Summer Literacy Circle for English Language Learners in Madison County School District, Mississippi

1. March 26, 2010 - 1 P.M. Madison County School District Mississippi A Summer Literacy Program: Boosting Academic Achievement and Enhancing Language Skills

2. Presenters: Introductions ELL Teachers and Presenters Denise Bruce Lynn Fuller Jun Li

3. Facts: Madison County School District School District Population: 11,370One of the fastest growing top-rated school districts in the state Located centrally in the state of Mississippi in Madison County -Suburb of Jackson, MS-Population: 91,369-66% urban and 34% rural Total Number of schools: 21 High Performing Schools: 5 STAR schools, 3 High Performing schools Madison County School District has very diverse demographics; Northeast part of Madison County is an impoverished area while the south part of the county is affluent. ELL Program -Started in 1998-194 ELL students enrolled this year -Over 20 native languages spoken by ELL students -7 certified ELL teachers; 2 teacher assistants-15 schools in our district serve students in an ELL program

4. ELL Summer Literacy Program

6. Results of the survey indicated a need for an ELL summer program to boost reading and language skills of ELL students.

7. The survey reflected the following needs:A need to provide an ELL Summer Program designed to enhance English language acquisition skills. A 4-week ELL summer program with emphasis on reading, writing, listening and speaking was favored. The greatest need for a summer literacy program was for elementary students in grades K-5.

8. Survey of Need

10. Hours are from 8:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m., Mondays through Fridays, beginning the first week of June and lasting 4 to 6 weeks.

11. Students in grades K-5 must be currently enrolled in the Madison County School District’s ELL program in order to participate in the Summer Literacy Program.

14. Certified teachers provide instruction to ELL students in Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening for four hours per day, Monday through Friday.

15. Teachers selection is based on experience, performance and recommendations.

17. Flexible Grouping: Teachers group students for reading based on students’ DRA levels and English proficiency levels. Flexible grouping is used to differentiate instruction. Teachers may have students in 2 to 3 grades grouped together for instruction. Student communication skills vary; therefore, flexible grouping is used to teach writing and communication skills (Listening and speaking).

19. Literature and art are used to enhance the writing process and provide opportunities for speaking and language development.

21. Educational games are used to accommodate learning styles. (Listening games, kinesthetic games, speaking games)

22. Variety of books are used for teaching: leveled books, literature books, trade books, and big books.

24. Teaching Strategies: Teachers immerse students in literature and use various teaching strategies to enhance learning.

26. Students are not given a grade; they receive a weekly progress report (on Friday) that must be signed by a parent and returned on Monday.

27. End of Summer School Checklist is completed by the teacher for each student.

28. The focus of the program is to immerse students in reading and writing.

29. Result is more retention of reading fluency and reading skills, and less regression in reading.

32. The DRA comparison showed that 55% of the students increased their reading DRA level after the summer literacy program.

35. Students grouped for instruction

36. Sample of games and activities used to boost achievement

38. Boosting Reading Skills

39. Specific Reading Skills are taught through Units of Study

40. Thematic Units Integrate Social Studies with Reading and Writing

41. Share/Compare Categories

42. Shared Reading and Read Aloud Books

43. Making Text to World Connections

44. Reading and Writing Activities

45. Center Activities

46. Teacher Models Activity for Student

47. Reading and Language Artifacts

48. Student Projects Based on Themes

49. Interactive Word Wall

50. Retelling the Story and Writing a Response to the Story

51. Vocabulary Practice

52. Creating Charts and Graphs

53. Compound-Word Activity (Clip)

54. Teacher/Student Interactions (Clip)

55. Student Describes Writing Activity (Clip)

56. Teacher Guided Instruction (Clip)

57. One-on-one Writing Instruction (Clip)

58. Using Sentence Strips to Identify Parts of Speech (Clip)

59. Practice in Writing Sentences (Clip)

60. Assessment of Student Progress Weekly report to parents.

61. Assessment of Student Progress Weekly report to parents.

62. Overall Assessment of Student Progress Overall assessment of students summer school progress for classroom teachers.

64. Reports show a snapshot of the students’ progress in reading, writing, speaking and listening.

65. Parents sign reports and return them on Mondays.