and piloted to promote learning in children’s native language.

Unesco (2008a). Mother Tongue Matters: Local Language as a Key to Effective Learning. Paris: Unesco.

Unesco (2008b).  Mother tongue instruction in early childhood education: A selected biography. Paris: Unesco.

 

EAL Support, English as an Additional Language, Infomation, Parents and Carers

Translated Letters for Schools

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Letters for Schools to give to parents translated into multiple languages can be found on line.
The English version of the letters are listed on Education Support for Northen Ireland Website and the appropriate language can be selected from the side menu.
DGT EAZ in association with Liverpool LEA also offer letters translated on either in MS Word or PDF formats.
e-learning, Infomation, Listening, Parents and Carers, Reading, Speaking, Writing

e-Portfolio

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English as an Additional Language has piloted e-portfolio on Glow as a tool to support the transition from Primary to Secondary School in the context of EAL, and to better evaluate the use of technology as an inclusive practice in the learning process.

In line with the guidance set by The Scottish Government, e-portfolio on Glow is an initiative in our local authority. Building the Curriculum 5 provides advice on developing learners’ profiles at the key transition points of Primary seven (P7) and Secondary third year (S3). The profile format may vary whenever a change is required leading to the next stages of learning.

The use of e-portfolio in the context of EAL will offer different means of communication and expression for pupils to present their own culture and background knowledge. It can reveal the ability to capture, review and manage a large amount of material. In addition, it offers flexibility, dynamic for integration, opportunities to develop and demonstrate technology skills through samples of the pupil’s work such as, photographs, videos, audio clips, projects, research and assessments. Furthermore, the e-portfolio will provide opportunities to develop ownership and show more interest in the culture in which the additional language resides. It is a way to demonstrate learners’ creativity with different emerging skills and reflect about choices to break down the barriers for learning. Teachers can access information about their pupils’ learning development, thereby also offering an opportunity for parents to appreciate the improvement.

e-learning, EAL Support, Parents and Carers, Reading

International Children’s Digital Library

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The mission of the International Children’s Digital Library Foundation  is to promote tolerance and respect for diverse cultures by providing access to the best of children’s literature from around the world.

I invite you to explore this library. It is great!!!

EAL Support, Parents and Carers

Home Language Support for EAL

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All practitioners should value linguistic diversity and provide opportunities for children to develop and use their home language in play and learning. This is part of respecting each child’s cultural background and help pupils settle in.

The home languages should be acknowledged and valued. Attempting to learn a few words or phases would be beneficial and parents would usually be very happy to assist in this.

Children should have the opportunity to express themselves and access dual language materials.  Otherwise three or four years of language development can be easily disregarded. Research has shown that learning another language can greatly enhance thinking skills.

Maintaining and developing L1 (first language) skills will not hinder the acquisition of English.  Skills learned in one language are transferable to another.

Parents should be reassured that maintaining and developing the home language will support learning English. Children benefit from bilingualism.