English Language Learner Program
Stages of Second Language Acquisition
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Stage 4 – Intermediate Fluency (approx 2-3 years)
Student
- Asks questions
- Creates with language providing his/her personal information
- Speaks in sentences on a variety of familiar topics
- Reads and writes in full sentences and makes fewer errors in speech.
Teacher
- Continues to provide comprehensible input when introducing new vocabulary and gradually
increases level of difficulty
- Must integrate language and content
- Plans lessons which provide students with opportunities to develop language fluency and demonstrate their second language productive skills (speaking and writing)
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Stage 3 – Speech Emergence (approx 1-2 years)
Student
- Speaks in 2 – 3 word sentences
- Begins naturally to recognize grammatical elements in sentences
- Requires extensive vocabulary development to improve second language skills
Teacher
- Asks questions of student which elicit longer responses
- Uses simple comparisons, descriptions, and sequencing of events
- Encourages the child to produce simple sentences
- Uses the Language Experience Approach to begin reading and writing
- Uses dictation as a strategy for listening, comprehension, and grammatical correctness
- Reads short narratives while the child follows along.
- Provides opportunities for student dramatization
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Stage 2 – Early Production (approx 6 mo. - 1 year)
Student
- Gives one word responses such as “dog”, “come”, Yes,” or short phrases
- Omits articles (a, an, the) prepositions (to, on, over) and other words with abstract meanings
- Says words that have been heard and understood many times
- Continues to add new words
Teacher
- Asks yes/no questions
- Asks choice questions
- Asks completion questions
- Uses real objects when possible, as well as pictures and other visuals to represent key vocabulary
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Stage 1 – Pre-Production (approx 0 to 6 months)
Student
- Associates sound with meaning
- Develops listening strategies and comprehension
- Does not communicate verbally
- Indicates understanding non-verbally
- Relies on contextual clues
- Gradually acquires ability to understand key words.
Teacher
- Uses Total Physical Response
- Tells/reads lots of stories with props
- Uses real objects when possible, as well as pictures and other visuals to represent key vocabulary
- Uses real situations to model authentic natural language
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