Carrie Clark, Branson High School, Branson, Missouri     Intro   The primary objectives of this project are twofold: to enhance literacy and language proficiency by reading Spanish-language books and materials. Given that my students are studying Spanish with the ultimate aim of effective communication, it is essential for them to excel in both understanding written texts and articulating information orally. Achieving proficiency in these areas will not only support their aca

Jacob Wise   Introduction   English Learners (ELs) face unique challenges in the classroom. In order for them to access grade-level curricula in their second language (L2), educators—both English Language Development (ELD) teachers and classroom teachers—provide many types of scaffolds to support students' understanding. Some of these include peer discussions, materials in students' home languages (L1), and machine translation.   In the secondary English language arts (ELA) c

Jen Stoops and Ashley Bolling, Parkview High School, Springfield, MO      Intro   This project included a 10-Day Artists-in-Residency with Rodrigo Alvarez and Isaac Tapia. These artists worked with students in our English Language Development (ELD) Program to design and paint a 10’x40’ mural, emphasizing the cultural and linguistic diversity of Parkview students both past and present. It will stand as a testament to the importance of diversity and inclusion for years to come.

Megan Horton, Branson High School, Branson, MO     Intro   Given the community's ties to the tourism industry, Branson High School serves a student population with diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds. This project advocates for multiliteracy through the creation of welcome banners and custom lanyard badges. By creating welcome banners for the school building and incorporating “welcome” in various languages, families will feel a connection immediately by seeing their n

Brenda Stolle, LEAD Innovation Studio, Kansas City, MO   LEADing Internationally emphasizes a strengths-based approach which values learning in any language (Regional Educational Laboratory Program, 2015). This project seeks to provide materials in students’ home languages (Arabic, Chinese, English, Somali & Spanish) for student project work, required coursework, and for pleasure reading. LEADing Internationally also supports our goal to showcase multilingual/multicultural

Stephanie Ortiz, Branson High School, Branson, Missouri     Intro:    The Heritage Voices: Empowering & Celebrating Biliteracy project aims to support heritage speakers in developing their bilingual and biliterate abilities. Given the large population of Spanish-speaking students in our district, our primary goal is to provide resources and guidance to heritage speakers to successfully navigate the Seal of Biliteracy (SoBL) requirements while celebrating their achievements i

Kari Cox Monett High School, Monett R-1 School District, Monett, MO Introduction Our Cultural Heritage is a project designed for students...

Sarah Reeves, Bayless School District, St. Louis, Missouri The welcome kits are part of the process of making a safe and inviting...