The document discusses strategies for supporting English Language Learners (ELLs) in math classrooms. It identifies factors that can affect ELL performance in math, such as limited prior knowledge, cultural differences, and linguistic barriers. The document provides classroom management strategies and techniques for teaching vocabulary, building background knowledge, and modifying assessments to better support ELLs. Teachers are encouraged to connect math concepts to students' prior knowledge and lived experiences to enhance understanding.

1. Supporting English
Language Learners in
the Math Classroom
Carla Huck, SIOP Coach
January 15, 2013

2. Content Objectives:
• Participants will be able to identify factors that
impact ELL performance in math.
• Participants will be able to connect ESL
practices with effective math instruction for all
students.
Language Objectives:
• Participants will describe and share successful
strategies to engage learners in math content.
• Participants will write one new idea from the
workshop that they will implement in their own
classrooms.

3. ELL Learner Characteristics
• Print your LAS Links Report from
Powerschool
• What do these numbers tell us?
• Refer to LAS Links Proficiency Level
Descriptors for Grades 9-12
Listen Speak Read Write Oral Comp Overall
Lvl Lvl Lvl Lvl Lvl Lvl Lvl
STUDENT 1 4 1 2 3 1 2

4. Factors Affecting ELLs'
Success in Math
Limited Prior Knowledge and/or Background
Knowledge
Depending on the country of origin, students may have had
limited prior schooling and/or may not have made
adequate progress in school.
The end result = some ELLs may lack basic computation
skills, and the ability to grasp the new concepts taught in
first year of high school algebra or geometry.

5. Factors Affecting ELLs'
Success in Math
Cultural Context
• Use of the comma and decimal point varies from culture
to culture in expressing currency values. (South
America, Europe, Asia.)
• Most countries use the metric system in weights and
measures. (China, India, Europe)
• Temperature is recorded in Celsius degrees
• The symbol and process for division is different
(Portugal)
• Rote memorization and self-study, not cooperative
learning and problem-solving, characterize math learning
in many countries

6. Factors Affecting ELLs'
Success in Math
Linguistic Barriers
Vocabulary: Mathematics has its own language that
includes distinct terminology, syntax, and symbols. It
uses some words (for example “root,” or “set”) differently
than they are used in standard, conversational English.
Sentence Structure: Word problems can be difficult
because they require students to use language to
understand relationships between mathematical
operators and numbers. An operation involving
subtraction might use “minus” or “less than”; one
involving division may use the terms “divided by”, “into”,
or “over.”

7. To Understand Math, Students
MUST:
• Learn many content-specific vocabulary words (quotient, equivalent,
divisor).
• Know the meaning of many complex phrases ( least common
multiple, greatest common factor). Many complex phrases are not
found in bilingual dictionaries.
• Understand that many common English words have unique meanings
in mathematics (bring down, tree, face, plane, cone, net, positive,
negative).
• Understand that prepositions (by, with, to, into, from) are used in a
variety of ways in word problems to signal operations.
• Know the meaning of prefixes and suffixes (hept-, tri-, bi-, poly-, -gon,
- lateral).
• Understand unique mathematical sentence constructions ( If x = 5,
then …).
• Decode statements and questions that are written in passive voice
( twenty is divided by five).
• Know that mathematical operations are associated with many
different words.

8. Factors Affecting ELLs'
Success in Math
We tend to think of mathematics as a subject that
does not require a strong command of language.
In reality, however, mathematical reasoning and
problem solving are closely linked to language
and rely upon a firm understanding of basic
math vocabulary (Dale & Cuevas, 1992; Jarret,
1999).

9. Classroom Management
Strategies
• Create predictable classroom routines (starting class, collecting
homework, working in groups) so that ELL students will know what
to expect. By knowing the predictable routines, ELL students will not
have to exert energy understanding classroom behavior. Instead,
they can focus their energy on learning the content.
• Use consistent formats for assignments, worksheets, and tests.
• Seat ELL students purposefully (near the teacher or next to a
buddy).
• Foster an appreciation of and respect for cultural diversity among
the students in the class. Give ELL students opportunities to share
stories about their country and culture and teach words from their
native language.
• Write legibly and in print. Some ELL students may not be familiar
with cursive and/or the Roman alphabet.

10. Classroom Management
Strategies
• Give directions step-by-step (orally and in writing) before assigning
students to do independent, pair, or group work. Ask a student to
repeat the directions aloud for the rest of the class to assess
whether all the students understand the assignment.
• Give ELL students more time to process questions and formulate an
answer. They have to think about the question in their native
language and then work to find the English words to produce an
answer in English.
• To reduce the pressure on ELL students, let them discuss a
question in pairs for a minute before calling on a student to give an
answer. This strategy gives everyone in the class more time to think
about the question and form an answer.
• Allow ELL students to talk to a peer in their native language when
necessary to clarify understanding.

