How Do You Teach Adult English Language Learners (ELL Or ESL)?
Teaching reading to adults as part of an ELL or ESL program can be a complex task, but there are some basics that enable a teacher to help the adult make great gains. Therefore, word identification and comprehension are equally important. Word Recognition is the place to start Decoding or word identification is made up of being able to use sound-symbol relationships, sometimes called phonics or phonetic strategies. This is an important skill that is worth the time spent to master. Word families- bat, cat, pat, sat, etc. are important and vowels will require special attention as it is those distinctions of short i and short e as is in pit and pet that can be frustrating throughout the reading and English acquisition process. Sound blends such as st, fl, dr, sh, etc are an area of emphasis as are digraphs such as ch, ck, ph. These letters together form distinct sounds or phonemes. Be sure to emphasize ending sounds as well as the more obvious beginning sounds. Listening for ending sounds
