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English Language Learner Supports
© 2014 Amplify Education, Inc. All trademarks and copyrights are the property of Amplify or its licensors.
The Amplify ELA curriculum includes a variety of supports for ELL students and their teachers.
Differentiation Lesson Briefs
Prior to every lesson, after reviewing the lesson overview and prep, teachers may view a differentiation brief,
which includes 2-3 paragraphs of suggested modifications for that lesson -- typically, 3-4 ideas total. These
ideas are written specifically for English Language Learners. Sometimes, a single modification for a variety
of activities will be included. In other cases, all of the ideas will focus on a single activity that is crucial to the
lesson.
Here is an example from a lesson on the memoir, Red Scarf Girl:
Lesson Title: Ji-li’s Troubles Begin
Lesson Overview: The opening chapter of Red Scarf Girl starts with a thrilling opportunity for Ji-li, but
her hopes are dashed almost immediately when she finds out that her family doesn’t have the right
“class status.” By acting out a scene from this first chapter, students see how the author uses both
dialogue and actions to convey her feelings, especially her hope (or lack thereof). By graphing her level
of hopefulness in two parts of this scene, students practice making inferences about specific details in
the text.
In this lesson, students graph Ji-li’s level of hopefulness in two scenes from the first chapter. They will
continue tuning in to her level of hopefulness throughout future lessons using an App called the “HopeO-Meter.”
Prep:
•
Be prepared to narrated a scene from “The Liberation Army Dancer.” You will also need six
volunteers to act, four of whom will have speaking parts. If possible, choose volunteers in advance
so they can practice their parts for homework.
•
Prepare to project a graph on a whiteboard. If you do not have a white board on which you can
project, draw the graph on a board. The graph can be found in the Materials list, and is used in the
Hope-O-Meter activity.
Text: Red Scarf Girl, Chapter 1: “The Liberation Army Dancer”
Words to Use:
•
•
•
•
•
•
exemplary
successors
liberate
tone
political
troupe
Differentiation Brief:
1. Consider pairing a stronger reader with a struggling reader for the highlighting activity. This
approach benefits both students. The struggling reader receives peer support and the strong
reader has an opportunity to solidify his or her skills by providing support to a classmate.
2. Hopeful/Hopeless may feel abstract and vague for some students. Consider providing images for
the Hope-o-Meter activity.
3. Depending on the needs of the student, a summary may be a useful support for reading
comprehension.
© 2014 Amplify Education, Inc. All trademarks and copyrights are the property of Amplify or its licensors.
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Look Fors
Embedded in each lesson are “look for” suggestions targeted to any student who may need in-the-moment
support. The Look For section of each lesson will include three specific examples of how students may
struggle, with examples of explicit “Say/Do” feedback teachers may provide in response to each situation.
The “Look Fors” are easily absorbed, actionable guidance for teachers. While the “Look Fors” are not targeted
specifically to English Language Learners, they will be helpful to these students.
The “Look Fors” also include information for what a teacher should expect to see from students who are “On
Track”—i.e., who are moving smoothly through the lesson and activity stack.
LOOK FORS
ON TRACK: Answers the question, Yes or No.
Provides evidence about bacteria, brain swelling,
shock, or blood loss.
Correct answer might also include marveling at
the physical facts of the injury.
Look For: Student is stuck.
SAY/DO
“Wow, you are not easily impressed by Phineas’
survival. You must be very confident about the
human ability to survive this type of brain injury—
maybe you should be a doctor.”
“Finally, someone explains how remarkable it is that
Phineas survived when his brain was exposed to
so many bacteria. Can you read that later during
sharing?”
“Are you surprised that he didn’t die? Point to
something in the text that makes you think he
should have/could have died.”
“Exactly how would THAT (insert detail from text)
cause someone to die?”
“Start writing about THAT…, right here.”
Skill: Staking a claim
Look For: Student hasn’t answered the question
and IS writing about relevant evidence.
Skill: Staking a claim or selecting relevant
evidence
Look For: Student hasn’t answered the question
and is stuck or writing about irrelevant details
from the text.
“Good evidence. I’m looking forward to seeing
how you answer the question.” (Come back in two
minutes to make sure the student provides a Yes/
No answer.)
“Are you surprised that he didn’t die? Point to
something in the text that makes you think he
should have/could have died.”
“Exactly how would THAT (insert detail from text)
cause someone to die?”
“Start writing on the next line about THAT, right here.”
(Don’t worry about what they’ve already written.)
Skill: Describing how the evidence supports the
claim
“Ah, there’s something about the blood-brain barrier.
I had to read that three times in order to understand
it. Explain to me exactly what the blood-brain barrier
Look For: Student quotes the text without any
elaboration. You can’t tell if he or she understands has to do with Phineas living or dying.
what could have caused Phineas to live or die.
© 2014 Amplify Education, Inc. All trademarks and copyrights are the property of Amplify or its licensors.
