INFOGRAPHIC
Second Language Acquisition and Academic Language Development
By: Aliya Schmedthorst
VS
BICS
CALP
Three Pillars of Academic Language
Vocabulary Knowledge
Discourse
Syntax & Grammar
Key Factors of SLA
Major Challenges
Teacher Action Plan
4th Grade Mathematics
Sentence Frames
Multimodal Instruction
Math Talk Upgrade Activity
SLA Challenge
www.genial.ly
Two Major Challenges Teachers Face in Supporting Academic Language Development
Challenge 1: Limited Time for Academic Language DevelopmentAcademic language devlopment takes years, but teachers face tight schedules and pacing guides. As a result, there is often limited time for explicit language instructiion across content areas.Challenge 2: Lack of Training in Academic Langusge InstructionMany teachers are content experts but lack formal training in language acquistion. This can make it challenging to intentionally support academic language development across disciplines.
Three Key Factors that Influence SLA
Motivation & Attitude
- Students who feel confident, supported, and valued are more willing to take risks when using academic language. That is why it is important to have positive attitudes toward learning to increase engagement, while anxiety or fear of mistakes can slow language devlopment.
Personality & Learning Style
- Students acquire language differently based on personality traits and perferred learning styles. To support language development for all learners it is important to provide multiple modalities, viual auditory, kinesthetic, and written.
Academic Strengths & Needs
- Students enter the classroom with varying levels of background knowledge, literacy skills, and content understanding. Teachers must recognize and build on students' academic strengths allowing teachers to scaffold and address idividual language needs.
Sentence structure Verb tenses Passive voice Complex sentences
How language is organized in: Essays Lab reports Explanations Arguments
Discipline-specific vocabulary (ex: photosynthesis, legislature) General academic words (analyze, compare, evaluate)
Math Talk Upgrade
Students first explain their mathematical thinking using everyday language. The teacher introduces key academic vocabulary, and students will restate their explanation using academic language.
Ex: BICS: "I moved the numbers around." CALP: "I rearranged the factors using the commutative property."
Limited Time for Academic Language Development
My plan will help beacuse the academic language instruction is embedded into daily math discussions, allowing the students to develop academic language while still meeting the content standards.
Second Language Acquisition and Academic Language Development
Aliya Schmedthorst
Created on February 6, 2026
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Transcript
INFOGRAPHIC
Second Language Acquisition and Academic Language Development
By: Aliya Schmedthorst
VS
BICS
CALP
Three Pillars of Academic Language
Vocabulary Knowledge
Discourse
Syntax & Grammar
Key Factors of SLA
Major Challenges
Teacher Action Plan
4th Grade Mathematics
Sentence Frames
Multimodal Instruction
Math Talk Upgrade Activity
SLA Challenge
www.genial.ly
Two Major Challenges Teachers Face in Supporting Academic Language Development
Challenge 1: Limited Time for Academic Language DevelopmentAcademic language devlopment takes years, but teachers face tight schedules and pacing guides. As a result, there is often limited time for explicit language instructiion across content areas.Challenge 2: Lack of Training in Academic Langusge InstructionMany teachers are content experts but lack formal training in language acquistion. This can make it challenging to intentionally support academic language development across disciplines.
Three Key Factors that Influence SLA
Motivation & Attitude
- Students who feel confident, supported, and valued are more willing to take risks when using academic language. That is why it is important to have positive attitudes toward learning to increase engagement, while anxiety or fear of mistakes can slow language devlopment.
Personality & Learning Style- Students acquire language differently based on personality traits and perferred learning styles. To support language development for all learners it is important to provide multiple modalities, viual auditory, kinesthetic, and written.
Academic Strengths & NeedsSentence structure Verb tenses Passive voice Complex sentences
How language is organized in: Essays Lab reports Explanations Arguments
Discipline-specific vocabulary (ex: photosynthesis, legislature) General academic words (analyze, compare, evaluate)
Math Talk Upgrade
Students first explain their mathematical thinking using everyday language. The teacher introduces key academic vocabulary, and students will restate their explanation using academic language.
Ex: BICS: "I moved the numbers around." CALP: "I rearranged the factors using the commutative property."
Limited Time for Academic Language Development
My plan will help beacuse the academic language instruction is embedded into daily math discussions, allowing the students to develop academic language while still meeting the content standards.