We began the first day of a unit on
erosion by posing this authentic
problem and question to a mixed
fourth and fifth grade English language
learner (ELL) class to engage
students in thinking about erosion.
We knew the students had prior
knowledge of rain, sandy soil, and
model-making. After posing the initial
problem and question, we used
questioning to scaffold the conversation
toward a class decision. After
much debate, the students determined
that constructing a model of
the yard would be the best way to
explore ideas about how rain would
affect the yard. What followed was a
12-day study of erosion in which the
students used stream tables (Figure
1) from the Landforms FOSS kit
as they explored ideas, developed
explanations about the concept of
erosion, and expanded their current
understanding. In addition, exploration
required the use of process
skills and the essential features of
scientific inquiry. What made our
unit unusual was the intentional integration
of science and language instruction.
The students were recent
immigrants to the United States
and were learning English and science
content. The instructional
model blended selected strategies
proposed by the science education
community with selected strategies
from the language education community.
Through this careful integration,
the science class became a
safe and sheltered place to use language
and to demonstrate scientific
knowledge regardless of the level
of English proficiency. Thus, this
could be an excellent unit to begin a
new school year.