Seeds of Science/Roots of Reading Featured Strategies for the Support of English Language Learners:

Teaching About Multiple Meaning Words: Many English words have multiple meanings, which poses a challenge for many readers. Because the meaning of a word can differ depending on the context in which the word is used, learning to infer the meaning using context can help students better comprehend content-rich texts. Becoming aware of multiple meaning words and using context to determine the intended meanings is particularly valuable in science, where secondary meanings are often key to understanding important concepts. While all students can benefit from a focus on multiple meaning words, this strategy may prove especially helpful for English language learners.

For a list of multiple-meaning words in each of the Seeds of Science/Roots of Reading books, click here.

The Cognates Strategy: Cognates are words that have a similar spelling, pronunciation, and meaning across two or more languages. Teaching cognates for science words is particularly helpful for students who speak Latin-based languages, such as Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, and Romanian, because many specialized science terms have Latin roots. For example, in English, the word “solar” shares the same root as the Spanish cognate, “sol.”  Using the cognates strategy supports English language learners in using their home language as a resource for learning new academic words in English, which enhances their comprehension of science texts.

For a list of English/Spanish cognates in all of the Seeds of Science/Roots of Reading books, click here. 

Using Anticipation Guides: An anticipation guide is a list of statements that helps readers anticipate the big ideas in a book they are about to read. Anticipation guides help English language learners set a purpose for reading, activate students’ background knowledge, and promote discussions of important concepts. Anticipation guides can also create interest by providing an initial “hook” that draws readers to the text. This strategy is especially useful with texts that present new or surprising ideas.

For a list of anticipation guide statements for each of the Seeds of Science/Roots of Reading books, click here.