Climate Voices Speak Up

A comprehensive workshop-style unit for 6th Grade ESL students focused on the linguistic mechanics of paraphrasing and synthesizing information. Students move from identifying core concepts to orally retelling information, transforming individual sentences, and finally weaving multiple sources into a single coherent paragraph without plagiarizing.

Students engage in a 'shadowing' technique, repeating audio immediately after hearing it to internalize the rhythm and flow of connected speech. This active processing reinforces their ability to predict and process sound streams.

A detailed student evidence log for the final podcast project, providing sections for analyzing intent, vocal forensics, and bias check.

A 5-lesson unit for 6th-grade ESL students focused on transforming search habits from natural language questions to strategic keyword and Boolean operator techniques. Students move from basic vocabulary brainstorming to navigating academic databases and skimming snippets for relevance.

Focusing on function words, this lesson tackles common reductions like 'gonna,' 'wanna,' and weak forms of auxiliary verbs. Students analyze unscripted interviews to catch these reductions in context.

A guide for the final project where students select a podcast episode, analyze its intent and bias, and present their findings, including a checklist and a performance rubric.

Students learn how sounds influence their neighbors (e.g., 'hand bag' becoming 'hambag'). The lesson uses minimal pair discrimination and dictation exercises to train ears to recognize words despite phonological changes.