Teaching Science to Multilingual Learners: Strategy of the Week

Each week we share one strategy that you can use to meet the needs of your diverse multilingual learners in secondary content classes. This week’s writing strategy is specifically for secondary science teachers but could be adapted for use in many content areas.

Strategy: Quickwrite

Language Objective: I can write about a topic using my background knowledge and sentence frames.

Quickwrite: How-To

Before the Activity

1. Choose key vocabulary words for a lesson.
2. Write sentence frames that correspond with the lesson you will teach.

During the Activity

1. Explain the rules of a quickwrite to students:
   • Spelling and grammar do not matter.
   • Students must be writing during the entire time allotted.
2. Have students write about a topic for 2-3 minutes before teaching them about it. They should write everything they know about that topic.
3. Share the vocabulary and sentence frames with students. They pick one sentence frame and add it to their quickwrite. Examples:
   • One thing I already know about _____ is…
   • I remember learning _______ in _____.
   • _____ reminds me of _______ because…
4. Students share their quickwrites and sentences.
5. Use this background knowledge as a springboard into the lesson.

Extra Support for MLs

• Newcomers and beginners might draw pictures or list words instead of writing full sentences or paragraphs.
• Pair beginners with more advanced students. Allow them to talk first about what they know; the advanced student can then write what they discussed.

Example: Light Waves

LT: I can connect what I already know to the lesson topic of light waves. Before teaching students about light waves, have them write for 2-3 minutes about anything they already know about the topic. Show students key vocabulary (reflect, absorb, prism, etc.) and help them make connections to what they already know. Collect their writing so you have an idea of their background knowledge.

Helpful Links to Learn More

• Creating Authentic Writing Opportunities in the Science Classroom from Edutopia 
• Video: What to do after students complete a quickwrite