Teaching Math to Multilingual Students, Grades K-8
Positioning English Learners for Success
Rachel JaDean Pinnow
- University of Missouri, USA
Purchase
eBook
ISBN:
9781071810828
Available from
January 0001
Paperback
ISBN:
9781071810842
Available from
January 0001
Description
Using strengths-based approaches to support development in mathematics
It’s time to re-imagine what’s possible and celebrate the brilliance multilingual learners bring to today’s classrooms. Innovative teaching strategies can position these learners as leaders in mathematics. Yet, as the number of multilingual learners in North American schools grows, many teachers have not had opportunities to gain the competencies required to teach these learners effectively, especially in disciplines such as mathematics. Multilingual learners—historically called English Language Learners—are expected to interpret the meaning of problems, analyze, make conjectures, evaluate their progress, and discuss and understand their own approaches and the approaches of their peers in mathematics classrooms. Thus, language plays a vital role in mathematics learning, and demonstrating these competencies in a second (or third) language is a challenging endeavor.
Based on best practices and the authors’ years of research, this guide offers practical approaches that equip grades K-8 teachers to draw on the strengths of multilingual learners, partner with their families, and position these learners for success. Readers will find:
• A focus on multilingual students as leaders
• A strength-based approach that draws on students’ life experiences and cultural backgrounds
• An emphasis on maintaining high expectations for learners’ capacity for mastering rigorous content
• Strategies for representing concepts in different formats
• Stop and Think questions throughout and reflection questions at the end of each chapter
• Try It! Implementation activities, student work examples, and classroom transcripts
With case studies and activities that provide a solid foundation for teachers’ growth and exploration, this groundbreaking book will help teachers and teacher educators engage in meaningful, humanized mathematics instruction.
It’s time to re-imagine what’s possible and celebrate the brilliance multilingual learners bring to today’s classrooms. Innovative teaching strategies can position these learners as leaders in mathematics. Yet, as the number of multilingual learners in North American schools grows, many teachers have not had opportunities to gain the competencies required to teach these learners effectively, especially in disciplines such as mathematics. Multilingual learners—historically called English Language Learners—are expected to interpret the meaning of problems, analyze, make conjectures, evaluate their progress, and discuss and understand their own approaches and the approaches of their peers in mathematics classrooms. Thus, language plays a vital role in mathematics learning, and demonstrating these competencies in a second (or third) language is a challenging endeavor.
Based on best practices and the authors’ years of research, this guide offers practical approaches that equip grades K-8 teachers to draw on the strengths of multilingual learners, partner with their families, and position these learners for success. Readers will find:
• A focus on multilingual students as leaders
• A strength-based approach that draws on students’ life experiences and cultural backgrounds
• An emphasis on maintaining high expectations for learners’ capacity for mastering rigorous content
• Strategies for representing concepts in different formats
• Stop and Think questions throughout and reflection questions at the end of each chapter
• Try It! Implementation activities, student work examples, and classroom transcripts
With case studies and activities that provide a solid foundation for teachers’ growth and exploration, this groundbreaking book will help teachers and teacher educators engage in meaningful, humanized mathematics instruction.