11. Example:
Directions,
Step-by-step

12. Teach Academic Vocabulary
• Review content and select key terms that are critical to
understanding the lesson’s most important concepts.
• Introduce and define terms clearly and explicitly - orally
and in writing.
• Demonstrate how terms are used in a math context. Use
pictures and gestures.
• Explain use of synonyms, prefixes and/or cognates.
• Encourage students to self-select vocabulary words and
maintain personal dictionaries/charts.
• Display math word wall in the same place in your room,
and revisit frequently during instruction.

13. Vocabulary Strategy Modeled
1. Teacher says the word. substitution
2. Teachers states the word in Use substitution to solve for x and y.
context from text.
3. Teacher provides the dictionary 1. A person or thing acting in place of
definition. another
2. The replacement of a term of an
equation by another that is known
to have the same value in order
to simplify the equation.
4. Teacher explains meaning with I am going to substitute low fat milk for
student-friendly definitions. regular milk and see if anyone notices.
5. Teacher has students repeat Say substitution 3 times with me
word orally 3 times.
6. Teacher engages students in In sports, when would there be a
activities to develop substitution? What does a substitute
word/concept knowledge. teacher do?
7. Teacher highlights grammar, Substitution is a noun; to substitute is a
tense, cognate, spelling, verb; synonyms: replacement, switch
synonyms/antonyms, etc.

14. Build Background Knowledge
• Post an outline of the lesson and clearly explain the objectives, the
process, even the time to be spent on each part of your lesson.
• Connect what students already know about a topic to new skills and
concepts. Brainstorm with a semantic web to find out what students
already know.
• Begin a new unit of study by having students pose questions about
a topic (KWHL)
• Use real world examples. (Slope- slope of a skateboard ramp, a
wheelchair ramp, a bus stop shelter, where else do we see this in
our community?)
• Use graphic organizers to guide students through problem solving
steps.
• Provide a copy of a previously solved problem to support the
process/steps of solving a similar problem.

15. Support ELLs during Direct
Instruction
• Think aloud while talking through how to read and solve
a math problem.
• Model how to do specific skills or procedures.
• Consider recording the steps for solving a multi-step
problem so students can review.
• Invite students to interact with questions and comments
during the teaching part of a lesson.
• Have students draw pictures or act out what is
happening in a problem to help them understand what
the problem is asking and what steps they might have to
take to find a solution.
• Keep your board organized, and number the problems
you are working on.

16. Example – think, pair, share!
Simplify unclear directions from the
textbook:
Evaluate the following expressions for
the given value of the variable
A+5= For A=2; A=6

17. Increase Student-Student
Interaction
•Use sentence stems to help ELL students during class
discussions.
Examples
Each of these problems has ______________________________.
The strategy I used to solve this problem was _________________.
Another way I could solve this problem is ______________.
I checked my work by _____________.
I knew I was right when ________________.
• Use Think-Pair-Share, Turn-and-Talk, and meaningful pair and
group work with clearly assigned roles for practice of familiar and
new math concepts.
• Play math games (equation round robins, math baseball, bingo. . .

18. Use Technology
• Calculators
• Video clips and tutorials
(Teachertube.com, youtube.com,
khanacademy.org)
• Document cameras
• Interactive math games http://coolmath.com )
• iPad apps
(http://teachwithyouripad.wikispaces.com/Math+Ap
ps and http://www.mathycathy.com/blog/)
**Examples from Amanda

19. Examples from faculty:
Document camera

20. Teach Learning Strategies
• Help students make sense out of word problems by teaching them
how to mark text. Consider sharing the following tips:
1. Circle important numbers.
2. Underline words that indicate which arithmetic operation to use.
3. Highlight words or phrases that indicate what the problem is asking.
• Help students learn and study new vocabulary using flashcards,
math notebooks, student-made bilingual glossaries, etc.
• Teach students how to organize notebooks and binders, and use a
planner to record homework.
• Teach students how to “take notes”. Model the process with a
document camera or projector.

21. Modify Assessments
When constructing formal content assessments, keep in mind:
1. Write test directions to maximize clarity.
2. Use vocabulary in test items that is widely accessible to all students,
and avoid words that are not directly related to the question.
3. Test items should be written at a vocabulary level slightly lower than
grade level, to ensure all students understand the task.
4. Keep sentence structure as simple as possible. ELLs will find a
series of simpler, shorter sentences more accessible than longer,
more complex sentences.
5. Do not use cultural references or idiomatic expressions.
6. Avoid using syntax with negation or double negatives when
constructing test items.
--adapted from Smarter Balanced Guidelines for Accessibility for
English Language Learners

22. Example
Original Question:
Sharice scored the following number of points in 5 dart
games.
88,96,112,135,144
What is the median of these numbers?
Modified Question:
Look at the 5 numbers below.
88,95,112,135,144
What is the median of these numbers?

23. EXIT TICKET
• Did we meet our content and language
objectives?
• What is one idea from today that you will try in
the next month?
• What would you like to learn about in more
depth on another pd day?

24. Content Objectives:
• Participants will be able to identify factors that
impact ELL performance in math.
• Participants will be able to connect ESL
practices with effective math instruction for all
students.
Language Objectives:
• Participants will describe and share successful
strategies to engage learners in math content.
• Participants will write one new idea from the
workshop that they will implement in their own
classrooms.