Understanding text is particularly difficult for students who must translate each word as they read. The following suggestions can help increase the efficacy of content instruction for English learners.

• Preteach the selection vocabulary to English learners. The English-Language Development Guide in Open Court Reading ©2002/2005 provides strategies for preteaching vocabulary skills. In SRA Imagine It! lesson-by-lesson support can be found in the English Learner Support Guide.
• Read the selection with English learners before the whole class reads it together. Model the comprehension strategies, encourage students to react freely to the text, and clarify problems and misunderstandings as they arise. Encourage students to read aloud or to identify words and ideas they want to talk about. Once unfamiliar words and concepts have been addressed, English learners will be able to contribute more to whole-group discussions, focusing on meaning without translation or decoding obstacles.
• Keep the following tips in mind when working with English learners on applying reading comprehension strategies:
  • - Repeat key words and phrases.
  • - Pronounce words clearly.
  • - Explain vocabulary, idioms, and complex sentences.
  • - Use body language, props, objects, and visual aids to convey meaning.
  • - Emphasize key words and phrases by varying your tone.
  • - Give concrete examples and explanations of key ideas and vocabulary.
• Summarizing and asking questions serve as valuable comprehension tools for students with limited English proficiency. The following activities could serve as a useful tutorial during Workshop:
  • - Have a student preread or reread parts of the selection, stopping after each sentence or paragraph to tell in his or her own words what the selection says.
  • - Read a short passage aloud to a student and then have that student pose a question about the most important point in the passage. Prompting with question words such as Who? What? When? Where? How? and Why? may help students formulate questions.
• Pair English learners with native or fluent English speakers to discuss reading strategies.