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Over of students in the United States鈥攎ore than 4.8 million kids鈥攁re English language learners (ELLs), and the number is on the rise. Though these students do not learn differently than their native-English-speaking peers, they do have particular educational needs.

To learn about these needs鈥攁nd best practices for addressing them鈥擨 interviewed a range of educators and observers, including Larry Ferlazzo, an educator and author of The ESL/ELL Teacher鈥檚 Survival Guide; longtime teachers of English as a second language (ESL) Emily Francis and Tan Huynh; and the journalist Helen Thorpe, who spent a year observing a teacher who works with ELLs.

The group emphasized that the strategies listed here, which include both big-picture mindsets and nitty-gritty teaching tactics, can be incorporated into all classrooms, benefiting both native English speakers and ELLs.

1. Cultivate Relationships and Be Culturally Responsive

No surprise here. A successful classroom, our educators agreed, is one in which students feel known, appreciated, and comfortable taking emotional and intellectual risks. That requires intentional planning and consistent messaging by the teacher.

Emily Francis, an ESL teacher in Concord, North Carolina, makes clear that she wants her students to 鈥渆mbrace their culture and their language as a foundation of who they are鈥� and to consider their acquisition of a new culture and language 鈥渘ot as subtractive, but as additive.鈥� To help support students who may never have attended school before or may be coping with migration-based trauma, Francis emphasizes that little things make a big difference. 鈥淭he first thing that I need to think about is, how is my student feeling in my classroom?鈥� she says. 鈥淎re they sitting next to a buddy they can ask a question in their home language? Do they feel comfortable tapping me on the shoulder if they have to go to the bathroom?鈥�

But creating a supportive environment is also about cultivating an appreciation of diversity鈥攊t鈥檚 critical that both the curriculum and the classroom environment honor and reflect the lives of the students. For instance, Francis makes certain that her classroom library is reflective of her students鈥� diverse backgrounds and identities.

ESL teacher Katie Toppel, who teaches near Portland, Oregon, champions the value of home visits to get to know students鈥� families and takes care to incorporate the particulars of students鈥� lives, such as pets鈥� names and favorite sports, into lessons. Students are most engaged when they feel a personal connection to a lesson or unit, a connection that鈥檚 created in part by a teacher鈥檚 investment in culturally competent relationships.

2. Teach Language Skills Across the Curriculum

English language learners should not be learning the fundamentals of English in isolation; they should be applying their developing language skills to rich academic content in all subjects.

鈥淚t is key that in mainstream classrooms, teachers understand their role as language teachers,鈥� says Valentina Gonzalez, a district leader in Katy, Texas, suggesting that all teachers should be aware of the specialized idiom they work within. 鈥淚f we teach math, then we teach the language of mathematics. If we teach science, then we teach the language of science.鈥� Math teachers, in other words, should take the time to teach the unfamiliar vocabulary of mathematics鈥�add, subtract, calculator, solve鈥攃oncurrently with the teaching of math skills.

3. Emphasize Productive Language

The educators I interviewed agreed that productive language skills鈥攈ard-to-master dimensions of language fluency like speaking and writing鈥攕hould be front and center from day one, even if students feel hesitant about them.

Beginning ELLs often develop receptive language skills like listening and reading first. Educators who are unaware of the typical path to fluency may believe that students who can follow verbal or written directions will be able to produce oral or written language, but that鈥檚 usually not the case.

To support reluctant speakers, Tan Huynh, an educator who blogs at , suggests using sentence frames. 鈥淔or example, when a science teacher wants ELLs to produce a hypothesis, they might offer the sentence, 鈥業f _____ was added, then _____ because _____.鈥� This sentence frame provides clues that empower ELLs to sound and think like scientists,鈥� Huynh says.

Andrea Honigsfeld, a professor of education at Molloy College in Rockville, New York, suggests that all lessons touch on every letter of the acronym SWIRL, which stands for Speak, Write, Interact, Read, Listen. The approach intentionally privileges productive language skills 鈥渇rom the beginning,鈥� she says.

4. Speak Slowly鈥攁nd Increase Your Wait Time

Easier said than done. Still, many of the teachers I spoke to said this simple change is vital. You can record yourself speaking in class to measure your cadence, and adjust.

鈥淎dding in an extra three to five seconds after we pose a question offers all students time to think,鈥� explains Gonzalez. 鈥淗owever, for English learners, it also gives time to translate, process their thinking, translate back into English, and develop the courage to answer. If we call on students too quickly, many of our students will stop thinking about the answers鈥攐r trying to answer at all.鈥�

That means undoing some of our own habits, according to Larry Ferlazzo, a high school ESL teacher in Sacramento, California. 鈥淩esearchers have found that typically most teachers give one to two seconds between asking a question and expecting a student response,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he same researchers have shown that if you wait three to five seconds, the quality of responses is astronomically greater.鈥�

5. Differentiate鈥攁nd Use Multiple Modalities

All kids learn better when they engage with material聽in multiple ways: Lessons that involve writing, speaking, drawing, and listening, for example, give students four opportunities to deepen their understanding of the work. For ELLs, those additional engagements also provide a little breathing room so they can work through the language barrier.

Helen Thorpe, a journalist who spent a year observing Eddie Williams鈥檚 classroom in Denver in order to write a book about immigrants called The Newcomers, marveled at Williams鈥檚 method of differentiation. 鈥淓ddie would enunciate very clearly in English multiple times, he would write it on the board, and he would go to the projector to give a visual. And, finally, he鈥檇 be asking the kids to verbalize aspects of the lesson themselves,鈥� she says, tracing Williams鈥檚 efforts to move his students from receptive to productive language fluency.

Toppel uses a strategy called QSSSA to scaffold classroom discussions with ELLs. The letters stand for Question (the teacher poses a question, then gives ample think time); Signal (a designated motion like a thumbs-up, a finger on the nose鈥攕omething that lets students indicate that they鈥檙e ready to answer); Stem (the teacher provides a sentence starter聽for the question鈥攆or example, for 鈥淲hat is your favorite place to read a book?鈥� the stem might be, 鈥淢y favorite place to read a book is _____鈥�); Share; and Assess.

6. Incorporate Students鈥� Native Languages鈥攁nd Don鈥檛 Be Afraid of Technology

Bilingualism is the goal, of course, not replacement.

Ferlazzo uses a strategy called 鈥減review, view, review,鈥� which leverages a student鈥檚 native language skills as a foundation for learning the new language. He introduces a topic and encourages students to preview it in materials in their home language (often using ); he then teaches the topic in English, and then has students review the information in their home language.

Ferlazzo also encourages teachers to embrace technologies that students find helpful, like Google Translate. He stresses that the app can be for students to translate words quickly鈥攂ut warns that it can quickly 鈥渂ecome a dependency鈥� if it鈥檚 used as more than a handy dictionary.

Thorpe agrees that Translate can take pressure off teachers, who sometimes find that they 鈥渏ust stand at the front of the room and say things over and over. And if the kids didn鈥檛 know what those words are, they鈥檙e out of luck.鈥� Translation technology means you can say it once (or twice) and let the students use the technology to translate key words and phrases.