What Multilingual Learners Actually Need to Succeed

Multilingual learner education has evolved significantly since the dominance of the “sink or swim” English immersion method in the mid-20th Century. But that doesn’t mean we’ve perfected the craft. Though there have been significant improvements in training teachers and service providers with best practices to support multilingual learners (MLLs), there are still significant gaps in MLL instruction to fill—particularly in English Language Arts.

Let's start with what doesn't work.

Pulling multilingual learners out for separate instruction with simplified texts. Waiting until they're "ready" for grade-level content. Treating language support as something that happens outside the real curriculum.

We know these things don't work. And yet they’re still prevalent in instruction.

Here's what does work: integrating multilingual learners into grade-level literacy experiences from Day 1, with strategic supports that amplify rather than limit.

Not someday. Not when they're ready. Now.

Here are seven best practices to help your MLLs succeed in ELA.

Best Practice #1: Keep the Bar High

The first move is the hardest one for a lot of teachers: don't simplify the text.

I know the instinct. A student is still learning English, so we give them an easier version of the story. A leveled reader. A translated text. Something "at their level."

But here's the problem: when we consistently give multilingual learners less complex texts, we're not helping them access grade-level content—we're creating a parallel track that keeps them behind.

What to do instead:

Yes, there are moments when leveled texts make sense—specifically when you're building background knowledge to support comprehension of the anchor text. A student might read a more accessible article about the historical context before diving into the complex primary source. That's strategic scaffolding.

But the anchor text itself? That stays intact.

Best Practice #2: Frontload Without Spoiling

Multilingual learners benefit from knowing what's coming. Not in a "here's a summary so you don't actually have to read it" way, but in a "here's what you need to know to make sense of this" way.

What this looks like in practice:

• Provide text summaries in students' home languages before reading. Not as a replacement for reading, but as an entry point that activates prior knowledge and reduces cognitive load.
• Give students access to glossed vocabulary ahead of time. Let them preview key terms so they're not stopping every three sentences during the actual reading.
• Offer audio support so students can listen while they read, building both comprehension and pronunciation simultaneously.

The goal isn't to eliminate challenge. It's to remove barriers that aren't actually about the content itself.

Best Practice #3: Treat Home Languages as Assets

Here's a shift that matters: stop thinking of students' home languages as something to work around. Start thinking of them as cognitive tools that enhance learning.

When a student drafts their initial thinking in their home language before moving to English, they're not avoiding the work—they're accessing more sophisticated thinking than they could if we forced them to start in English.

When students compare how expressions shift across languages, they're doing real linguistic analysis. When they identify cognates between English and their home language, they're building vocabulary in both languages simultaneously.

What this looks like in practice:

• Make home language resources available—not just for comprehension, but for analysis. Glossaries, vocabulary journals, text summaries in multiple languages that students can use as thinking tools.
• Encourage students to use their home language during planning and discussion. Let them draft in their strongest language, then work on moving those ideas into English.
• Build in moments where students explicitly compare concepts across languages, examining what's preserved and what shifts in translation.

This isn't about making things easier. It's about leveraging every resource students bring to the table.

Best Practice #4: Build in Repeated, Purposeful Reading

One read-through isn't enough for anyone. It's definitely not enough for students who are simultaneously processing content and language.

The trick is making sure each read has a different purpose so students aren't just slogging through the same text multiple times for no reason.

What this looks like in practice:

• First read: engage and react. What's your initial response? What catches your attention?
• Second read: comprehend. What's actually happening? Who are these people? What's the basic plot or argument?
• Third read: contextualize. How does this fit into the bigger picture? What background knowledge helps make sense of this?
• Fourth read: analyze. How is the author achieving their purpose? What craft moves matter?

Each read builds confidence and deepens understanding. By the time multilingual learners hit that analysis stage, they're not struggling to figure out what's happening—they can actually examine how it's happening.

Best Practice #5: Scaffold Up, Not Down

There's a difference between scaffolding that helps students reach grade-level expectations and scaffolding that lowers the bar.

Scaffolding up means: same complex text, same rigorous task, with strategic supports that help students get there.

Scaffolding down means: easier text, simpler task, lower expectations.

What scaffolding up looks like:

• Provide sentence frames that model academic language rather than simplifying the thinking required.
• Break complex tasks into smaller steps without changing what students are ultimately producing.
• Offer graphic organizers that help students structure their thinking before writing.
• Give multiple opportunities for low-stakes practice before formal assessment.

The end goal stays the same. The pathway to get there includes more supports.

Best Practice #6: Make Language Learning Explicit

Multilingual learners benefit from explicit instruction about the language demands of academic tasks. Not just "here's the content," but "here's the language you need to discuss and write about this content."

What this looks like in practice:

• Identify specific language goals for each lesson. Not vague goals like "students will discuss the text," but specific goals like "students will use transition words to explain their reasoning."
• Teach target language forms and functions directly. If students need to compare and contrast, explicitly teach the language of comparison. If they need to make claims, teach the language of argumentation.
• Sequence activities so students practice using target language in low-stakes contexts before applying it independently. Partner talk before whole-class discussion. Graphic organizers before essay writing.
• Build in reflection on language use so students become aware of their own growth.

Language development doesn't happen by osmosis. It happens through explicit instruction combined with meaningful practice.

Best Practice #7: Differentiate the Support, Not the Expectation

Here's the key: the level of support a student receives should be flexible and responsive to their needs. The expectation for what they're working toward should remain constant.

What this looks like in practice:

• At the lightest level: accessibility tools and vocabulary aids.
• At moderate levels: additional prompts, layered supports, more guidance.
• At intensive levels: modified content that streamlines thinking while maintaining the same core task.

The crucial point: even with intensive support, students are still engaging with the same anchor text and working toward the same learning goals as their peers. The supports help them access it—they don't change the destination.

What This Requires

None of these practices happen by accident. They require:

• Curriculum that builds these supports in rather than making teachers retrofit them after the fact.
• Teacher preparation so educators understand the rationale and know how to implement these practices effectively.
• School structures that prioritize integration over separation.
• A fundamental belief that multilingual learners are capable of grade-level work when given the right supports.

That last one matters most. Because if we don't actually believe multilingual students can engage with complex texts and complete rigorous tasks, we'll find reasons to lower the bar. We'll create separate tracks. We'll wait for them to be "ready."

But if we believe they're capable—and they are—then we do the harder work of providing genuine support while maintaining high expectations.

That's what equity looks like.

Want More?

These practices aren't theoretical. They're the practical moves that make a difference in real classrooms with real students.

If you want to see how these practices show up in a fully realized curriculum, we've put together a detailed resource that walks through exactly how it works in Lenses on Literature, our standards-driven ELA curriculum for grades 6-12.

You'll learn about the philosophy, the structures, the teacher supports, and the student-facing scaffolds that make these best practices possible.

Because multilingual learners don't need separate. They don't need simplified. They don't need to wait.

Instead, they need access. They need support. They need to be right in the middle of grade-level learning. And they need these things now.