- I agree that ELLs are “...doing twice the job of everybody else in the class, even though the result looks like half as much.” This is why when building my classroom community the foundation is mutual respect. This means having not only myself, but students learn about each other's cultural backgrounds. Also, we discuss how we have different family traditions in our families even for the same holiday. This helps in teaching students about each other's cultures. Additionally, I have created signs that are in all the languages of my students so they can see that I value their home languages.
- I use most of these strategies Gonzalez offers. These strategies have unconsciously been a part of my classroom structure since day one. These strategies lend a significant hand in building a mutually respectful classroom environment where students feel safe in their learning and comfortable to make mistakes and take risks. One strategy that I would like to work on more is showing students how to take themselves less seriously. I will do this by consciously making mistakes so students can see that even adults make mistakes too, which will in turn make them feel more comfortable when they do the same.