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Vocabulary Strand for ELLs
At the start of each lesson, teachers may direct ELL students to participate in a vocabulary activity that
introduces words essential to text comprehension. For each of 5-8 words per day, for a total of roughly
75 words per unit, students work with each word in four ways. Students see the word in the middle of the
screen. They then must identify the right image from four choices, three of which are incorrect distractors.
They must find the correct Spanish translation of the word, again from four choices. They see four sample
contextual sentences and must decide which is the correct one in which to place the target word. And
they must identify the correct English definition. Because students can tap-and-click on each of these four
activities for each word in the order of their choice and may try again as long, and as often, as necessary,
learning can be both fun and efficient.
ELL Vocab: Multiple-Choice Activities
SPANISH TRANSLATION
nervioso
nervous
ESP
DEFINITION
CONTEXT SENTENCE
True! – nervous – very, very
dreadfully nervous I had been
and am; but why will you say
that I am mad?
worried
& afraid
This pane shows a mock-up of the screen for a set of ELL vocabulary activities around the target word, “nervous,” and each of the four
activities with which ELL/Spanish-speaking students will engage. Clockwise from top left: identifying an image that illustrates the
word; selecting the correct Spanish translation for the word; defining the word in English; and finding the right usage of the word in a
contextual sentence.
© 2014 Amplify Education, Inc. All trademarks and copyrights are the property of Amplify or its licensors.
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In this activity, also
shown as a design mockup, students select the
correct Spanish synonym
for the target word (e.g.,
“nervous”) from four
choices. If student selects
the wrong choice, he or
she may gets to try again.
SPANISH TRANSLATION
nervioso
IMAGE
nervous
In this activity, students
view four images, one of
which depicts the target
word (e.g., “nervous”).
If a student clicks on the
wrong image, he or she
gets to try again.
DEFINITION
CONTEXT SENTENCE
© 2014 Amplify Education, Inc. All trademarks and copyrights are the property of Amplify or its licensors.
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SPANISH TRANSLATION
nervioso
IMAGE
nervous
In this activity, students
see four sentences, and
the target word makes
sense in only one of
them. If the student
chooses incorrectly, he or
she may try again.
DEFINITION
CONTEXT SENTENCE
Presently I heard a
slight
, and I
knew it was the groan
of mortal terror. It was
not a groan of pain
He had the eye of a
a pale blue eye,
with a film over it.
True!
very, very
dreadfully nervous I
had been and am;
but why will you say
that I am mad?
You
me mad.
Madmen know nothing
SPANISH TRANSLATION
nervioso
IMAGE
nervous
In this activity, students
see four English words,
only one of which is the
correct translation of the
target word. If a student
selects the wrong word,
he or she may try again.
DEFINITION
CONTEXT SENTENCE
to not
believe
from modern
times
worried
and afraid
mother or
father
© 2014 Amplify Education, Inc. All trademarks and copyrights are the property of Amplify or its licensors.
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ELL Vocab: Designs for Four Words
This screen and the three that follow display another layer of student interaction available through the Amplify
ELL program. Before students engage with the multiple-choice activities described above, they move through the
icons in black in the middle of each screen. All of the words in these demonstration screens are from the text, Red
Scarf Girl, the anchor text for Unit 8A/Personal Narrative.
Left to right: Tapping on the first black icon displays the correct image to align with the target word (e.g.,
“parents). Tapping on the book reveals the correct contextual usage in a sentence. The puzzle piece displays the
correct English definition; and the key shows the correct Spanish translation of the word.
© 2014 Amplify Education, Inc. All trademarks and copyrights are the property of Amplify or its licensors.
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© 2014 Amplify Education, Inc. All trademarks and copyrights are the property of Amplify or its licensors.
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Professional Audio Reads for Core Texts
Most core texts are married to an audio reading of the text, a superb fluency support for students learning
English. Students may stop and start the audio at any point as they read at home or, with headphones, as
they read in class. The readings go well beyond the text-to-speech computer voice that is embedded in
tablets and computers. Professional actors read for each of the core texts. The read-aloud is available when
students activate a “microphone” icon both on a digital device during classwork or in the virtual library
(eReader).
The Reveal Tool
The Reveal tool for all core texts, whether inside of lessons or in the Virtual Library, enables students to
“reveal” short, contextual definitions of some 1,500 words in the course of a single Amplify ELA year. Each
word “revealed” is captured in the Personal Glossary of that student’s Virtual Library. This support is suited
to all students but offers student-driven, differentiated support especially meaningful for struggling readers.
When a student taps on a word that displays small circles above it, a short in-context definition appears. Each of these words also will
be included in a student’s Personal Glossary, to which he or she can return for reminders of the meaning of unfamiliar words.
Above, the student has Revealed the meaning of the word “flourishing” to expose the definition “doing well.” The student has not yet
Revealed the in-context definition for the word, “jaunty.”
© 2014 Amplify Education, Inc. All trademarks and copyrights are the property of Amplify or its licensors.
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