Building Back to School Classroom Tools: 2 Essential Items

I’m continuing to blog about education tools as part of #Teachermom’s Building Back To School blog series for August.  There are two classroom tools I want to discuss today which made teaching my ELLs much easier.

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The first tool is something I cannot live without: File folders!  They were an essential part of my classroom organization and greatly helped with my management of paperwork.  I used them to hold articles I wanted to save but which didn’t fit neatly into any category; to store forms I had to fill out, such as blank ESL monthly attendance forms and ESL report cards; for teaching ideas I wrote on scraps of paper; and to keep track of info from other teachers.  I did have file cabinets but for the papers I used most frequently, I kept them in file folders in a bookcase near my desk for easy access.

File folders from Staples; source: The ESL Nexus

I bought my folders in bulk at Staples.  Every August when Staples had a Teacher Appreciation Day, I got myself up early because the early shoppers could get some nice swag.  But the best part was the discount on back-to-school supplies so I stocked up on notebooks, pencils, file folders and other materials.  I usually bought around 50 file folders in a variety of colors—each color was used for a different grade level or purpose.  I preferred the style that had two pockets inside without fasteners.

My second classroom tool that I want to share with you is a dictionary.  Actually, I had several dictionaries; some were for beginning or intermediate proficiency level ELLs, one was for idioms, one was a rhyming dictionary, and I had sets of other regular dictionaries as well.  But the one I found especially useful was an academic content dictionary.  I’d never seen one like that until I went to a TESOL Convention one year and saw it on display at the Cambridge University Press table in the exhibition hall.  It was expensive but I bought it on the spot.  It helped that it was on sale to celebrate Cambridge University Press’s 400th anniversary, or something like that.  (Wow!)

My go-to dictionary for middle school ELL vocabulary; source: The ESL Nexus

What’s great about this dictionary is that it defines academic vocabulary words in easy-to-comprehend language.  Many entries include example sentences.  There are also lists of related words and word choice and usage information.  I consulted it a lot when trying to explain science and math words my students were learning in other classes and didn’t understand clearly.  We also used it when I couldn’t sufficiently explain a word in one of my own classes.  I highly recommend this Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary.

So those are my two essential classroom tools.  If you have a tool you are especially fond of, please share it in the Comments section below.

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