Thematic Approach to English Language Learners

 

Thematic Approach Presentation and Handout

Kyle Heaslip

TESOL 504 

February 9, 2014 

Nona Hall

Our Objective & AgendaOur goals for our training today: Discussing characteristics of thematic instruction Resources to help use thematic instruction Ideas proving positive thematic instruction

strategies.

What is thematic instruction?

Thematic instruction is a set of related learning activities and experiences that effectively support

teaching multiple content areas and skills organized around a central topic, idea, or theme.

Characteristics of Thematic Instruction

It makes education important to students by making it interesting, relevant, and bringing the real world

into the classroom.

Characteristics of Thematic Instruction

It seeks to put the teaching of literacy skills in reading, science, writing and arithmetic to be practical and

broad enough to allow creativity.

Characteristics of Thematic Instruction

Thematic Instruction promotes students’ development in linguistic and cognitive abilities.

Scholastic’s Top 5 Thematic Teaching Ideas

• An article done by Scholastic has shown five different ways to instruct thematic units. The units include roller coasters, seasons (particularly winter), pirates, traveling, and machines with inventions. • The article explicitly shows the

importance of each unit and incorporates different levels of reading, writing, math, imagination and creativity.

Cross-Curricular Thematic InstructionBy: Mary Ellen Vogt

A professor at California State University states that teachers who use cross-curricular themes create active readers and writers by engaging students in authentic literacy tasks that emerge naturally from interesting and worthwhile topics and ideas.

Thematic teaching enables students to:• Acquire, communicate, and investigate worthwhile knowledge

in depth.• Integrate and enrich language processes.• Practice reading different kinds of materials for varied

purposes.• Uses prior knowledge of the world and past experiences with

languages and text.

Ideas concerning thematic instruction

• Building off from a previous theme is very beneficial. It would help scaffolding specific ideas.

• By building off the previous theme, the students will gather more information about the past unit as well as the new unit.

• If you are in the high school level, keep your advanced focus on the content area and incorporate other subjects in smaller doses. (For example, if you are a social studies teacher, focus instruction relating to social studies and add other subjects into the mix at a smaller pace.)

Example of a Thematic Unit

• Grade Level- 10th Grade- American History• Introduce students to the 50 States• Incorporate the state quarters

• Require students to infer and predict the meaning of the state quarter symbols.

• Require students to choose a state to go on a “road trip” for.

• Have the students choose three parts of the state and write a detailed description about it.

• Create a budget for the trip.

References

• Herrera, S. (2010) Mastering ESL and Bilingual Methods: Differentiated Instruction for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) Students, Second Edition, by Socorro G. Herrera and G. Mjuorry.

• TEACHERS. (n.d.). Scholastic Teachers. Retrieved February 9, 2014, from http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/top-5-thematic-teaching-ideas

• Vogt, M. E. (n.d.). Cross Curriculum Thematic Unit. Cross Curriculum Thematic Unit. Retrieved February 9, 2014, from http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/pdf/MaryEllen%20Vogt.PDF