ILLs for ELLs

The number of U.S. residents who are linguistically diverse has increased significantly over time, and many of these residents are school-age children who are learning English and grade-level content simultaneously. The task of promoting success for these students while holding them to the same high academic standards as their native English-speaking peers can be a daunting one, as teachers also strive to encourage acceptance and a safe context for learning and growth to occur. This chapter highlights one classroom teacher who implemented an instructional strategy, Interactive Learning Logs, which allowed her to create a classroom environment that promoted acceptance, high expectations, and skillful differentiation to meet the needs of all of her students, including her ELLs. The chapter shares this teacher's personal experiences with the ILL strategy and how it enhanced ELL student performance through planned instructional supports.