Newcomers+programs+and+activities

  The Newcomers classes were created in 2005-06 at Clinton Elementary and Hanover Countryside Elementary, School District U-46, Elgin, Illinois. The district serves portions of eleven communities in the northwest suburbs of Chicago in Cook, DuPage and Kane Counties. The district is approximately 45 minutes west of downtown Chicago.

The purpose of the Newcomers program was to provide opportunities for students new the U.S. school system. Each school had two classes, a third/fourth c grade combination and a fifth/sixth grade combination. We had students from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Guatemala, and El Salvador, among others.

In the four years of the Newcomer Program's existence, it provided a safe learning environment for students with little or no formal education. These classrooms gave students the opportunity to become aware of the U.S. school setting, routines and objectives. It allowed them the time they needed in a smaller and more nurturing classroom setting to develop skills to be successful when they entered a regular Transitional Bilingual Education classroom after one year.

The Newcomers Program fell victim to budget cuts after the 2009-2010 school year. On these pages you will find the elements of this program that made it unique, advanced, and integrated. May it serve as an example and a forerunner for future newcomers programs nationwide.  

       

__ Other Key Documents Regarding our Program __    <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">

A Slide Show on the "Oral-Literate Continuum" by Jeff Miller with ideas taken from Carol Westby, Sandra Fradd and Dawn McCusker

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">__** Other Newcomers Programs Around the World **__ <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">[|Ontario, Canada] [|Calcary, Canada Centre for Newcomers] [|New Jersey]



<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-align: center;">__ Further Reading __ <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">***Fallacy: Newcomers to the United States are learning English more slowly now than in previous generations.*** <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">"To the contrary, today's immigrants appear to be acquiring English more rapidly than ever before. While the number of minority-language speakers is projected to grow well into the next cen-tury, the number of bilinguals fluent in both English and another language is growing even faster. Between 1980 and 1990, the number of immigrants who spoke non-English languages at home increased by 59%, while the portion of this population that spoke English very well rose by 93% (Waggoner, 1995). In 1990, only 3% of U.S. residents reported speaking English less than //well// or //very well//. Only eight tenths of one percent spoke no English at all. About three in four Hispanic immigrants, after 15 years in this country, speak English on a daily basis, while 70% of their children become dominant or monolingual in English (Veltman, 1988)." <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">For more fallacies about Bilingual education, see "Ten Common Fallacies About Bilingual Education", James Crawford, 1998 http://www.cal.org/resources/digest/crawford01.html

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">__ Starting Points __ <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">[|Department of Education's Definition of Newcomers & Links] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Welcoming and orienting newcomers to the United States [] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%;">

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">First National Conference for Educators of Newcomer Students and Pilot Study on Newcomer Program Literacy and Assessment Practices http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/resabout/programs/newcomerOELA03.pdf

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">THE NEWCOMER PROGRAM: HELPING IMMIGRANT STUDENTS SUCCEED IN U.S. SCHOOLS NCBE Program Information Guide Series, Number 8, Fall 1991 by Monica Friedlander http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/pubs/pigs/pig8.htm

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Establishing an Effective Newcomers Program (CAL Digest, 2003) http://www.cal.org/resources/digest/0312short.html <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">

__<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">**Immigration Issues & Cultural Integration** __ <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-align: center;">

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 99%; text-align: left;">[|Information & Resources to settle in Ontario, Canada] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"><span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 81%; text-align: left;"> by Flor Rodríguez-Brown <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">[|How Culture Shock Affects Newcomers] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">[|Newcomers in the Community: How to Use Environmental Print & Field Trips] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">[|Ideas Schools Can Adapt to Welcome Newcomers] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;"> <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;"> <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">[|Help Newcomers Develop Pride in Their Heritage] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%; text-align: left;">John Kibler, Illinois Resource Center, provided the following powerpoints on immigration: <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%; text-align: left;"> <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%; text-align: left;"> <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%; text-align: left;"> <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 81%;"> <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 81%;"> <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 81%;">

__Immigration Stories__

 * My Immigration Story: http://www.myimmigrationstory.com/
 * Immigration Stories: http://www.susangaer.com/studentprojects/grace.htm
 * Immigrant’s List, Real Immigrant Stories: http://www.susangaer.com/studentprojects/grace.htm
 * Immigrant Journeys: Collecting Stories of Coming to the US: http://www.immigrantjourneys.com/
 * Iraqi Refugee Stories: First person accounts of war and exile: http://www.iraqirefugeestories.org/stories.html
 * Human Rights First, Asylum in the U.S.: http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/asylum/stories/storie-01.htm

__Newcomers Centers and the U.S. Law__
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This May, 2003 article in //Education Week// talks about increasing immigration to Arkansas, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Oklahoma. It talks about some of the legal parameters and challenges to serving English Language Learners. []

__Newcomers and Technology__ <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Reports and research on using technology to support English language learning <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">http://iteslj.org/Articles/Ybarra-Technology.html <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/methods/technlgy/te900.htm <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/methods/technlgy/te9resources.htm

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">//Literacy, Technology and Diversity: Teaching for Success un Changing Times// by Jim Cummins, Kristin Brown and Dennis Sayers <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">http://www.allynbaconmerrill.com/bookstore/product.asp?isbn=020538935X

