The document discusses thematic units and their use for teaching content to culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students. It provides an overview of the key components of planning and implementing thematic units, including selecting a theme, objectives, materials, and instructional strategies. Examples of strategies mentioned are pre-teaching vocabulary, building background knowledge, and using authentic activities and visual supports to integrate literacy. When done effectively through accommodating CLD students' language needs, thematic units can help facilitate both language development and academic learning for these students.

1. Amy J McGinnis

2.  promotes students development of cognitive and
linguistic abilities and strategies that have
applications across a number of content subject
areas
 a set of related learning activities and experiences
that effectively support teaching multiple content
areas and skills organized around a central topic,
idea, or theme
 reflects the communicative approach including an
emphasis on communication, the authentic use of
literacy in context, and the cultivation of all
literacy domains

3. “By providing CLD students with the opportunity
to use language in meaningful contexts while
studying the academic subject matter, teachers
create an ideal learning environment for
facilitating language development and academic
learning. The more the CLD student learns and
comprehends language related to a specific content
area, the more likely he or she is to comprehend
future instruction in that content area.”

4. “The thematic units used in content
courses give students the opportunity
to process and express similar ideas
and language structures through tasks
that require listening, speaking,
reading, and writing.”

5. I. Planning
A. Select the theme.
B. Choose topics relevant to the theme.
C. Create language and content objectives.
D. Gather appropriate instructional materials.
E. Arrange the classroom environment.
II. Instruction
A. Preteach key content vocabulary.
B. Build background.
C. Facilitate collaborative learning.
D. Use authentic activities for integrating literacy.
E. Engage CLD students cognitively.
F. Provide visual support and graphic organizers.
G. Develop learning centers.
III. Assessment
A. Provide formative assessment.
B. Provide summative assessment.

6.  Our school is currently using The Creative
Curriculum as a resource to create lesson plans,
assess early childhood development, and provide
the highest quality early childhood education
 The Creative Curriculum is divided into six
thematic units
 Beginning of the Year, Clothes, Balls, Buildings, Trees,
Recycling
 Although I am not currently working with
students learning English as a second language,
thematic units really do help students learn
concepts and ideas in all different academic
content areas and promotes overall development

7.  Effectively implementing instruction according to the ICB
method takes time, practice, and critical self-reflection.
 Planning for, instructing, and assessing CLD students with
accommodation in mind requires special attention to their
language development needs.
 For many ICB teachers, modifying the language of
instruction without simplifying the grade-level content can
be a difficult skill to master.
 Yet if educators do not provide CLD students with the
support they need to reach the same high standards as their
English-speaking peers, the achievement gap will continue
to widen.
 By soliciting the help of teachers experienced in this method
or by forming learning communities with other teachers to
implement ICB instruction, educators can find the support
needed to change teaching practice.

8.  Herrera, S., & Murry, K. (2011). Mastering ESL and
bilingual methods: Differentiated instruction for
culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students
(2nd ed.). White Plains, NY: Pearson
 Horwitz, E. K. (2013). Becoming a language teacher: A
practical guide to second language learning and
teaching (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Pearson.
 Short, D. (1991). How to integrate language and
content instruction: A training manual. Washington,
DC: Center for Applied Linguistics