Stay ConnectedOn the Highest Aspirations Podcast, we engage in important conversations about the most rapidly growing student demographic in the United States – English Language Learners. We speak with educators and students, researchers and policy makers, and parents and community members about how we can help all students reach their highest aspirations.
Join us on this important journey as we bring the vibrant ELL Community together around the topics that matter most to the students we serve.
On this edition of our Look for the Helpers series, we speak with Teri Fisch, an EL Specialist in Homer, Illinois. Teri talks with us about her plans to provide more visual interactions with her students via Zoom and other tools. We also discuss what the future may hold for EL educators, students, and families in her district and beyond as we move past this school closures. Finally, Teri highlights some of the positives she is observing - especially when it comes to independent student writing.
You can find all of the resources we mention in the episode on our Look for the Helpers short video series. If you'd like to join us on our Look for the Helpers series to share your story with the ELL Community, go to bit.ly/ELLHelper.
For more information and free resources to help engage multilingual learners from wherever they are, visit Ellevation Distance Learning.
On this edition of our Look for the Helpers series, we speak with Ruben Diaz, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction at Parlier Unified School District, a rural community in the Central Valley of California. Parlier is an agricultural community with a high percentage of English learners. During our conversation, Ruben talks about why his district has taken a 2 tier approach to roll out distance learning, beginning with reading and writing before going to speaking and listening. We also highlight how Parlier created an efficient drive-through device pick up system, complete with translated agreement contracts and bar codes to scan letters and devices. Finally, we discuss how this disruption may cause positive changes in education moving forward.
You can find all of the resources we mention in the episode on our Look for the Helpers short video series. If you'd like to join us on our Look for the Helpers series to share your story with the ELL Community, go to bit.ly/ELLHelper.
For more information and free resources to help engage multilingual learners from wherever they are, visit Ellevation Distance Learning.
On this edition of our Look for the Helpers series, we bring in Sara Hamerla, Administrator of English Language Learners at Waltham Pubic Schools, just outside Boston, Massachusetts. During our conversation, we talk about how we might overcome challenges around keeping students engaged in conversations in a distance learning environment, how we might avoid the possibility of an extended summer slide for English learners, why this might be a good time for PD, and more.
You can find all of the resources we mention in the episode on our Look for the Helpers short video series. If you'd like to join us on our Look for the Helpers series to share your story with the ELL Community, go to bit.ly/ELLHelper.
For more information and free resources to help engage multilingual learners from wherever they are, visit Ellevation Distance Learning.
On this edition of our Look for the Helpers series, we speak with Richele Dunavent, an ELL Specialist in Henderson County, North Carolina. Henderson County is a rural district with a high population of English learners speaking a wide variety of languages. We discuss how Richele’s school is providing WiFi access, devices, and instructional materials to their English learners with an eye toward equity. We also highlight some positive developments, like how this crisis has resulted in increased communication with families and school- based teams.
You can find all of the resources we mention in the episode on our Look for the Helpers short video series. If you'd like to join us on our Look for the Helpers series to share your story with the ELL Community, go to bit.ly/ELLHelper.
For more information and free resources to help engage multilingual learners from wherever they are, visit Ellevation Distance Learning.
On this edition of our "Look for the Helpers" series, we speak with Hugo Cancel, a paraprofessional at Spring Lake Elementary School in Florida. Recognizing that paper-based packets that were being sent home during school closures were a good start, but not quite adequate to help students improve listening comprehension skills, Hugo began recording lessons and uploading them to YouTube. He has begun sending the videos directly to families with a private link so they can access the instructional materials they need. Hugo lives in the community he serves, and his passion for family and community engagement fuels the learning opportunities he is creating for his students during this crisis.
Hugo was also profiled for his outstanding work in the Orange observer "Influencer of the Week" series. You can find that article here.
For more information and free resources to help engage multilingual learners from wherever they are, visit Ellevation Distance Learning.
