This panel discussion presents the experiences of several elementary and middle school ESL teachers as they work with students and colleagues to apply SFL and a genre-based pedagogy to language instruction. The discussion presents successes and challenges, strategies, students’ responses to the approach, collaboration experiences, and student performance data.

1. Genre-Based Pedagogy:
Applying SFL to the Classroom
Cynthia Lundgren, Theresa Bunker, Steven Wicht,
Carrie Sorenson and Angela Froemming
11:10 – 12:00
3:40 – 4:30

2. Welcome!
• What is SFL?
• What is Genre-based pedagogy?
• Why does it matter?

3. Systemic Functional Linguistics
• A theory of language development by Halliday
• Language as a resource for making meaning that
reflects different purposes and contexts
• Grounded in the belief that language provides
access to society and is a tool for social justice
unlocking linguistic privilege
• Asks: (1) What is the PURPOSE of the
communication? (2) What is the intended
OUTCOME? (3) Is the discourse SPOKEN or
WRITTEN? And (4) What is the CONTEXT?

4. Genre-based pedagogy: An application of
SFL to the classroom
• Genre theory is about subject specificity to
help students…
• recognize how information is organized in
various subject areas as well as the culturally
specific expectations
• make meaning from text and with text
• demonstrate the expectations of rigorous
content standards

5. How can we focus language instruction to
be the most effective?

6. Reading Genres
• How can we introduce genres in elementary
school?
• How can we help students identify genres?
• What is the value of knowing the genre of a
text?

7. Linguistic Genre

10. Is this article an informational report or an
argument. How do you know?
www.kidshealth.org”

12. Informational Report
☐ Sentence that introduces
topic.
☐ Facts and information
about the topic.

13. Language Objective
● I can determine the author’s purpose of
a text--to argue, explain, inform or tell
a story.
● I can tell why I think a text is an
informational report or an argument.
● I can identify the language features of
an informational report.
● I can identify the language features of
an argument.

14. Related 4th grade Reading
Standards● Describe the overall structure (e.g., chronology,
comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) of events,
ideas, concepts, or information in a text or part of a
text.
● Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining
what the text says explicitly and when drawing
inferences from the text
● Determine the main idea of a text and explain how it is
supported by key details; summarize the text.
● Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to
support particular points in a text.

15. “This year in our classroom, we've placed a much higher
emphasis on identifying text structure before, during and after
reading. It has made a big difference in student comprehension,
and specifically, in determining main idea.
For instance, in a seemingly informational text about wolves,
the first chapter tells about how wolves have been commonly
misunderstood and, if healthy, are not dangerous to humans.
The author claims that being educated about wolves can help
humans protect them. Identifying the text structure as an
argument helped students identify main idea. The second
chapter is an informational chapter about how wolves live in
packs. Recognizing there was no claim, simply facts about wolf
families, helped students understand the text. Students were
more capable of accurately determining the main idea of
these sections of text when they identified the text
structure first.”
-- Rebecca Theisen, 4th
Grade Teacher

16. Genre Building Blocks
• How can we help students with emerging
English skills access genres?
• What strategies can students use to make
meaning?
• How can a standard curriculum facilitate this
language development?

17. Do-ers and Actions
• Do-ers are the subjects of action verbs.
– They “do” some action in the sentence.
Anab is going to school.
• Actions are action verbs.
– They describe what happens.
Anab is going to school.
Or: Anab is going to school.

18. Context for Learning
• Success For All curriculum.
– Middle school, Level 1 (lowest level).
• Informational Text about animals.
• Focus on sentences with Do-ers and Actions.
• Graphic organizers for writing support.

22. Lexical Cohesion:
Using multiple words to refer to the same thing

23. Pronoun Referencing with
2nd Graders

24. Lexical Cohesion with 2nd Graders

26. Math Word Problems
through an SFL Lens
Making sense
of the meaning of math problems:
How Old is the Sheppard?

27. Three-step Approach:
1. Who or What is the problem about?
2. What information am I given? What is
happening? How is it happening?
3. What am I being asked to solve?

28. sample word problem:
Ellen has 4 professional soccer player autographs. She gets
1 more for every game she attends. Write an equation for
the relationship between the number of games she has
attended (x) and the number of autographs she has (y).
• Who or What is this problem about?
• What information am I given? What is happening? How is it
happening?
• What am I asked to do?

29. Ellen has 4 professional soccer player autographs. She gets 1 more
for every game she attends. Write an equation for the relationship
between the number of games she has attended (x) and the number
of autographs she has (y).
What is the language of a math story problem?
• Who or What is this problem about? Ellen, soccer player autographs
• What information am I given? What is happening? How is it
happening?
Ellen has 4 and gets another one every time she goes to a game.
• What am I asked to do? write an equation and find the relationship
between two things (x and y)

30. Who/ What is the
problem about?
What is happening?
How is it happening?
What am I asked to do?
- Ellen
- soccer player
autographs
- Ellen has 4
- She gets 1 at every
game she attends
- write an equation
- find the relationship
between # games and #
autographs
Ellen has 4 professional soccer player autographs. She gets 1 more
for every game she attends. Write an equation for the
relationship between the number of games she has attended (x)
and the number of autographs she has (y).

31. How is the problem organized?
Ellen has 4 professional soccer player autographs. She gets 1 more
for every game she attends. Write an equation for the
relationship between the number of games she has attended (x)
and the number of autographs she has (y).
• Adverbials/Adjectivals: for every, each, constant rate, between
• Comparative language: (Linear relationships) comparing the
relationship between _______ and ________
• Understanding these functions will help guide the student
toward a strategy to solve the problem. (do I draw a table?
graph? write an equation?)

32. In Summary...
Helping students find ways to solve word problems
1. Who or What is the
problem about?
2. What is happening?
How? (Details!)
3. What is the problem
to solve?
Language Functions to explicitly
teach:
● Clarifying adverbials/adjectivals
- every, constant
● Comparative language structure
- explaining relationships
- between ___ and ___

33. Sample Word Problems:
Linear Functions and Inverse Variation (Grade 8)
Math Learning Target:
I can represent linear/arithmetic functions with tables, verbal descriptions, symbols,
equations (including the form f(x)= mx + b) and graphs; translate from one
representation to another. (8.2.1.1, 8.2.1.4, 8.2.2.2, 8.2.2.4)
I can use linear equations to represent situations involving constant rate of change,
including proportional and non-proportional relationships. (8.2.4.1)
Language Learning Targets:
I can describe the relationship between two entities using graphs, symbols, tables.
(reading, writing)
I can identify participants in a situation using use terms “for every,” each, constant
rate, relationship between ______ and ______. (speaking, reading)
Text: Connected Mathematics (CMP2, Grade 8) Thinking with Mathematical Models
The big idea: Students explore relationships between variables that form linear
and inverse patterns.