Professional Learning Communities Facilitator's Guide for the What Works Clearinghouse Practice Guide Teaching Academic Content and Literacy to English Learners in Elementary and Middle School
The Professional Learning Communities Facilitator's Guide is designed to assist teams of educators in applying the evidence-based strategies presented in the Teaching Academic Content and Literacy to English Learners in Elementary and Middle School educator's practice guide, produced by the What Works Clearinghouse. Through this collaborative learning experience, educators will expand their knowledge base as they read, discuss, share, and apply key ideas and strategies to help K–8 English learners acquire the language and literacy skills needed to succeed academically.
The facilitator's guide employs a five-step cycle that encourages professional learning communities to debrief, define, explore, experiment, and reflect and plan. This cycle is supplemented with activities, handouts, readings, and videos. Educators will develop a working knowledge of some of the best practices in the English learner practice guide through analysis of teaching vignettes and other interactive activities. Included in the toolkit of materials are 31 handouts and 23 videos. Four of the videos provide narrative overviews of the four recommendations in the practice guide; the remaining videos show teachers putting the recommendations into practice in actual classrooms at three different grade levels.
Facilitator's Guide, Infographic, and Handouts
View, download, and print the full facilitator's guide as a PDF file (7.6 MB)
View, Infographic: Facilitating Professional learning Communities that Support Struggling Readers Who are English Learners in the Southwest (379 KB)
View, download, and print the handouts as a PDF file (933 KB)
Video Title | YouTube Link and Transcript |
Introduction to Recommendation 1: | YouTube![]() |
Pre-Teaching Vocabulary (Second/Third-Grade Combination Class): | YouTube![]() |
Pre-Teaching Vocabulary (Fourth-Grade Class): | YouTube![]() |
Pre-Teaching Vocabulary (Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Grades: Newcomer Class): | YouTube![]() |
Activities to Promote Word Learning (Second/Third-Grade Combination Class): | YouTube![]() |
Activities to Promote Word Learning (Fourth Grade) | YouTube![]() |
Activities to Promote Word Learning (Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Grades: Newcomer Class) | YouTube![]() |
Providing Review (Second/Third-Grade Combination Class) | YouTube![]() |
Providing Review (Fourth-Grade Class) | YouTube![]() |
Providing Review (Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Grades: Newcomer Class) | YouTube![]() |
Word Parts and Cognates (All Grade Ranges) | YouTube![]() |
Introduction to Recommendation 2 | YouTube![]() |
Using Videos to Anchor Instruction (Second-Grade Class) | YouTube![]() |
Using Videos to Anchor Instruction (Fourth-Grade Class) | YouTube![]() |
Using Videos to Anchor Instruction (Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Grades: Newcomer Class) | YouTube![]() |
Completing a Graphic Organizer (Second-Grade Class) | YouTube![]() |
Completing a Graphic Organizer (Fourth-Grade Class) | YouTube![]() |
Completing a Graphic Organizer (Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Grades: Newcomer Class) | YouTube![]() |
Introduction to Recommendation 3 | YouTube![]() |
Using Graphic Organizers in Writing (Second-Grade Class) | YouTube![]() |
Using Graphic Organizers in Writing (Fourth-Grade Class) | YouTube![]() |
Using Graphic Organizers in Writing (Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Grades: Newcomer Class) | YouTube![]() |
Introduction to Recommendation 4 | YouTube![]() |