The art of slowing down: pastoral support for EAL learners

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Sloth lies and rests on a big branch isolated on white background. Generative AI

I’m impatient, which means I often feel conflicted when I’m teaching. I rarely get through an entire lesson without having to change course and it gives me anxiety. I feel like I’m not doing enough and that my learners aren’t doing enough. Why is that so?

First of all, my students are young as I teach primary learners. They have developmental needs that sometimes interfere with my best-laid plans for the lesson. Secondly, I work with EAL learners who are often brand new to English and therefore aren’t able to express even their most basic needs. And I don’t share a language with them. Thirdly, I care about these learners and want to build a connection. All of this is perfectly normal, and it takes time. However, I need to find ways to make the classroom and my practice inclusive and reach everyone.

The importance of slowing down

A cheerful sloth looks through binoculars on a yellow background. Banner, copyspace

I’ve recently had an insightful conversation with Magda Blake, a friend and colleague, about what we’ve learned about teaching EAL learners in our current school. It could be summed up as the art of slowing down. Even though neither of us has mastered it yet, I feel like Magda is further along the path than I am and I’m grateful for the privilege of learning from her experience.

So, while it is frustrating not to get through a well-planned lesson, Magda and I strongly feel that we do some of our best work when we slow the pace and create a platform for our learners to share their thoughts and feelings that might otherwise prevent them from learning. And as Magda pointed out, since these learners need so much linguistic support, helping them express how they feel and what might be bothering them often falls by the wayside. If we don’t make space for these conversations in the EAL lessons, they might never get the chance to learn how to have them.

The pastoral aspects of EAl teaching often go unnoticed. This isn’t criticism, just a fact. In my settings, EAL teachers work in specialists teams, often across key stages or even across schools, which leads to conflicting timetables that are difficult to maintain. As a result, we rarely get the chance to be form tutors or homeroom teachers. In some cases this is by design, while in others it’s due to timetabling limitations. Yet, EAL teachers can and should contribute to pastoral support.

In our elementary school, EAL teachers see immersion learners every day, so in a week that adds up to anywhere between 5-7 periods. That’s a considerable amount of time, almost a luxury. Therefore, slowing down and dedicating time to getting to know these learners is a must. What we learn about these children and share with our colleagues can help them form a clearer picture of the learners and their circumstances, their likes/dislikes, strengths, and struggles. Sometimes, we see patterns forming before anyone else does, and it’s our duty to flag these in time.

Connection first

All teachers strive to build meaningful connections with their learners. However, this task is harder than usual when learners can’t fluently speak English. Their limited English proficiency holds EAL learners back in ways that make it hard for them to be themselves. If you speak a foreign language, you know how difficult it is to let your personality shine the same way it does when you speak your mother tongue.

All teachers share a duty of care for all of our learners, and we must get to know them as well as possible. But school life is busy, classes can get quite big, EAL learners go through a silent period, etc. So, whatever we can do to find out more about the EAL learners in particular should be a priority. It’s also equally important that we cascade that information down to the rest of the teachers so we can all build a connection with these learners.

Here are a few tips to build a connection with your EAL learners from Magda’s and my classroom:

  • Mood trackers: Mood trackers are visual representations of learners’ feelings. A quick search on Twinkl brings up over 40 different templates that you can introduce and none of them require much language to begin. Over time, these trackers can help you learn more about how your learners are settling in and you’ll notice if there are changes in their moods.
  • Feelings inventory: I like starting my lessons with a feelings inventory. I have pre-taught feelings words that I display on the board alongside some visual enhancement. I ask my learners to chat with their partners and ask them how they are feeling. I monitor and take not of anything out of the ordinary.
  • Show me your feelings: Last year, Magda taught me a no-prep version of the feelings inventory where she would ask her students to show her how they feel by holding up their fingers – 5 means great, 0 means terrible. Again, with a quick show of hands you can take the emotional temperature of the entire class. Genious!
  • Games: Play is learning in the life of a child. If we can turn a task into a game, all the better. Here are some games that can be played in any lesson and are great for EAL learners:
  1. The big wind blows…: This is a great no-prep activity that gets learners moving. All you need is learners sitting in a circle and something to mark their spots (chairs, pillows, sitting spots, etc.). You will need one person to stand in the middle of the circle and say: The big wind blows for everyone who … (have a younger sibling). Everyone for whom the sentence applies needs to stand up and change places. They can’t sit directly left or right from their original places and whoever is left without a seta is the next to say a sentence.
  2. Find someone who…: FSW activities will forever remind me of my time at the British Council, we did them so frequently in class. And that’s because they are low-prep and impactful, not to mention that they are a great way to learn about the students and their lives.
  3. Me/not me: Learners draw a simple table with Me/Not me on top. Read out a list of words (e.g. sports, food, countries, subjects) and learners write them under the appropriate heading as it applies to them. Again, virtually no prep, very little language involved (or easy to scaffold for EAL learners) and lots of useful information in return.
book cover of Supporting EAL Learners: Strategies for Inclusion by Peter Clements and Adrienn Szlapak

For more ideas of games and ways to build a connection with your EAL learners, check out Part C of Peter Clements and my book, Supporting EAL Learners: Strategies for Inclusion.

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