Great Internet Sites for ELL Students

Annotated Technology Bibliography for Students, Teachers and Parents

1.     http://www.eslpod.com/website/show_podcast.php?issue_id=9356565

·       English café 262

·       For teachers and students (grades 5th to 12th)

This site offers a variety of updated podcasts on news subjects for all students but at a level that is accessible to ELL students. A description provides a short introduction with attached extras for teachers like quizzes.  Preview all podcasts to determine appropriateness for elementary and middle school students.  Each podcast is not rated for grade level.

2.     http://eflclassroom.ning.com

·       EFL Classroom 2.0

·       For teachers, students and tech-savvy parents (grades K-3^rd)

This site provides assistance for beginning readers by projecting illustrated stories utilizing select rhyming vocabulary.  Games are designed to incorporate vocabulary learned with the stories.  Site is divided into sections for teaching, learning and playing and includes an area for purchasing further resources.  Parents will need to have a good background for utilizing technology to access site.  However, downloadable resources are accessible to send home with students.

3.     http://www.mrsp.com/v1/mrsp.html

·       Mrs. P.’s Magic Library

·       For teachers, students and parents (grades K-9th)

This site is an exceptionally valuable tool for ELL students and teachers of emergent readers. Mrs. P. reads a story as students follow the words on the screen. Design a corner of the room for viewing Mrs. P reading the stories.  Have copies of stories for students to follow along or allow them to just follow along on the computer screen.  Her reading voice if phenomenal and truly brings the students into the book.

Be sure to share the web site at back-to-school night or on your teacher web page for parents and student) to access at home.

4.     http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids.htm

·       Learn English Kids

·       For teachers and students (grades 3^rd-12^th)

This British site provides teachers and students with an amazing amount of ELL activities.    The categories on the site include “Play a game,” “Print some activities to do,” “Listen to a song,” “Read a story,” “Practice your writing,” and “Find lots more activities.” Each category is differentiated and scaffolded and provides activity extensions for remediation and/or further participation

5.     http://www.rif.org/kids/leadingtoreading/en/leadingtoreading.htm

·       RIF Learning to Read

·       Teachers, students and parents (grades K-2^nd)

This interactive site from Reading is Fundamental shares activities for preschool and early childhood students.  Books are read aloud, audio songs and nursery rhymes with the words on screen and much more can be found on this site.  It is also available in Spanish by clicking on the top right of the site.  Many books are available with both English and Spanish on the screen.  Playing the books over and over for ELL students is a plus as well as using the site through a whiteboard to include all students in the reading process.

6.     http://www.pinkydinkydoo.com/index.html

·       Pinky Dinky Doo

·       Teachers, students and parents (grades K-2^nd)

Pinky Dinky Doo is a cartoon character who teaches children the storytelling and solving while introducing them to colorful vocabulary.  ELL teachers can use the retelling option for vocabulary development .Students watch a storytelling episode on the classroom computer and then retell it by using the site to create a comic strip of the story.

List this link on your class website so students and parents can access it at home.

7.     http://www.sightwordswithsamson.com/sw/sight_words.asp

·       Sight Words with Samson

·       Teachers, students and parents (grades 1^st-3^rd)

This is a great site that takes you into the world of Samson who helps students learns sight words from 28 different lists. There are four steps at this site:

• ·       Learn Words
• ·       Build Words
• ·       Identify Words
• ·       Quiz

This site allows ELL students to benefit from having the opportunity to practice their listening and spelling skills simultaneously.  The four steps allow for learning, practicing, and reinforcement for words that are difficult for English Language Learners. It is also useful in differentiating spelling lessons in a regular.  Provide the resource to parents via newsletter or website to encourage accessing at home.

8.     http://www.de.mingoville.com/content/view/13/29/lang,en/

·       Mingoville

·       Teachers, students and tech-savvy parents (grades 2^nd-8^th)

Mingoville is a Danish site that features survival "Mission" activities designed to help English learners build vocabulary, practice, and share short stories. Topics include clothes, the body, food, sports, etc.; Listening and reading occur simultaneously and there are extra activities, exercises, games, and songs for further extension. An online dictionary is also available.  Definitely a site that can be used at home but parents need some technology knowledge to navigate the site.

9.     http://acacia.pntic.mec.es/agip0002/auro/inicio.html

·       English Interactive

·       Teachers and students (Grades 2^nd-10^th)

This site is specifically for ESL students and includes topics such as, grammar, culture, and vocabulary at three levels for English learners.  It is an extremely helpful site for Hispanic teachers and learners in that many of the instructions are in English and Spanish. The activities are highly interactive and provide great feedback to the user. Clicking "P" on the left side of the interface provides printable reviews of many topics, especially grammar, all in English.

10.   http://www.openenglishworld.com/

·       Open English World

·       Teachers and Students (Grades 8^th-12^th)

This site should be marked as a favorite on your classroom computer for older students.  Assign ELL students to check it weekly for a new idiomatic expression. Newer ESL and ELL students may find the translation feature helpful. The site also provides foreign language options that could be useful for students who speak German, French, Spanish, or Chinese.  Definitely a great site for helping older ELL students learn the colloquial sayings of our language.