Why Science Class Is the Perfect Place to Build Language Fluency

As an educator in a small, rural school where half of my students are English language learners, I give a high priority to providing my students with the skills they’ll need to be successful in any career or profession they choose, including STEM roles that are often high-paying but also highly competitive. Science is a content area with a significant level of academic and domain-specific vocabulary, which can be a big cognitive load for students, especially ones who are learning in a new language.

In English language development (ELD), we focus on the four modalities of language: speaking, reading, writing, and listening. Science is full of hands-on activities and fascinating topics that capture student attention while providing a plethora of opportunities to work on these modalities. This year, I’ve had the unique opportunity to teach pull-out ELD classes with science lessons for grades 3–5. These are the strategies I’ve found that hit each of the four domains and are most engaging for students who are working toward language learning goals.

Speaking: shifting between conversational and academic language

1. Use a science word wall. Make sure each word card includes a visual representation of the word and the definition. I change these out for each unit. For example, for a unit on ecology, our class word wall included terms like ecologist, food chain, and organism.

Students quickly get in the habit of utilizing this word wall when engaging in class discussions and oral assessments. The key to academic vocabulary use is repetition. Provide ongoing opportunities for students to take advantage of the word wall and use academic terms in class.

2. Provide sentence frames for conversational structures. I have an anchor chart with sentence frames for discussions. Because these frames are not specific to any lesson or unit, I can keep them up year-round. Frames such as “I agree or disagree with (student name here) because (provide reasoning or evidence)” offer students an example of how to phrase ideas when participating in class. I’ve noticed that students reference these frames regularly early on in the year, but often by the spring they are using these structures fluently without having to reference the examples on the chart. Sentence frames work well for many different kinds of structures, including cause and effect, summary, and compare and contrast.

3. Lean into the power of peers. Word walls and sentence frames work well while engaging students in think-pair-share activities and small group discussions. By sharing ideas in pairs or small groups, students can practice public speaking in an intimate setting and provide each other with feedback on responses before taking on the more high-stakes challenge of sharing with the whole class.

Reading: Nonfiction texts are essential

Science is a natural fit for building students’ nonfiction reading comprehension skills. Whether you’re teaching from required textbooks or exploring articles from websites like Newsela, there are many resources for finding interesting science nonfiction reading for elementary students. Here are some strategies to try with informational texts:

1. Front-load the science vocabulary so that students don’t get stuck on key words as they’re reading. Teaching key vocabulary terms before diving into reading assignments can help students maintain fluency and therefore increase comprehension. You can do this by updating your word wall or discussing new key words before students start the reading.

2. Collaborate on guiding questions. Work with students before reading to define questions they are curious about that may be answered as they search through the text. Leading with student-driven questions provides students with an authentic purpose for reading. Students can highlight or underline as they come across answers and interesting findings.

3. Chunk the text. Science texts can feel lengthy because they are dense with so much information. Help students to break readings into sections and note the main idea or most important concept in each section. Students learn how to think critically as they take in new content while deciphering what is most important.

Writing: rich opportunities for CREATIVE communication

1. Use RACES (restate, answer, cite, explain, summarize) to structure written responses. Start the year with collaborative writing; then move to small group, partner, and finally independent responses.

2. CER (claim, evidence, reasoning) helps students focus on content, especially when summarizing findings from research or experiments related to key science concepts.

3. Science notebooks let students blend writing and art—drawing observations, using text features (headings, diagrams, captions), and explaining concepts in their own words to deepen understanding.

Listening: The Impact of peers on language skill development

1. Small group discussions let students hear how others express ideas. I have them listen for word wall vocabulary and use others’ input to build stronger responses. Active listening is essential.

2. Videos and text-to-speech tools model fluent academic language. Use captions to connect listening with reading, and encourage students to follow along visually.

3. Peer presentations offer listening practice and reflection. Giving feedback helps students identify effective delivery and apply it to their own speaking.

My goal is to keep students excited about learning English while building a love for science. A highlight was when a fifth grader said, surprised, “Wow, science is actually fun!” It can be hard for students to see the connections—one even said a lesson felt like “writing, not science.” It’s key that students understand that language is woven into every subject. As teachers, we have a huge impact on our multilingual students, and hopefully we can inspire them to pursue a plethora of diverse careers, including those in the science field.