If you'd like to join us on our Look for the Helpers series to share your story with fellow educators, go to bit.ly/ELLHelper. You can find all of the resources we mention in the episode on our Look for the Helpers short video series.
On this edition of our "Look for the Helpers" series, we catch up with Juan Arroyo, a middle school bilingual math teacher in Union City, New Jersey. We talk about how Mr. Arroyo and others are working to provide equitable learning opportunities to all students, regardless of their language and socioeconomic status. We also highlight tools and strategies to engage students in blended and online learning activities that will continue to be useful, even when schools re-open.
For more information and free resources to help engage multilingual learners from wherever they are, visit Ellevation Distance Learning.
If you'd like to join us on our Look for the Helpers series to share your story with fellow educators, go to bit.ly/ELLHelper. You can find all of the resources we mention in the episode on our Look for the Helpers short video series.
On this edition of our Look for the Helpers series, we bring in Valentina Gonzalez to discuss the best ways to share resources and information with fellow educators during school closures. We also talk about the value of constantly pivoting as things change so quickly and embracing our vulnerability as we are forced to try new ideas.
If you'd like to join us on the Look for the Helpers series to share your story with fellow educators, go to bit.ly/ELLHelper. You can find all of the resources we mention in this episode and others on our Look for the Helpers short video series.
Valentina is an educational consultant working with educators across the nation to support English learners. She works with schools and districts to provide professional learning experiences that are tailored to meet the needs of the participants. Valentina specializes in creating presentations that are engaging and interactive.
Valentina started her journey as an educator in 1997 as a third grade language arts teacher in Katy, Texas. She has served as an educator in many capacities since then including teaching second, third, and fourth grades. After leaving the classroom, she worked as an ESL Instructional Support Specialty Teacher on her campus serving and co-teaching in first-fifth grade classrooms. As a district leader, she has served as a facilitator for campuses and as a professional development specialist.
Currently, Valentina shares her time a delivering professional development and writing.
On this episode of our Look for the Helpers series, we talk with Elizabeth Leone about what she is doing through her school and community to ensure her most vulnerable students and their families have access to critical educational services. We also discuss why access to technology at home is so important to maintain educational equity, particularly for the newcomers who Elizabeth serves.
If you'd like to join us on our Look for the Helpers series to share your story with fellow educators, go to bit.ly/ELLHelper. You can find all of the resources we mention in the episode on our Look for the Helpers short video series.
Elizabeth Leone is an ESL teacher and Project-based Learning (PBL) coach in Manchester, New Hampshire. She teaches in a sheltered instructional settings for newcomers from all over the world. She completed her Masters in TESOL and her undergraduate studies in Elementary Education. Elizabeth is passionate about making learning more equitable and attainable for all students, especially those with limited or interrupted formal education (SLIFE). She uses project-based learning as a way to meet learners where they are with their language skills and rapidly streamline their education to get them into mainstream classes. Using PBL strategies, she is able to simultaneously work on language acquisition, content education, and 21st century skills in a way that keeps them motivated to learn.
On this episode of our Look for the Helpers series, we talk with Carol Salva and Tan Huynh about how educators can access high quality professional development from wherever they are while schools remain closed. We highlight VirtuEL, a free annual online conference for teachers of language learners featuring live breakout sessions, panels and keynote speakers. Carol and Tan have facilitated VirtuEL for the last three years and make all content available to anyone interested in using it.
During our interview, Carol and Tan also announce this year's VirtuEL date and keynote speaker!
If you'd like to join us on our Look for the Helpers series to provide information or stories to fellow educators, go to bit.ly/ELLHelper. You can find all of the resources we mention in the episode on our Look for the Helpers short video series.
We catch up with Ellevation's cofounders Jordan Meranus and Teddy Rice to talk about the challenges they are seeing, how Ellevation is adapting to best serve English learners, and what long-term school closures mean for educational equity. If you'd like to share your story on Highest Apirations, go to bit.ly/ELLHelper.
You can find more resources on our Look for the Helpers short video series.
Our TOPPODCAST Picks 