Contents
Preface
Preface
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgements
Our Hope for Multilingual Learners
Our Hope for Multilingual Learners
Teachers Who Inspire
Teachers Who Inspire
Studying Teacher Practice
Studying Teacher Practice
Interacting With Multilingual Learners and Their Families
Interacting With Multilingual Learners and Their Families
Position Multilingual Learners as Classroom Leaders
Position Multilingual Learners as Classroom Leaders
What Research says About Positioning
What Research says About Positioning
Reflecting of Xiao Li's Experience
Reflecting of Xiao Li's Experience
Reflecting on Nabil Abadi's Experience
Reflecting on Nabil Abadi's Experience
Reflecting on José López’s Experience
Reflecting on José López’s Experience
Positioning Students as Experts
- One Year Later
- Reflecting on Why Positioning Matters
Recognize How Teachers Position Students
Recognize How Teachers Position Students
Positioning Multilingual Learners as Leaders
- Explicitly Positioning Multilingual Learners as Leaders
- Implicitly Positioning Multilingual Learners as Leaders
- Strategies for Positioning Multilingual learners as Leaders
Thinking About Positioning in Your Practice
- Facilitate Multilingual Learners' Participation in Mathematics Classroom
Reflecting on Your Experience with Participating
Reflecting on Your Experience with Participating
What Research Says About Student Participation
What Research Says About Student Participation
Factors That Influence the Participation of Multilingual Learners
- Reflecting on Your Experiences with Fear
- Overcoming Fear
- Encountering Unknown Contexts
Examining Teaching Strategies That Influence Participation
Examining Teaching Strategies That Influence Participation
Strategies for Facilitating Multilingual Learners’ Participation in Mathematics
Strategies for Facilitating Multilingual Learners’ Participation in Mathematics
Thinking About Participation in Your Practice
- Facilitate Partnerships Between Multilingual Learners and Their Peers
Solving a Mathematics Problem with A Partner
Solving a Mathematics Problem with A Partner
Solving a Mathematics Problem with A Partner
Solving a Mathematics Problem with A Partner
Qualities of Partnerships
Qualities of Partnerships
Strategies for Facilitating Partnerships
Strategies for Facilitating Partnerships
Establish Participation Norms With Students
Establish Participation Norms With Students
Practice Compliments
Practice Compliments
Provide Concrete Resources
Provide Concrete Resources
Pay Attention To Pairing
Pay Attention To Pairing
Monitor How Partners Work
- Revisit Partnership Norms With Student
Thinking About Partnerships in Your Practice
- Engage Multilingual Learners Through Culturally-Relevant Contexts
Reflecting on the Challenge of Contexts and Culture
Reflecting on the Challenge of Contexts and Culture
What the Research Says About Contexts in Mathematics
What the Research Says About Contexts in Mathematics
Strategies for Engaging Multilingual Learners Through Culturally-Meaningful Contexts
Strategies for Engaging Multilingual Learners Through Culturally-Meaningful Contexts
Thinking about Contexts in your Practice
- Reach Multilingual Learners with Visuals, Illustrations, and Gestures
What Research Says About Visuals and Gestures
What Research Says About Visuals and Gestures
Using Visuals Strategically
- Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Visuals: Dividing Cookies
- Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Visuals: Emphasizing the Meaning of ‘Loose’
- Emphasizing Mathematical Connections
Reflecting on Your Use of Gestures
- Using Gestures Strategically
Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Gestures: Obstacle Course
Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Gestures: Obstacle Course
Examining Ms. Bristow’s Strategic Use of Visuals and Gestures: Columns and Rows
Examining Ms. Bristow’s Strategic Use of Visuals and Gestures: Columns and Rows
Thinking About Visuals and Gestures in Your Practice
Thinking About Visuals and Gestures in Your Practice
Strategies for Using Visuals and Gestures
- Analyze Mathematical Work of Multilingual Learners
Reflecting on Your Experiences
Reflecting on Your Experiences
What Research Says About Analyzing Multilingual Learners’ Mathematical Work
- What Research Says About Analyzing Multilingual Learners’ Mathematical Work
Analyzing Additional Student Work
Analyzing Additional Student Work
Strategies for Discerning Between Mathematical and Language Issues
- Examining Abigail’s Work
- Examining Janessa’s Work
The Importance of Interviewing Multilingual Learners
The Importance of Interviewing Multilingual Learners
Thinking About Analyzing Multilingual Learner’s Mathematical Work in Your Practice
- Investigate Meanings to Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Language Development
- The Importance of Academic Language for Multilingual Learners
What the Research Says About Academic Language
What the Research Says About Academic Language
Distinguishing Between Multiple Meanings of Language
Distinguishing Between Multiple Meanings of Language
Introducing Specialized Mathematics Language
Introducing Specialized Mathematics Language
Amplified Use of Academic Language
Amplified Use of Academic Language
Strategies for Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Language Development
Strategies for Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Language Development
Thinking About Academic Language in Your Practice
- Use Your Discourse Strategically to Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Opportunity to Learn
