As distance learning becomes the ‘new normal’, the absence of a collaborative classroom environment raises concerns of fewer opportunities for children with English as an additional language (EAL) to continue their English language acquisition.
NAHT partner FlashAcademy®, a digital language-learning platform that teaches English from 45 home languages, has created a raft of free EAL home learning packs to help minimise disruption to English language development during school closures. Each pack is equipped with a lesson planning page, containing brief instructions so that parents and pupils alike can get the most out of EAL home learning. Here is a summary of what the packs contain.
More free home learning packs will be coming soon, including ‘Study Skills’ and ‘Supporting Parents’ – make sure to keep an eye on FlashAcademy®’s Free Resources page!
Providing up to four weeks of work, these project packs have been put together with a range of activities to keep EAL learners engaged. The project for week 1 is all about ‘Staying Healthy’, both physically and mentally, with worksheets on hygiene & health, the importance of sleep and staying safe online. Week 2 is ‘All About EAL’ to continue the celebration of multilingualism at home and week 3, ‘Activate Your Imagination’, covers topics like literacy and storytelling. The fourth and final project, ‘The World Around Us’, allows EAL pupils to continue learning about geography & UK culture at home.
Home Learning for Maths & Literacy
This pack has been designed to support younger & new-to-English pupils learning at home due to the Coronavirus. The Maths resources offer worksheets and suggestions for maths games and activities. It also includes activities on numbers and shapes in easy Spanish to keep primary school children engaged with languages. The Literacy pack provides worksheets and activities on phonics, word types, and sentence building.
Speaking in English can be one of the most difficult skills for EAL learners to feel comfortable with, but this is mainly down to confidence. This EAL Pupil Podcast project allows pupils to practise their speaking skills at their own pace and offers over 30 different topics to choose from that interest learners most. The project encourages learners to reflect on the script they have written, such as checking spelling and grammar, and listen back to the audio they’ve recorded to check their voice is loud and clear. It’s basically a three-in-one package for EAL learners to practise not just their speaking but listening and writing, too! Reflection activities are also a great way for parents to get involved.
Suitable for younger and new-to-English learners, these worksheets have been designed to help guide EAL pupils through the process of story writing – from setting the scene and character description, to plot development and reflection. A great opportunity for pupils to activate their creativity from home and to even get the parents involved!