This course is a specialized academic/language literacy course that helps SLIFE students enrolling in the district acquire basic foundational literacy English skills. As students develop literacy in English, the course will include foundational instruction in the core content areas. It will also guide students’ acculturation to the United States school system. The course will act as an on-ramp for a broader educational program. The program will include, but not limited to:

Intensive English literacy development in reading, writing, speaking, and listening
Intensive English language literacy development in distinguishing the sounds of English as compared or contrasted with sounds in their native language (e.g., vowels, consonants, consonant blends, and syllable structures
Phonological Awareness by demonstrating understanding of spoken words
Students will become familiar with print concepts in English and will learn the Latin alphabet for English, as compared or contrasted with their native language writing system (e.g., directions of print, symbols representing whole words, syllables or phonemes, decoding words
Build vocabulary knowledge, learn classroom,school-based words, general academic, subject-specific words, and word parts
Development of study skills, including technological education
Cross-cultural orientation – Cultural transition to the United States
A culturally responsive teaching and learning environment where teachers are facilitators and learning takes into account both the affective and cognitive development

Instruction in basic foundational literacy skills is essential for English learners. Foundational literacy skills are the same for all students who need to learn basic literacy skills. The manner in which the skills are taught will depend on the age, cognitive level, and previous oral and written literacy experiences of their native language. Students’ native language literacy skills can and will help students learn English foundational literacy skills