What to do first http://www.readingrockets.org/article/28236
<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">How fluency relates to comprehension, "Reading Fluency as a Diagnostic and Pedagogical Index", a Power Point by Dr. Jack Damico, The University of Louisiana at Lafayette

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Multiliteracies project http://www.multiliteracies.ca/

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Webcasts on Teaching and Learning in Multilingual Ontario http://www.curriculum.org/secretariat/archive.shtml

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">What Works-PDF files including Jim Cummins' //Literacy Development in multilingual Schools// http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/literacynumeracy/inspire/research/whatWorks.html

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">//Many Roots, Many Voices: A practical guide for Ontario educators// http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/document/manyroots/

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Research on strategies for Newcomers (middle and high school):by Ana Chamot <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">http://www.pearsonlongman.com/ae/download/shiningstar/chamot_research_acad_skills.pdf

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Also by Ana Chamot, How to Teach Learning Strategies to ELLs : http://www.pearsonlongman.com/ae/download/shiningstar/Chamot.pdf

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Boyson, B. A., & Short, D. J. (2003). //[|Secondary school newcomer programs in the United States]// (Research Report No. 12). Santa Cruz, CA and Washington, DC: Center for Research on Education, Diversity & Excellence.

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Short, Deborah (1998) Secondary Newcomers programs: Helping Recent Immigrants Prepare for School Success http://www.cal.org/resources/digest/short001.html

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Short, D., & Boyson, B. (2004). //[|Creating access: Language and academic programs for secondary school newcomers]//. Washington, DC and McHenry, IL: Center for Applied Linguistics and Delta Systems, Inc.

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Genesee, F. (Ed.). (1998). [|Program Alternatives for Linguistically Diverse Students]. (Section on newcomer programs discusses the theoretical rationale, common and variable features, necessary resources and conditions, and more.)

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">[|Ideas Generated at TESOL 2004 workshop, //Teaching Students with Interrupted Formal Education//], by participants, for working with newcomer students

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">[|**A Speech Community Model of Bilingual Education: Educating Latino Newcomers in the USA.**] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Author: Garcia, Ofelia; Bartlett, Lesley <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Year: 2007 <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Abstract: This article describes what might seem to be an anachronistic educational model: a segregated bilingual high school for Latino newcomers to the United States. Drawing on a qualitative <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">AN: BE023695

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">[|**Research Based Recommendations for Serving Adolescent Newcomers. Practical Guidelines for the Education of English Language Learners.**] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Author: Francis, David J. Rivera, Mabel Lesaux, Nonie Kieffer, Michael Rivera, Hector <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Year: 2006 <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Abstract: This document provides evidence based recommendations for policymakers, administrators, and teachers in middle and high schools who seek to make informed decisions about serving adolescent <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">AN: BE023590

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">[|**Nutrition for Newcomers**] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Author: Haynes, Judie <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Year: 2005 <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Abstract: This paper presents a thematic unit project to assist English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers who wish to use different activities to bolster their students English language skills. <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">AN: BE022863

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">[|**Keys to Learning: Skills and Strategies for Newcomers.**] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Author: Chamot, Anna Uhl Keatley, Catharine W. Anstrom, Kristina <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Year: 2005 <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Abstract: This textbook is designed to help teenage students learn to listen, speak, read, and write in English. Each chapter has a story about a group of teenagers and the things that happen <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">AN: BE022601

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">[|**Teaching Science to Newcomers**] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Author: Hademenos, George Heires, Nancy Young, Rose <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Year: 2004 <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Abstract: This paper describes how one high school with a large population of English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) students teaches these students science by having them work with an <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">AN: BE022162

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">[|**Newcomers in American Schools: Meeting the Educational Needs of Immigrant Youth.**] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Author: McDonnell, Lorraine M. Hill, Paul T. <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Year: 1993 <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Abstract: This report assesses the federal and state roles in immigrant education, describes how school districts are responding, and offers suggestions for improving immigrant education. Data <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">AN: BE019333

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">[|**Title VII Newcomers Program in AISD, 1990-91. Executive Summary.**] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Author: Rumbaut, Marilyn <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Year: 1991 <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Abstract: Students who are newcomers to the United States-that is, those who have been here for one year or less-have special needs that are addressed in the Title VII Newcomers Program. These <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">AN: BE018552

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">[|**Bilingual Education and Academic/Career Outreach for Newcomers: Project Beacon, 1988-89.**] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Author: Berney, Tomi Deutsch Gritzer, Glenn <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Year: 1990 <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Abstract: The Bilingual Education Academic/Career Outreach for Newcomers Program (Project Beacon) completed its fourth year. The goals of the project were to facilitate the acquisition of English <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">AN: BE018139

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">[|**Bilingual Education and Academic/Career Outreach for Newcomers: Project Beacon, 1989-90. Final Evaluation Report.**] <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Author: <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Year: 1990 <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Abstract: The Bilingual Education Academic/Career Outreach for Newcomers Program (Project Beacon) completed its fifth and final year of funding. The project offered 1,087 Chinese-, Spanish-, and <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">AN: BE018138