ESOL at Idlehurst Elementary School
What is ESOL?
ESOL is a state and federal mandated program for students who speak or have a second language spoken at home. The program is based on New Hampshire Department of Education’s Guidance and best practices in the area of English language acquisition. All students attending Somersworth School District receive a Home Language Survey upon registration. Based on the information provided by parents/guardians, students may be screened to assess their English proficiency. The results of that screening will determine if ESOL services will be provided to the student.
Our Students
The ESOL program services students with Limited English Proficiency (LEP). These students can be:
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Recent immigrants or refugees who don’t speak or understand any English, or less recent immigrants still learning the language and not yet proficient,
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Born in the United States to families who speak the language of their heritage at home,
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Adopted from another country.
Services and Instruction
The students receiving ESOL services are placed in regular education classrooms alongside their English speaking peers, the Somersworth School District does not maintain self-contained classes for English language learners. It is our belief that students' English language acquisition is enhanced when they are immersed in the English speaking classroom with peers using English for learning and socialization. The ESOL teacher provides support and instruction both in the classroom as well as in alternate locations around the building.
Mission of the ESOL Department
The primary mission of the ESOL Department is to facilitate English language acquisition for students for whom English is not the first language. This is achieved through ESOL instruction with pull-out, and/or in class services.
The ESOL Department complies with state standards for English language acquisition, the World Class Instructional Design and Assessment Consortium Standards (WIDA), and uses standards in conjunction with the fundamental principles of second language acquisition in order to provide the most beneficial environment for the students.
The ESOL Department also works to promote multicultural awareness in classrooms across the school district, and parental involvement in school and the community.
Mrs. Jolene Francoeur, ESOL Teacher
Idlehurst Elementary School
Hello! I am Mrs. Francoeur and this is my 12th year in the Somersworth School District as an ESOL teacher. I absolutely love supporting our English language learners and their families. My students inspire me everyday and I feel like to be part of their school journey. I am in awe and amazement of all our ESOL students and their families and my goal each day is to instill in them a love for learning. I have a wonderful husband, three amazing grown children, and a big dog named Bailey. I can’t wait to meet you!!
Reading
Students read 20 minutes a day. This can be students reading or listening to stories. My hope is that while your student is reading they are thinking about the characters, setting (where the story is happening), the problem the characters are having and the solution (how they solve the problem) if it is a fiction book. They should be able to retell the story in the order or sequence things happen in the story. Or if it is a nonfiction book (teaching something about the world) then the student will be able to tell you some facts they learned or what they learned about in the book.
This can be done through:
Raz Kids https://www.raz-kids.com/
This is a site your student's classroom teacher has set up a username and password for your student. It is books at their reading level. There are hundreds of books to choose from and a short quiz at the end. The more they read and do the quizzes the more points they accumulate to build a robot, spaceship and world in outer space.
Epic https://www.getepic.com/
Epic is a digital library with great books for students from kindergarten to grade 5. If your teacher did not give you a class code, let me know and I can provide you with one. Epic allows students or parents to read the books and some books the site will read to you. If you don't have an account, you can sign up for free or use my code to get in. Go to www.getepick.com/students. Sign in with the class code cxy7892. You can use it on a laptop, Chromebook, or on a cell phone.
Mrs. Francoeur