Reflecting on Varieties of English that Influence Discourse
Reflecting on Varieties of English that Influence Discourse
What Research Says About Discourse
What Research Says About Discourse
Teacher Discourse
- Connecting Academic Language to Mathematical Representations
- Posing Questions to Engage Multilingual Learners
- Posing Questions to Engage Multilingual Learners
Strategies for Promoting Classroom Discourse
Strategies for Promoting Classroom Discourse
Thinking About Your Discourse in Your Practice
- Foster a Culture of Writing in the Mathematics Classroom
Reflecting on Your Experiences
Reflecting on Your Experiences
What Research Says About Writing in Mathematics
What Research Says About Writing in Mathematics
Establishing a Need to Write in Mathematics
Establishing a Need to Write in Mathematics
Establishing a Culture of Writing
Establishing a Culture of Writing
Providing Feedback on Students’ Writing
Providing Feedback on Students’ Writing
Analyzing Students’ Writing
Analyzing Students’ Writing
Strategies for Fostering a Culture of Writing in Your Mathematics Classroom
Strategies for Fostering a Culture of Writing in Your Mathematics Classroom
Reflecting on Mathematical Writing in Your Practice
- Develop Writing in Mathematics for Multilingual Learners
Reflecting on Your Practice
Reflecting on Your Practice
Mathematical Genres of Writing
Mathematical Genres of Writing
What the Research Says about Mathematical Genres
What the Research Says about Mathematical Genres
Identifying Mathematical Writing Genres
Identifying Mathematical Writing Genres
Strategies for Developing Writing in Mathematics for Multilingual Learners
- Teaching Practices
- Activities
Reflecting on Your Use of Mathematical Genres in Your Practice
- Enhance Curriculum Materials for Multilingual Learners
Reflecting on Mathematics Curriculum
Reflecting on Mathematics Curriculum
What Research Says About Curriculum Enhancement for Multilingual Learners
What Research Says About Curriculum Enhancement for Multilingual Learners
Strategies for Crafting Language to Better Support Multilingual Learners
Strategies for Crafting Language to Better Support Multilingual Learners
Analyzing Curriculum Materials for Multilingual Learners
Analyzing Curriculum Materials for Multilingual Learners
Research Recommendations for Enacting Mathematics Curriculum
Research Recommendations for Enacting Mathematics Curriculum
Recognizing Different Mathematical Conventions and Representations
Recognizing Different Mathematical Conventions and Representations
Thinking about Mathematical Conventions and Representations in your Practice
Thinking about Mathematical Conventions and Representations in your Practice
Thinking about Curriculum Enhancement in your Practice
- Engage with Parents and Families of Multilingual Learners
Reflecting on Your Experiences
Reflecting on Your Experiences
What the Research Says about Multilingual Parent and Family Engagement
What the Research Says about Multilingual Parent and Family Engagement
Multicultural Parenting Styles
- Cultural Values
- Emphasizing the Value of Family in Your Classroom
- Examining Teachers’ and Multilingual Parents’ Expectations
Reframing Multilingual Parental Engagement
Reframing Multilingual Parental Engagement
Strategies for Facilitating Multilingual Family and Parent Engagement in Your Classroom
Strategies for Facilitating Multilingual Family and Parent Engagement in Your Classroom
Reflecting on Family Engagement in Your Practice
- Appendix A. Additional Resources
- Appendix B. Selected Solutions
- References
Additional materials
Description
Using strengths-based approaches to support development in mathematics
It’s time to re-imagine what’s possible and celebrate the brilliance multilingual learners bring to today’s classrooms. Innovative teaching strategies can position these learners as leaders in mathematics. Yet, as the number of multilingual learners in North American schools grows, many teachers have not had opportunities to gain the competencies required to teach these learners effectively, especially in disciplines such as mathematics. Multilingual learners—historically called English Language Learners—are expected to interpret the meaning of problems, analyze, make conjectures, evaluate their progress, and discuss and understand their own approaches and the approaches of their peers in mathematics classrooms. Thus, language plays a vital role in mathematics learning, and demonstrating these competencies in a second (or third) language is a challenging endeavor.
Based on best practices and the authors’ years of research, this guide offers practical approaches that equip grades K-8 teachers to draw on the strengths of multilingual learners, partner with their families, and position these learners for success. Readers will find:
• A focus on multilingual students as leaders
• A strength-based approach that draws on students’ life experiences and cultural backgrounds
• An emphasis on maintaining high expectations for learners’ capacity for mastering rigorous content
• Strategies for representing concepts in different formats
• Stop and Think questions throughout and reflection questions at the end of each chapter
• Try It! Implementation activities, student work examples, and classroom transcripts
With case studies and activities that provide a solid foundation for teachers’ growth and exploration, this groundbreaking book will help teachers and teacher educators engage in meaningful, humanized mathematics instruction.
