Professional Development
Teachers who work closely with English learners often push back on the idea that language should not come first. That pushback is grounded in real classroom experience. Language matters. Explicit language instruction matters. Vocabulary matters.
What this article argues is not that language is unimportant, but that positioning English as a prerequisite for thinking unintentionally narrows who gets to participate, when, and how. KnowAtom’s thinking-first, hands-on, phenomena-based approach offers a different entry point, one that treats English learners as sensemakers from the start while still supporting robust language development over time.
This article examines what changes when understanding comes before vocabulary, how this shift supports equity and agency, and what it looks like in real KnowAtom classrooms across K–8.
Why language-first instruction often limits English learners
Many science classrooms begin with well-intentioned supports for English learners: front-loaded vocabulary lists, sentence frames before investigation, or simplified texts meant to “prepare” students. Research and classroom evidence suggest these moves can have unintended consequences.
When language comes first, it often treats English proficiency as a prerequisite for thinking. Students are implicitly told they must acquire the words before they are ready to reason. This positions English learners as behind before learning begins, regardless of their conceptual understanding or lived experience.
Language-first instruction can also suppress participation and risk-taking. Studies of second-language acquisition show that students are less likely to speak when they fear linguistic error will be evaluated before their ideas are valued (Gibbons, 2015). Over time, this leads teachers to over-scaffold and lower cognitive demand, not because students cannot think, but because their thinking is difficult to hear through emerging English.
In contrast, KnowAtom lessons are intentionally designed so that thinking is visible through action, modeling, data, and discussion before it is expected to be fully articulated in academic language. This aligns with research from Project Zero showing that understanding develops through experience and sensemaking, not through vocabulary acquisition alone (Ritchhart, 2015).
When strong thinking doesn’t yet show up in writing
Teachers often notice a tension that can feel discouraging at first: students demonstrate clear understanding during investigations and discussion, yet their written explanations—especially lab responses—do not fully reflect that thinking. This mismatch can occur even when students can explain ideas verbally with confidence.
This gap is expected. Writing is not simply a record of thinking; it is a complex scientific practice that requires students to translate ideas into precise language, organize evidence logically, and communicate cause-and-effect relationships explicitly. Even students with strong conceptual understanding may need significant time and support to develop this skill, regardless of language background.
High-quality discussion, modeling, and sensemaking do not eliminate the difficulty of writing. Instead, they make writing struggles more interpretable. When students have had rich opportunities to reason aloud, manipulate materials, and test ideas, teachers can distinguish between gaps in understanding and challenges with expression. That clarity allows for more targeted instruction and feedback.
In KnowAtom classrooms, this is why writing is treated as a developmental process rather than an immediate endpoint. Students revisit ideas across days, lessons, and units, gradually learning how to express scientific thinking with increasing precision. Writing improves not because students talk more, but because their thinking is stable enough to be shaped into text.
How a thinking-first approach changes who gets to participate
Beginning with a shared phenomenon changes the entry point for learning. Everyone sees the same thing. Everyone manipulates the same materials. Everyone has access to the same data. Participation no longer depends on who already has the English words.
In KnowAtom lessons, hands-on investigations allow students to notice, test, and reason without relying on text-heavy explanations. Language is introduced as a tool to name and refine ideas students already hold, not as a gatekeeper to participation.
Grade-band callouts:
Kindergarten–Grade 2
In early grades, thinking-first instruction looks like shared observation, gesture, pointing, drawing, and talk grounded in materials. In Kindergarten Living Things Change, students observe bean plants and crickets to determine what living things need to survive. English learners participate fully by showing, sorting, and explaining with gestures and emerging language. Meaning is built through shared experience before formal vocabulary like “habitat” or “environment” is introduced.
Grades 3–5
In upper elementary, collaborative investigations and oral explanation precede writing. In Grade 4 Shaping Earth’s Surface, students model erosion using moving water. English learners contribute by identifying patterns in sediment movement and comparing results across trials. Discussion allows students to rehearse explanations orally before they are asked to write about erosion and deposition.
