Regardless of their level of English development, young DLLs
who are working to master the rudiments of English probably
need additional supports to help them participate fully in class
-
room learning activities if the activities are in English. Although
preschool DLLs benefit from explanations about the meaning of
words (just as English speakers do), one study found that children
who began with lower English scores learned fewer words than
children with higher English scores.
14
Pictures help DLL pre
-
schoolers with low levels of oral English learn story vocabulary
(e.g., dentist, mouse, cap), suggesting that
visual representations
,
not just
explanations
, provide these children with additional sup
-
port for learning.
15
Video resources also have proven useful.
16
Attempts to incorporate additional supports such as these
into comprehensive programs and curricula have had mixed
success. For example, a professional development program that