It’s time to re-imagine what’s possible and celebrate the brilliance multilingual learners bring to today’s classrooms. Innovative teaching strategies can position these learners as leaders in mathematics. Yet, as the number of multilingual learners in North American schools grows, many teachers have not had opportunities to gain the competencies required to teach these learners effectively, especially in disciplines such as mathematics. Multilingual learners—historically called English Language Learners—are expected to interpret the meaning of problems, analyze, make conjectures, evaluate their progress, and discuss and understand their own approaches and the approaches of their peers in mathematics classrooms. Thus, language plays a vital role in mathematics learning, and demonstrating these competencies in a second (or third) language is a challenging endeavor.
Based on best practices and the authors’ years of research, this guide offers practical approaches that equip grades K-8 teachers to draw on the strengths of multilingual learners, partner with their families, and position these learners for success. Readers will find:
• A focus on multilingual students as leaders
• A strength-based approach that draws on students’ life experiences and cultural backgrounds
• An emphasis on maintaining high expectations for learners’ capacity for mastering rigorous content
• Strategies for representing concepts in different formats
• Stop and Think questions throughout and reflection questions at the end of each chapter
• Try It! Implementation activities, student work examples, and classroom transcripts
With case studies and activities that provide a solid foundation for teachers’ growth and exploration, this groundbreaking book will help teachers and teacher educators engage in meaningful, humanized mathematics instruction.
Contents
Preface
Preface
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgements
Our Hope for Multilingual Learners
Our Hope for Multilingual Learners
Teachers Who Inspire
Teachers Who Inspire
Studying Teacher Practice
Studying Teacher Practice
Interacting With Multilingual Learners and Their Families
Interacting With Multilingual Learners and Their Families
Position Multilingual Learners as Classroom Leaders
Position Multilingual Learners as Classroom Leaders
What Research says About Positioning
What Research says About Positioning
Reflecting of Xiao Li's Experience
Reflecting of Xiao Li's Experience
Reflecting on Nabil Abadi's Experience
Reflecting on Nabil Abadi's Experience
Reflecting on José López’s Experience
Reflecting on José López’s Experience
Positioning Students as Experts
- One Year Later
- Reflecting on Why Positioning Matters
Recognize How Teachers Position Students
Recognize How Teachers Position Students
Positioning Multilingual Learners as Leaders
- Explicitly Positioning Multilingual Learners as Leaders
- Implicitly Positioning Multilingual Learners as Leaders
- Strategies for Positioning Multilingual learners as Leaders
Thinking About Positioning in Your Practice
- Facilitate Multilingual Learners' Participation in Mathematics Classroom
Reflecting on Your Experience with Participating
Reflecting on Your Experience with Participating
What Research Says About Student Participation
What Research Says About Student Participation
Factors That Influence the Participation of Multilingual Learners
- Reflecting on Your Experiences with Fear
- Overcoming Fear
- Encountering Unknown Contexts
Examining Teaching Strategies That Influence Participation
Examining Teaching Strategies That Influence Participation
Strategies for Facilitating Multilingual Learners’ Participation in Mathematics
Strategies for Facilitating Multilingual Learners’ Participation in Mathematics
Thinking About Participation in Your Practice
- Facilitate Partnerships Between Multilingual Learners and Their Peers
Solving a Mathematics Problem with A Partner
Solving a Mathematics Problem with A Partner
Solving a Mathematics Problem with A Partner
Solving a Mathematics Problem with A Partner
Qualities of Partnerships
Qualities of Partnerships
Strategies for Facilitating Partnerships
Strategies for Facilitating Partnerships
Establish Participation Norms With Students
Establish Participation Norms With Students
Practice Compliments
Practice Compliments
Provide Concrete Resources
Provide Concrete Resources
Pay Attention To Pairing
Pay Attention To Pairing
Monitor How Partners Work
- Revisit Partnership Norms With Student
Thinking About Partnerships in Your Practice
- Engage Multilingual Learners Through Culturally-Relevant Contexts
Reflecting on the Challenge of Contexts and Culture
Reflecting on the Challenge of Contexts and Culture
