Literacy For English Language Learners

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Oct 30, 2025, 10:17 PM

In this article, Kristina Robertson highlights ELL instructional strategies based on key reading components and skills. In addition, educators will learn more about the role of students' home language and oral language. This article is part of our guide on Literacy Instruction for English Language Learners. Image credit: Photo by Allison Shelley for EDUimages Learning to read is a complicated process. If you teach English language learners (ELLs), however, there are a number of ways you can support their literacy and language development through targeted instruction.

This article highlights ELL instructional strategies based on the five components of reading as outlined in Teaching Children to Read by the National Reading Panel (2000). This report is a study of research-based best practices in reading instruction and it focuses on the following five instructional areas: Phonemic Awareness, Phonics, Vocabulary, Fluency, Comprehension. In addition, the article includes information related to two additional important areas of instruction for ELLs, oral language and the role of the home language. Each of these topics is explored below, and each section includes: As classrooms across the United States continue to change, it is critical that educators are able to successfully address the unique language and learning needs of English learners (ELs) and provide efficient and high-quality... This brief describes some best practices that educators can use in their classrooms to help ELs acquire the language and literacy skills needed to succeed academically.

Direct and Explicit Instruction Focusing on Key Aspects of Literacy All students should receive comprehensive, evidence-based language and literacy instruction as part of their core curriculum. This is especially critical for ELs. Effective core instruction for ELs should target the key components of literacy, including phonological awareness, phonics, vocabulary, oral reading fluency, comprehension, and writing. Core classroom teaching should be explicit, systematic, and differentiated for students’ language and learning needs. It is important to provide extensive and varied vocabulary instruction to ELs.

Research suggests that you carefully choose a set of academic vocabulary words to teach intensively across several days using a variety of instructional activities (Baker et al., 2014). An academic vocabulary word is one that is used when talking or writing in academic settings but not usually when talking or writing in social settings. There are four ways that you can carry out this recommendation in your classroom: Choose a brief, engaging piece of informational text that includes academic vocabulary as a platform for intensive academic vocabulary instruction. Find a short, interesting piece of text with the words that you want to focus on. Select a text that is motivating to students and carries content-rich material that will allow you to provide deep instruction and vocabulary.

For immigrants seeking to learn English, libraries are often a first point of access to information and services. Recognizing that libraries are uniquely positioned as “safety nets” for English language learners (ELL), ALA has taken on the charge of providing resources—informational to financial—to assist libraries in serving their ELL populations. The Core Collaborative March 12, 2025 5 min read The shift toward Structured Literacy, grounded in the Science of Reading, has transformed how educators approach reading instruction. While this evidence-based model effectively supports foundational skills like phonemic awareness and phonics, it requires intentional adaptations to ensure English Language Learners (ELLs) are not just decoding words but also developing language and comprehension. Without intentional adaptations, Structured Literacy risks being reduced to a rigid focus on phonics and decoding at the expense of comprehension, language development, and cultural responsiveness, leaving ELLs at a disadvantage (Kapoyannis, 2021; Wolfe,...

How can educators balance explicit literacy instruction with strategies that foster language acquisition and equitable access? This article explores key shifts that make Structured Literacy truly work for multilingual learners. Structured Literacy is an explicit, systematic approach to teaching reading that encompasses phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. It is especially beneficial for students who struggle with reading, including those with dyslexia (Wolfe, 2010; Greenfader & Brouillette, 2017). However, for ELLs, decoding alone is insufficient; without meaning-making, reading becomes a mechanical process rather than a tool for thinking and learning (Naqvi et al., 2012; Stahl, 2015). This highlights the need for an instructional model that integrates both language and literacy development simultaneously, as research indicates that ELLs require explicit instruction in academic language, syntax, and morphology to bridge their understanding...

The aim of this chapter is to provide educators with background knowledge on English language learners and information on how to better assist culturally and linguistically diverse students to develop the literacy skills crucial... Differences in social and academic language will be addressed, at6s well as theories of language acquisition and language learning. Recommendations to educators will be offered to better assist students as they become proficient in the English language while being exposed to new content in the classroom. The chapter also will draw upon the importance of including students’ previous experiences, along with embracing students’ cultural and linguistic diversity. After reading this chapter, readers will be able to Today’s classrooms in the United States are filled with children who speak a variety of native languages and who bring great diversity, culture, and previous experiences with them.

As schools become increasingly diverse, there is an urgent need to prepare all teachers to meet the challenge of teaching both content and English language skills to students. English language learners are the fastest growing population of students in the United States (Calderón, Slavin, & Sanchez, 2011), raising many concerns over how educators can best meet the needs of this diverse group... School-aged children considered to be English language learners (ELLs) rose from 3.54 million in 1998-1999 to 5.3 million in 2008-2009 (National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition, 2011), and it is estimated that one in... As the number of ELLs increases in schools across the country, educators face the challenge of providing instruction in English to students who are learning English while combatting academic achievement gaps. While the research cited and strategies discussed in this chapter are presented in the context of teaching English language learners in schools in the United States, educators in other countries can also apply what... The definition of an English language learner is not a simple one as some students may have relatively no knowledge of the English language when entering the classroom while others have mastered many English...

Terms used to describe English language learners do tend to cause some confusion as terms may overlap and change over time. In order to alleviate any confusion, some common terms and acronyms will be briefly explained for a better understanding throughout the rest of the chapter. English language learner (ELL) is a term used for a person learning English in addition to their native language. It is important to keep in mind that English language learners are students learning English while learning in English. Throughout the chapter the term English language learner will be used as a way of emphasizing that the students are learning and progressing in a new language. This term is often preferred over others, as it highlights the learning aspect of acquiring a new language instead of suggesting that students with other native languages are in some way deficient.

Dr. Robin Scarcella provides an overview to academic language instruction for English language learners. The challenges of teaching English language learners to read. Hosted by Rita Moreno, Becoming Bilingual examines the challenges of teaching children to read in a new language. We visit six cities across the country to learn about the different ways schools are working to create bilingual readers. Browse our collection of books to help you continue to deepen your knowledge about reading, writing, and effective classroom instruction.

You’ll also find books on reading motivation and reading aloud to children. These resources can be used in conjunction with the Pathway to Literacy YouTube Channel. Find ESL Classes: An Interactive Map of ESL Classes in Indy Navigating Zoom: Multilingual "How-To" Videos for Students The Pathway to Literacy Program is the collaborative effort of organizations and individuals supporting adult education in Indianapolis. The Pathway to Literacy Program, under the direction of the Immigrant Welcome Center, is grateful to the following partner organizations, who have supported the classes and assisted in the development of curricular resources and...

Literacy For English Language Learners

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