Teaching Multilingual Learners: Strategy of the Week (ELA)

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

Instructional Strategy: Simultaneous Round Table

Language Objective: I can elaborate on my peers’ writing using textual evidence and transition words.

Simultaneous Round Table: How-To

Before the Activity

• Prepare a prompt that students can respond to in writing.
• Plan student groups of 3-4.
• Prepare an organizer for students that may include word banks or sentence frames.

During the Activity

1. Model how to build on to a peers’ written response.
2. Students write the beginning of a response to the prompt and pass their writing to another student.
3. Students add to what the previous student wrote, using evidence and transition words.
4. Continue this around the group until students receive their own papers.
5. Students take what their peers have written and write a summary that answers the prompt.

Extra Support for MLs

• Start by trying this as a whole-class activity.
• Provide modified text for students to write about.
• Allow newcomers to “shadow” a partner and support them instead of writing their own response.

Example: Text Analysis

LT: I can cite strong evidence to support my analysis of what a text says.

Teacher provides a prompt such as “How does the author develop the theme in Twelfth Night?” Students write the evidence they found and build on their peers’ writing. After all students have responded, students write a complete answer to the prompt using all of the evidence.

Helpful Links to Learn More

• Simultaneous Round Table strategy on Ellevation (graphic organizers, video examples, ideas for online learning, etc.) 
• “The Effectiveness of Simultaneous Roundtable in Teaching Writing at EFL Setting” (research article)

We would love to know how this tip worked for you! Please share any experiences with your PLC or ML supervisor, or email Tani Brown (Secondary ELD Curriculum Specialist) at tanib@provo.edu.

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