What the Research Says About Contexts in Mathematics
What the Research Says About Contexts in Mathematics
Strategies for Engaging Multilingual Learners Through Culturally-Meaningful Contexts
Strategies for Engaging Multilingual Learners Through Culturally-Meaningful Contexts
Thinking about Contexts in your Practice
- Reach Multilingual Learners with Visuals, Illustrations, and Gestures
What Research Says About Visuals and Gestures
What Research Says About Visuals and Gestures
Using Visuals Strategically
- Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Visuals: Dividing Cookies
- Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Visuals: Emphasizing the Meaning of ‘Loose’
- Emphasizing Mathematical Connections
Reflecting on Your Use of Gestures
- Using Gestures Strategically
Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Gestures: Obstacle Course
Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Gestures: Obstacle Course
Examining Ms. Bristow’s Strategic Use of Visuals and Gestures: Columns and Rows
Examining Ms. Bristow’s Strategic Use of Visuals and Gestures: Columns and Rows
Thinking About Visuals and Gestures in Your Practice
Thinking About Visuals and Gestures in Your Practice
Strategies for Using Visuals and Gestures
- Analyze Mathematical Work of Multilingual Learners
Reflecting on Your Experiences
Reflecting on Your Experiences
What Research Says About Analyzing Multilingual Learners’ Mathematical Work
- What Research Says About Analyzing Multilingual Learners’ Mathematical Work
Analyzing Additional Student Work
Analyzing Additional Student Work
Strategies for Discerning Between Mathematical and Language Issues
- Examining Abigail’s Work
- Examining Janessa’s Work
The Importance of Interviewing Multilingual Learners
The Importance of Interviewing Multilingual Learners
Thinking About Analyzing Multilingual Learner’s Mathematical Work in Your Practice
- Investigate Meanings to Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Language Development
- The Importance of Academic Language for Multilingual Learners
What the Research Says About Academic Language
What the Research Says About Academic Language
Distinguishing Between Multiple Meanings of Language
Distinguishing Between Multiple Meanings of Language
Introducing Specialized Mathematics Language
Introducing Specialized Mathematics Language
Amplified Use of Academic Language
Amplified Use of Academic Language
Strategies for Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Language Development
Strategies for Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Language Development
Thinking About Academic Language in Your Practice
- Use Your Discourse Strategically to Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Opportunity to Learn
Reflecting on Varieties of English that Influence Discourse
Reflecting on Varieties of English that Influence Discourse
What Research Says About Discourse
What Research Says About Discourse
Teacher Discourse
- Connecting Academic Language to Mathematical Representations
- Posing Questions to Engage Multilingual Learners
- Posing Questions to Engage Multilingual Learners
Strategies for Promoting Classroom Discourse
Strategies for Promoting Classroom Discourse
Thinking About Your Discourse in Your Practice
- Foster a Culture of Writing in the Mathematics Classroom
Reflecting on Your Experiences
Reflecting on Your Experiences
What Research Says About Writing in Mathematics
What Research Says About Writing in Mathematics
Establishing a Need to Write in Mathematics
Establishing a Need to Write in Mathematics
Establishing a Culture of Writing
Establishing a Culture of Writing
Providing Feedback on Students’ Writing
Providing Feedback on Students’ Writing
Analyzing Students’ Writing
Analyzing Students’ Writing
Strategies for Fostering a Culture of Writing in Your Mathematics Classroom
Strategies for Fostering a Culture of Writing in Your Mathematics Classroom
Reflecting on Mathematical Writing in Your Practice
- Develop Writing in Mathematics for Multilingual Learners
Reflecting on Your Practice
Reflecting on Your Practice
Mathematical Genres of Writing
Mathematical Genres of Writing
What the Research Says about Mathematical Genres
What the Research Says about Mathematical Genres
Identifying Mathematical Writing Genres
Identifying Mathematical Writing Genres
Strategies for Developing Writing in Mathematics for Multilingual Learners
- Teaching Practices
- Activities
Reflecting on Your Use of Mathematical Genres in Your Practice
- Enhance Curriculum Materials for Multilingual Learners
Reflecting on Mathematics Curriculum
Reflecting on Mathematics Curriculum
What Research Says About Curriculum Enhancement for Multilingual Learners
