In this segment, Luz strategically spends time interacting with the beginning English learners during the hands-on investigation. All of the students in the class are asked to do the same work but each student engages with the work slightly differently. The work is open enough that it offers multiple entry points for the range of students that exist in the classroom. Luz supports the emerging English learner to navigate the graphic organizer in their science notebook. The more proficient student at the table interejects often and is clear about what he understands but Luz intentionally fouses her talk and response to the emergent EL in at the table. She poses choice questions to check for understanding (hard or soft) and yes/no questions (Is it magnetic?) to support his understanding. Luz also talks through procedures with the emergent students. This allows Luz to both reinforce both how students will conduct their investigation but also what kinds of evidence they are looking for. While this was also discussed with the whole class, these one-on-one short interactions reinforce these ideas.

In this segment, students begin to move into writing about whether falling stars are really stars. Luz circulates strategically around the room checking on students and providing just-in-time support. She talks with Michelle one-on-one to help her formulate her claim. Michelle uses Spanish to help get her ideas across. Luz responds to her in English helping her form her idea in English. This quick interaction sets Michelle up to continue writing in English on her own. Michelle also refers to the environmental print in the room to support her writing.

We often think about language development as going from oral language to writing, like we just saw with Michelle. However, there are many newcomers who already can read and write in their home language and writing in English can feel more accessible and can support them to speak in English. In this segment, we see how the opportunity to write first can give newcomers the time and space to use environmental print and other resources in the room as well as revise as they compose. In this segment, Eusebio first writes his ideas and then shares them orally with Luz.

In this segment, Luz talks about how she ensures that all of the students, regardless of language proficiency, are engaged in the class. Luz sees this issue of engagement as an important equity issue in her class. Luz believes that she needs to be hyper-aware of her students and their engagement in order to respond to their in-the-moment needs and questions. She describes the ways in which she has to pay attention to multiple aspects of her students—their gaze, posture, work, talk, interaction with peers. All of this information gives her a sense of how students are engaging with the work.