30+ Scaffolding Strategies for ELL Students

While all students benefit from scaffolding, multilingual learners (also referred to as English learners or ELL students) often have unique learning needs that can make specific scaffolding techniques more effective when supporting these students’ engagement with complex, grade-level text.

Scaffolding strategies for ELL students include techniques that educators can use during teacher-led instruction and small-group work, as well as learning strategies and supports that students can use as they work independently or in small groups.

Complete the form on this page to download your free copy of 30+ Scaffolding Strategies to Support Multilingual Learners.

Supporting ELL Learning: 5 Examples of Scaffolding & Differentiating Instruction for ELLs

Strategies for ELL Students: Consistent Routines

Consistent, predictable routines are especially important for multilingual learners. For example, start each lesson with a warm-up routine or bellringer activity that reinforces previously learned material and helps to get students into a learning mindset. Activities could include:

• A quick writing or journaling session
• A small-group or whole-group discussion
• A short “refresher” quiz (not graded)
• A brief game

Tip: You do not have to have the same routine every day. You could also designate routines by the day of the week — for example, a Monday Routine, Tuesday Routine, etc.

Supporting ELL Learning: The “Chunk, Chew, and Check” Technique

This technique works for all students, but is particularly effective in supporting ELL learning!

In advance of a lesson with complex text, take the time to intentionally separate the text into smaller, more digestible “chunks.” A chunk may be a single paragraph or short passage that presents new information.

During the lesson, model for students how to break the chunk down into its component elements (key phrases, important vocabulary, etc.). Then show how students can use the vocabulary and comprehension strategies they have been explicitly taught to further break down those elements and distill their meaning.

Give students a few minutes to “chew” on this new information. Be sure to check for understanding before moving onto the next chunk.

Differentiating Instruction for ELLs: Sentence Frames

Providing sentence frames, statements, and questions can help all students participate in healthy, collaborative discussions. Sentence frames can be especially helpful for multilingual learners who may need additional support for articulating their thoughts in English.

In addition, these resources can help all students learn common conventions for respectful conversation, especially when their opinions may differ from another speaker’s point of view.

Here are some common sentence frames:

• In my opinion, _________
• Adding on to what (Name) said, I think _________
• I agree with _________, but I also think _________
• I disagree because _________
• The reason I think _________ is because _________

Download the full guide for a list of helpful sentence frames for middle and high school students.

ELL Strategies: Critical Thinking Questions

It’s important to move multilingual learners beyond yes/no and multiple-choice questions, both for developing their content-area knowledge and for improving their English language skills.

Prompt students to complete more complex tasks, such as:

• Summarizing
• Making Lists
• Classifying
• Organizing
• Evaluating
• Elaborating

Here’s an example of an Elaborating activity: Have students work in pairs. Student A starts by sharing a statement, then Student B responds with “Yes, and…” to build on Student A’s statement. Student A can then use “Yes, and…” to build on Student B’s statement. Have students repeat this process for a set amount of time (for example, set a timer for 5 minutes). Students can then work together to incorporate these ideas into a collaborative writing piece.

Instructional Supports for ELL Learning

Instructional supports include tools and resources that can be provided to multilingual learners to support their learning as they work independently or in small groups.

For example, Text-to-Speech Tools can be a powerful instructional support for your ELL students. Translation tools can include providing a translation of the text in a student’s home language, offering a bilingual text with the two languages side by side, or using digital programs with built-in translation tools that allow students to select specific words or passages to be translated.

Looking for more ELL strategies for supporting multilingual learners? Complete the form at the top of this page for the full guide with 30+ scaffolding strategies for ELL students.

More Ways to Support Your Multilingual Learners’ Success

Need more than scaffolding techniques to support your ELL students?

Accelerate Multilingual Learners’ Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking Skills

For multilingual learners who need more targeted and robust instruction to accelerate their English language development, take a look at iLitELL™.

Built specifically for secondary students, iLitELL addresses the unique needs of all English learners, from newcomers to long-term ELs. learners. Daily, step-by-step instruction focuses on rigorous and relevant grade-level anchor texts.

Statistically Significant Content and Academic Language Growth in ANY Curriculum

The SIOP® Model is the only empirically validated sheltered instruction framework designed to help all students, particularly English learners, succeed! The SIOP® Model instructional framework works with any initiative, curriculum, or program to amplify positive outcomes.

Savvas Learning Company is pleased to be the only organization partnering with the SIOP® Authors to provide SIOP® Professional Learning for educators, including in-person workshops, online courses, virtual events, and more.

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