What Research Says About Curriculum Enhancement for Multilingual Learners
Strategies for Crafting Language to Better Support Multilingual Learners
Strategies for Crafting Language to Better Support Multilingual Learners
Analyzing Curriculum Materials for Multilingual Learners
Analyzing Curriculum Materials for Multilingual Learners
Research Recommendations for Enacting Mathematics Curriculum
Research Recommendations for Enacting Mathematics Curriculum
Recognizing Different Mathematical Conventions and Representations
Recognizing Different Mathematical Conventions and Representations
Thinking about Mathematical Conventions and Representations in your Practice
Thinking about Mathematical Conventions and Representations in your Practice
Thinking about Curriculum Enhancement in your Practice
- Engage with Parents and Families of Multilingual Learners
Reflecting on Your Experiences
Reflecting on Your Experiences
What the Research Says about Multilingual Parent and Family Engagement
What the Research Says about Multilingual Parent and Family Engagement
Multicultural Parenting Styles
- Cultural Values
- Emphasizing the Value of Family in Your Classroom
- Examining Teachers’ and Multilingual Parents’ Expectations
Reframing Multilingual Parental Engagement
Reframing Multilingual Parental Engagement
Strategies for Facilitating Multilingual Family and Parent Engagement in Your Classroom
Strategies for Facilitating Multilingual Family and Parent Engagement in Your Classroom
Reflecting on Family Engagement in Your Practice
- Appendix A. Additional Resources
- Appendix B. Selected Solutions
- References
Additional materials
Reviews
Teaching Math to Multilingual Students, Grades K-8
Positioning English Learners for Success
January 2021 | 248 pages | Corwin
| Format | Published Date | ISBN | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paperback | 01/01/2025 | 9781071810842 | $39.95 |
| Lifetime | 01/01/2025 | 9781071810828 | $36.00 |
Using strengths-based approaches to support development in mathematics
It’s time to re-imagine what’s possible and celebrate the brilliance multilingual learners bring to today’s classrooms. Innovative teaching strategies can position these learners as leaders in mathematics. Yet, as the number of multilingual learners in North American schools grows, many teachers have not had opportunities to gain the competencies required to teach these learners effectively, especially in disciplines such as mathematics. Multilingual learners—historically called English Language Learners—are expected to interpret the meaning of problems, analyze, make conjectures, evaluate their progress, and discuss and understand their own approaches and the approaches of their peers in mathematics classrooms. Thus, language plays a vital role in mathematics learning, and demonstrating these competencies in a second (or third) language is a challenging endeavor.
Based on best practices and the authors’ years of research, this guide offers practical approaches that equip grades K-8 teachers to draw on the strengths of multilingual learners, partner with their families, and position these learners for success. Readers will find:
• A focus on multilingual students as leaders
• A strength-based approach that draws on students’ life experiences and cultural backgrounds
• An emphasis on maintaining high expectations for learners’ capacity for mastering rigorous content
• Strategies for representing concepts in different formats
• Stop and Think questions throughout and reflection questions at the end of each chapter
• Try It! Implementation activities, student work examples, and classroom transcripts
With case studies and activities that provide a solid foundation for teachers’ growth and exploration, this groundbreaking book will help teachers and teacher educators engage in meaningful, humanized mathematics instruction.
It’s time to re-imagine what’s possible and celebrate the brilliance multilingual learners bring to today’s classrooms. Innovative teaching strategies can position these learners as leaders in mathematics. Yet, as the number of multilingual learners in North American schools grows, many teachers have not had opportunities to gain the competencies required to teach these learners effectively, especially in disciplines such as mathematics. Multilingual learners—historically called English Language Learners—are expected to interpret the meaning of problems, analyze, make conjectures, evaluate their progress, and discuss and understand their own approaches and the approaches of their peers in mathematics classrooms. Thus, language plays a vital role in mathematics learning, and demonstrating these competencies in a second (or third) language is a challenging endeavor.
