February 11, 2013

Today a first grader whose teacher has referred him to ESOL services since September...has finally joined the roster and taken the entire battery of language proficiency tests. What is it like to go under the radar for so long? You definitely develop your own coping skills in a heavily academic environment. Although he may be lacking in spoken vocabulary compared to a native English-speaker, I was impressed by his ability to respond to my questions. That is a good sign--that he is receptive to the teacher's direction. However, I have already heard that the Hispanic/ESOL population characterized by the principals of both schools as "good kids...you can see they are trying their best to follow you.". My, I do not want to let them down!!