Professional Development
English learners often bring rich experiences, observations, and ways of explaining the world into science classrooms. The challenge is not whether they can think scientifically, but whether classroom structures allow them to show and develop that thinking while they are still learning English.
KnowAtom’s thinking-first, hands-on, screens-off approach to phenomena-based instruction is intentionally designed to do just that. Across K–8, students investigate real phenomena, talk through ideas with peers, use images and physical models to reason, and gradually develop language to explain what they already understand. This article explores how talk, visuals, and movement function as bridges to meaning so English learners can engage fully in scientific sensemaking without being reduced to compliance tasks or language drills.
Why comprehension mode matters more than output mode
Many English learners understand far more science than they can currently express in written English. When classrooms emphasize early written output as proof of learning, that understanding can remain invisible.
Research on second-language development consistently shows that comprehension develops before production, and that students need meaningful opportunities to process ideas before being asked to formalize language (Krashen, 1982; Gibbons, 2015). In science classrooms, prioritizing writing over thinking can mask reasoning rather than reveal it.
KnowAtom lessons are structured to prioritize sensemaking first. This sequencing increases engagement because students are allowed to demonstrate understanding through talk, drawings, models, and actions long before formal scientific language is expected.
For English learners, this communicates an important message: thinking comes first. Language develops in service of meaning, not as a prerequisite for participation.
Using picture thinking to anchor shared meaning
Visuals play a central role in KnowAtom classrooms, not as decorations, but as shared objects of thinking.
Picture thinking routines allow students to examine images connected to real-world phenomena and collectively build meaning. Images reduce language load without reducing rigor, giving English learners immediate access to the ideas under study. Over time, these visuals become reference points students return to as they refine explanations.
Grade-band examples
K–2:
In Kindergarten Living Things Change, students examine photos of plants at different stages of growth. During whole-group picture discussions, students point, gesture, and label parts they notice. An English learner may say “this part go down” while pointing to roots. The teacher records the idea visually and later introduces the word “roots,” connecting new language to an idea the student already owns.
Grades 3–5:
In Grade 4 Plant & Animal Structures, students analyze images of organisms in different environments. Small groups compare pictures, noting patterns in structures and survival. English learners contribute by circling features, sketching comparisons, or referencing images directly during discussion, reducing reliance on extended verbal explanations.
Grades 6–8:
In Grade 6 Biodiversity, students use diagrams and microscope images to compare cells. Visual evidence becomes central to claims about evolutionary relationships. English learners cite images when explaining reasoning, using visuals as scaffolds while academic language develops.
Across grades, pictures anchor shared meaning so language grows out of collective understanding rather than isolated vocabulary memorization.
Talk as a bridge between experience and language
Talk is not an add-on in KnowAtom classrooms. It is the primary mechanism through which students turn experience into understanding.
Structured discussion routines allow ideas to form socially before they are captured in writing. This aligns with research showing that language develops through purposeful interaction, especially when students are reasoning about shared experiences (Vygotsky, 1978; Gibbons, 2015).
Sentence frames are used strategically in KnowAtom lessons to support participation without scripting thinking. Frames lower the barrier to entry, but students are never required to use the same wording or complete identical sentences. Peer collaboration further supports natural language development as students negotiate meaning together.
In Grade 2 Land and Water, for example, English learners discussing erosion often rely on everyday language and gestures before formal terms emerge. Through repeated discussion tied to hands-on investigations, words like “wear away” and later “erosion” gain meaning grounded in experience.
This approach anticipates a common concern from English learner specialists: talk must remain authentic. When discussion focuses on real problems and shared investigations, language development happens naturally and productively.
Using movement and physical modeling to reinforce meaning
Movement is another powerful but often underused tool for supporting comprehension. Gestures and physical modeling help make abstract ideas concrete, particularly when phenomena involve processes that are invisible or occur over time.
Research on embodied cognition suggests that physical action can strengthen memory and conceptual understanding by linking ideas to bodily experience (Goldin-Meadow, 2014). In KnowAtom classrooms, movement always serves meaning, not entertainment.
Grade-band examples
K–2:
In Grade 1 Changing Seasons, students act out Earth’s tilt and orbit using their bodies and classroom models. English learners use pointing, turning, and positioning to show understanding of sunlight patterns before explaining them verbally.
Grades 3–5:
In Grade 5 Water on Earth, students use hand motions to represent evaporation, condensation, and precipitation during system modeling. These gestures support recall and help students sequence ideas when later writing explanations.
Grades 6–8:
In Grade 8 Inheriting Traits, students physically model DNA replication and mutations using manipulatives. Movement supports understanding of invisible mechanisms, giving English learners confidence in their reasoning even as precise terminology develops.
Movement supports meaning when it is directly tied to scientific ideas and revisited as part of explanation building.
What not to do with multimodal supports
Multimodal strategies can lose their power when misused. Common pitfalls include:
- Turning sentence frames into fill-in-the-blank worksheets that replace thinking
- Requiring all students to use identical frames regardless of readiness
- Treating movement as an engagement gimmick rather than a meaning-making tool
- Leaving supports in place long after students no longer need them
In KnowAtom classrooms, supports are intentionally temporary. Teachers monitor when students are ready to remove scaffolds, signaling trust in students’ growing independence and competence.
Why writing often lags behind understanding—and why that’s expected
It is important to name a reality that many experienced teachers see daily: even when English learners clearly understand a phenomenon and can explain their thinking orally, visually, or through physical models, translating that understanding into formal scientific writing often remains difficult. This is especially true for lab writing, where students must coordinate evidence selection, causal reasoning, scientific vocabulary, and sentence structure at the same time.
This gap between understanding and writing is not a failure of instruction, nor is it unique to English learners. Teachers routinely observe students who contribute sophisticated ideas during discussion but struggle to produce clear, coherent written explanations. Writing is a distinct scientific practice that develops over time and requires explicit modeling, feedback, and repeated opportunities to revise thinking into text.
The purpose of talk, images, and movement in KnowAtom lessons is not to make writing immediate or effortless. Their role is to ensure that when students struggle in writing, the struggle is with language and structure—not with the underlying science. This distinction allows teachers to respond instructionally, supporting students in learning how to write scientifically without mistaking language difficulty for conceptual misunderstanding.
When comprehension is secure, writing instruction becomes more precise and productive. Teachers can focus on helping students organize ideas, justify claims with evidence, and use scientific language accurately, knowing that the thinking itself is already there.
How language tools support but do not replace thinking
Language supports are most effective when they serve understanding rather than attempt to create it. Translated materials or tools like Google Translate can be useful for clarifying directions or checking comprehension, but they are never substitutes for hands-on investigation and discussion.
Read-alouds reduce decoding demands while preserving cognitive rigor, allowing English learners to focus on reasoning about phenomena. Over time, academic English emerges as students need language to explain ideas they already understand.
This reflects a central design principle across KnowAtom lessons: English development follows understanding, not the reverse. When students are positioned as thinkers first, language becomes a tool they want and need, rather than a barrier they must overcome.
References
-
Gibbons, P. (2015). Scaffolding language, scaffolding learning. Heinemann.
-
Goldin-Meadow, S. (2014). How gesture works to change our minds. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 18(4), 195–200.
-
Krashen, S. (1982). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. Pergamon Press.
-
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society. Harvard University Press.