Based on best practices and the authors’ years of research, this guide offers practical approaches that equip grades K-8 teachers to draw on the strengths of multilingual learners, partner with their families, and position these learners for success. Readers will find:
• A focus on multilingual students as leaders
• A strength-based approach that draws on students’ life experiences and cultural backgrounds
• An emphasis on maintaining high expectations for learners’ capacity for mastering rigorous content
• Strategies for representing concepts in different formats
• Stop and Think questions throughout and reflection questions at the end of each chapter
• Try It! Implementation activities, student work examples, and classroom transcripts
With case studies and activities that provide a solid foundation for teachers’ growth and exploration, this groundbreaking book will help teachers and teacher educators engage in meaningful, humanized mathematics instruction.
Table Of Contents:
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Our Hope for Multilingual Learners
- Teachers Who Inspire
- Studying Teacher Practice
- Interacting With Multilingual Learners and Their Families
- Position Multilingual Learners as Classroom Leaders
- What Research says About Positioning
- Reflecting of Xiao Li's Experience
- Reflecting on Nabil Abadi's Experience
- Reflecting on José López’s Experience
- Positioning Students as Experts
- One Year Later
- Reflecting on Why Positioning Matters
- Recognize How Teachers Position Students
- Positioning Multilingual Learners as Leaders
- Explicitly Positioning Multilingual Learners as Leaders
- Implicitly Positioning Multilingual Learners as Leaders
- Strategies for Positioning Multilingual learners as Leaders
- Thinking About Positioning in Your Practice
- Facilitate Multilingual Learners' Participation in Mathematics Classroom
- Reflecting on Your Experience with Participating
- What Research Says About Student Participation
- Factors That Influence the Participation of Multilingual Learners
- Reflecting on Your Experiences with Fear
- Overcoming Fear
- Encountering Unknown Contexts
- Examining Teaching Strategies That Influence Participation
- Strategies for Facilitating Multilingual Learners’ Participation in Mathematics
- Thinking About Participation in Your Practice
- Facilitate Partnerships Between Multilingual Learners and Their Peers
- Solving a Mathematics Problem with A Partner
- Solving a Mathematics Problem with A Partner
- Qualities of Partnerships
- Strategies for Facilitating Partnerships
- Establish Participation Norms With Students
- Practice Compliments
- Provide Concrete Resources
- Pay Attention To Pairing
- Monitor How Partners Work
- Revisit Partnership Norms With Student
- Thinking About Partnerships in Your Practice
- Engage Multilingual Learners Through Culturally-Relevant Contexts
- Reflecting on the Challenge of Contexts and Culture
- What the Research Says About Contexts in Mathematics
- Strategies for Engaging Multilingual Learners Through Culturally-Meaningful Contexts
- Thinking about Contexts in your Practice
- Reach Multilingual Learners with Visuals, Illustrations, and Gestures
- What Research Says About Visuals and Gestures
- Using Visuals Strategically
- Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Visuals: Dividing Cookies
- Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Visuals: Emphasizing the Meaning of ‘Loose’
- Emphasizing Mathematical Connections
- Reflecting on Your Use of Gestures
- Using Gestures Strategically
- Examining Ms. Bristow’s Use of Gestures: Obstacle Course
- Examining Ms. Bristow’s Strategic Use of Visuals and Gestures: Columns and Rows
- Thinking About Visuals and Gestures in Your Practice
- Strategies for Using Visuals and Gestures
- Analyze Mathematical Work of Multilingual Learners
- Reflecting on Your Experiences
- What Research Says About Analyzing Multilingual Learners’ Mathematical Work
- What Research Says About Analyzing Multilingual Learners’ Mathematical Work
- Analyzing Additional Student Work
- Strategies for Discerning Between Mathematical and Language Issues
- Examining Abigail’s Work
- Examining Janessa’s Work
- The Importance of Interviewing Multilingual Learners
- Thinking About Analyzing Multilingual Learner’s Mathematical Work in Your Practice
- Investigate Meanings to Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Language Development
- The Importance of Academic Language for Multilingual Learners
- What the Research Says About Academic Language
- Distinguishing Between Multiple Meanings of Language
- Introducing Specialized Mathematics Language
- Amplified Use of Academic Language
- Strategies for Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Language Development
- Thinking About Academic Language in Your Practice
