New to Membership, New to Teaching, Getting Organized

I know it can take a little time to get your head around everything that is there and how to make the most of it. I've created some resources to help with that, but am always looking for ways to continue making the site more accessible for new users. 

4. ESL Curriculum Level Outlines (You can consider printing these and putting them in a binder for yourself or just having the file on your desktop so that you can click on links and go directly to particular resources on the site.) 

The Getting Organized page in the membership is a great place to help you get organized with the curriculum. You can find the Getting Organized page by clicking on the green button at the top of the homepage which says Get Organized. You'll find all of the links I've included below on that page as well. It is super helpful to take a little time to go through the Getting Organized page to better understand what tools and resources are available within the membership and how to make the most of the membership to save you time and help your students.

Getting Organized with the Membership (You can also find a big green button to this page on the membership homepage. You can work your way down this page just like a tutorial step by step.)

Included Course: Teaching ELL Beginners (This is a fairly quick course that you may find really helpful with lots of tips and ideas. You can also find this course as well as all other courses by going to Tools -> PD Courses.)

When getting started though, you'll need to decide which level or levels to start your students at. There are a few tools in the membership to help you decide where to start for your students.

The Kid-Inspired ESL Assessment is the best tool for seeing exactly what a student knows and doesn't know and choosing a level. You can get a copy of the Kid-Inspired ESL Assessment and Guide by visiting the Getting Organized page (big green button on the homepage) or by visiting the Tools -> Admin Tools and scrolling down to Assessment Tools. I've also included a direct link below.

Placement Assessment ->

There is also a mini-course on how to make the most of the assessment if you'd like to check it out. You can find it on the assessment download page or by going to Tools -> PD Courses. I've also included a direct link below.

Placement Assessment Walkthrough Mini-Course ->

If you need a quicker way of choosing, you can also use the Level Chooser Assistant from the homepage of the membership and choose to prioritize grade level (although, I believe it needs an update for the higher grades and levels). 

Level Chooser Assistant ->

You can also check out the Scope and Sequence of the curriculum which lists appropriate grade levels on it. This can also be found by going to the Getting Organized button on the homepage.

Kid-Inspired ESL Curriculum Scope & Sequence -> 

You'll be the best person to find that balance between meeting her where she is at while also pushing her to access materials as close to grade level as possible. As a rule of thumb, I usually start them a little lower than I think they can handle so that I can encourage them by bumping them up a level. That is usually better than pushing them a little too hard at first and then dropping them a level if they can't handle it.

I also wrote a book called Kid-Inspired Teacher which you might find helpful. It has lots of practical tips on how to organize your classes. You can read the first chapter at the link below. The first chapter tells the story of how Kid-Inspired Classroom got started and the many challenges I faced when getting started teaching English learners.

The Story of Kid-Inspired Classroom ->

Let me know if that helps or if you have any other questions.