Grades 6–8
In middle school, evidence-based reasoning and argumentation are grounded in shared data. In Grade 6 Biodiversity, students analyze fossil patterns and compare cell structures to support claims about evolution. English learners engage in argument from evidence using shared observations and models, developing the language of claims and evidence through discussion rather than memorization.
English learners bring powerful funds of knowledge to science
A thinking-first approach recognizes that English learners bring rich resources to the classroom. Research on funds of knowledge highlights the value of students’ lived experiences, cultural practices, and ways of explaining the world as assets for learning (Moll et al., 1992).
English learners often demonstrate strong oral storytelling, close observation, and detailed explanation in their primary languages. Many have lived experiences that connect directly to scientific phenomena, such as weather patterns, ecosystems, or human-environment interactions. When instruction begins with phenomena, these experiences become strengths rather than obstacles.
Personal relevance increases persistence and engagement. Students are more willing to wrestle with uncertainty, revise ideas, and stay with complex problems when they see their experiences reflected in the work. KnowAtom’s emphasis on real-world phenomena creates space for English learners to connect science to their lives in meaningful ways.
How discussion and peer collaboration drive language development
Language development does not happen in isolation. It develops socially, through use, feedback, and refinement. Thinking-first classrooms intentionally leverage discussion and collaboration to support this process.
Students rehearse ideas orally before writing. They borrow, adapt, and refine language from peers and teacher modeling. Emotional safety supports risk-taking with emerging English, especially when ideas are valued even if the language is imperfect. Research shows that meaningful talk in content-rich contexts accelerates both conceptual understanding and academic language development (Gibbons, 2015; Zwiers et al., 2014).
Grade-band callouts:
Kindergarten–Grade 2
Turn-and-talk routines, choral responses, and shared language allow students to practice words connected to actions they have already experienced. In Kindergarten Weather in Our World, students use repeated talk to describe weather patterns they have observed firsthand.
Grades 3–5
Partner discussion and sentence expansion support language growth. In Grade 5 Water on Earth, students discuss how water moves through Earth’s systems before writing explanations. Sentence frames are introduced after ideas are formed, helping students extend their thinking rather than replace it.
Grades 6–8
Structured discourse supports claims and evidence-based talk. In Grade 8 Changing Environments, students argue about the impact of invasive species using shared data from food web models. Language develops through authentic scientific argumentation, not scripted responses.
What not to do when supporting English learners
Supporting English learners does not mean lowering expectations or narrowing tasks. Research and classroom experience suggest several practices to avoid:
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Do not front-load vocabulary before students have experiences to attach meaning to words.
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Do not wait for complete sentences before valuing ideas.
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Do not equate quiet with lack of understanding.
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Do not simplify tasks instead of supporting access to complex thinking.
These moves often come from care and concern, but they can unintentionally limit agency and engagement. KnowAtom lessons are designed to maintain cognitive demand while expanding access through experience, collaboration, and multiple ways of showing understanding.
What changes when understanding comes before vocabulary
When students understand first, vocabulary sticks because it names lived experience. Writing becomes explanation rather than translation. English learners begin to see themselves as capable thinkers who are learning English as a tool, not as a barrier.
In thinking-first classrooms, English learners do not wait to participate until they are fluent. They participate to become fluent, in science and beyond.
References
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Gibbons, P. (2015). Scaffolding language, scaffolding learning: Teaching English language learners in the mainstream classroom. Heinemann.
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Moll, L. C., Amanti, C., Neff, D., & Gonzalez, N. (1992). Funds of knowledge for teaching: Using a qualitative approach to connect homes and classrooms. Theory Into Practice, 31(2), 132–141.
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Ritchhart, R. (2015). Creating cultures of thinking: The 8 forces we must master to truly transform our schools. Jossey-Bass.
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Zwiers, J., O’Hara, S., & Pritchard, R. (2014). Conversing to fortify literacy, language, and learning. Voices from the Middle, 21(4), 10–14.