- Use Your Discourse Strategically to Enhance Multilingual Learners’ Opportunity to Learn
- Reflecting on Varieties of English that Influence Discourse
- What Research Says About Discourse
- Teacher Discourse
- Connecting Academic Language to Mathematical Representations
- Posing Questions to Engage Multilingual Learners
- Posing Questions to Engage Multilingual Learners
- Strategies for Promoting Classroom Discourse
- Thinking About Your Discourse in Your Practice
- Foster a Culture of Writing in the Mathematics Classroom
- Reflecting on Your Experiences
- What Research Says About Writing in Mathematics
- Establishing a Need to Write in Mathematics
- Establishing a Culture of Writing
- Providing Feedback on Students’ Writing
- Analyzing Students’ Writing
- Strategies for Fostering a Culture of Writing in Your Mathematics Classroom
- Reflecting on Mathematical Writing in Your Practice
- Develop Writing in Mathematics for Multilingual Learners
- Reflecting on Your Practice
- Mathematical Genres of Writing
- What the Research Says about Mathematical Genres
- Identifying Mathematical Writing Genres
- Strategies for Developing Writing in Mathematics for Multilingual Learners
- Teaching Practices
- Activities
- Reflecting on Your Use of Mathematical Genres in Your Practice
- Enhance Curriculum Materials for Multilingual Learners
- Reflecting on Mathematics Curriculum
- What Research Says About Curriculum Enhancement for Multilingual Learners
- Strategies for Crafting Language to Better Support Multilingual Learners
- Analyzing Curriculum Materials for Multilingual Learners
- Research Recommendations for Enacting Mathematics Curriculum
- Recognizing Different Mathematical Conventions and Representations
- Thinking about Mathematical Conventions and Representations in your Practice
- Thinking about Curriculum Enhancement in your Practice
- Engage with Parents and Families of Multilingual Learners
- Reflecting on Your Experiences
- What the Research Says about Multilingual Parent and Family Engagement
- Multicultural Parenting Styles
- Cultural Values
- Emphasizing the Value of Family in Your Classroom
- Examining Teachers’ and Multilingual Parents’ Expectations
- Reframing Multilingual Parental Engagement
- Strategies for Facilitating Multilingual Family and Parent Engagement in Your Classroom
- Reflecting on Family Engagement in Your Practice
- Appendix A. Additional Resources
- Appendix B. Selected Solutions
- References
Recent Product Reviews:
Kathryn Chval and her colleagues exquisitely give the readers opportunities to see inside a classroom with multilingual students, develop empathy, and deeply understand effective practice. The book’s engaging format provides questions for reflection and strategies to try out, connects research to practice, and compels readers to position students for success.
Nora G. Ramirez
This is the book I’ve been waiting for! It is powerful. It brings together often-separate critical ideas for teaching multilingual students and weaves them with in-depth explorations of classrooms. We meet remarkable teachers, whose success we can learn from, which will help us reimagine what’s possible.
Lena Licón Khisty
A must-read! This book is an excellent resource to closely examine mathematics instruction that affirms multilingual learners’ identities, competencies, and growth as learners of mathematics. Far too often multilingual children and their families are positioned in deficit ways that lead to limited learning. This book does the opposite. It seamlessly blends practice and research for a comprehensive look at exemplary mathematics teaching that leverages children’s multiple linguistic, cultural, and mathematical strengths. The book offers practical tools and guidance to enhance mathematics instruction, nurture student relationships, and create strong partnerships with families to support and advance multilingual learners in mathematics.
Julia Aguirre, Faculty Director of Teacher Credential Programs, School of Education
This book goes beyond the typical support of the academic language of mathematics for English learners. It provides an in-depth perspective on being more culturally inclusive of English learners and allows educators to reflect on their instructional methodologies in mathematics.
Alexander L. Tai, Teacher and English Learner Specialist
This book celebrates the brilliance of multilingual learners while also providing evidence-based strategies for teachers. The included cases and activities provide a solid foundation for teachers’ growth and exploration into teaching mathematics with multilingual students. This book will help teachers and teacher educators engage in meaningful and humane mathematics instruction with students.
Zandra de Araujo, Associate Professor, College of Education