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There are loads of acronyms about ESL and ELLs and teaching English to students. So as most American students head back to school over the next several weeks, I’d like to offer a list of 40 common acronyms in English language teaching used in the United States. It’ll be particularly
After another year of teaching during the Covid pandemic, it’s understandable that teachers are tired. Combined with the economic downturn, school shootings, and political polarization, it’s no wonder teachers need a break this summer more than ever. This blog post offers recommendations for some TV shows for summer that are
The whole world knows now that Russia invaded Ukraine. Ukrainians are fighting valiantly to resist and preserve their sovereignty. A week after this unprovoked war began, the Ukrainian people’s resolve and resilience has motivated people everywhere to come together and support them. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky’s courage in leading his
A little more than a year ago, I wrote a blog post about gifts from various charitable organizations that teachers can use when teaching Social Studies. One of the organizations I described was Postcards from Timbuktu and I mentioned that I was going to buy a few items from them.
Making learning fun is more than just playing games in your classroom. Although, playing games has its place and there are many educational games that teach content. At the end of this blog post, I’ll share some of the games I especially like. But what I am primarily focusing on
How can you get your English language Learners to talk more in your classes? While that may seem counterproductive since it’s more common for teachers to want their students to talk less, with ELLs it’s often the opposite. ELLs frequently sit silently in mainstream classes, rarely raising their hands to
Making friends isn’t easy. I know – I attended a different high school every year for 10th, 11th, and 12 grade. Making friends is even harder when you’re trying to communicate in a foreign language. I know – I was an exchange student to Sweden my senior year and went
(This post was updated July 27, 2025) Now that school has been in session for at least a few weeks in the US, or if you are about to go back to school, you or your colleagues may have some questions about working with the English Language Learners in your
Like many other people, I found myself spending more time in the kitchen during the past 18 months, and have the extra pounds to prove it. But although I was never interested in learning how to cook when I was a child, ever since I bought 2 historical cookbooks at
George Takei has done many wonderful things in his life, such as playing Sulu on Star Trek: The Original Series and shedding light on the shameful treatment of Japanese-Americansduring World War II. He is also a staunch advocate for LGBTQ+ peopleand gay rights. Find a TpT Resource for ELLs &
Whether or not the murders in Georgia are ultimately classified as a hate crime, the fact remains that most of the victims were Asian or Asian-Americans and to me, that just isn’t a coincidence. Hate crimes, harassment, and discrimination against AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islanders) have noticeably increased since
What is DoK? That’s what I asked myself when a review of one of my TpT resources referred to it. There are so many acronyms in education and this was a new one to me. A quick search online revealed it stands for “Depth of Knowledge.” Intrigued, I explored some
