--- title: 'Checklist: 10 things your ELL’s school needs to know' description: To help your English language learner (ELL), the school needs to understand your child's language background. Here are important things to tell the school. slug: checklist-10-things-your-ells-school-needs-to-know author: Shea Dean, MA reviewer: Virginia Gryta, MS published: '2019-10-16T11:44:01.108Z' thumbnail: https://cdn-images.understood.org/p0qf7j048i0q/1J2HIUxA0kTUPnKox5J0MK/739b4eebbb6825050e54209760cf356c/G696315502.jpg source_url: https://www.understood.org/en/articles/checklist-10-things-your-ells-school-needs-to-know lang: en --- # Checklist: 10 things your ELL’s school needs to know To help your English language learner (ELL), the school needs some key information. They may ask you for this information in a meeting or in a home language survey. If they don’t ask for it, it’s a good idea to provide it anyway. Here’s what the school needs to know about your child. ## What the School Needs to Know - What language do you speak at home? Is that your child’s native language? - How have you encouraged your child’s reading and writing in that language? - At what age did your child begin to speak in that language? - At what age did your child begin learning English? - What schools did your child attend in the past? What kind of English language instruction, if any, did your child receive there? (It helps to provide copies of all school records noting your child’s curriculum, attendance, and performance in class.) - Does your child have any health problems that could affect learning? (These might include head injuries, vision or hearing problems, or emotional trauma.) - Is there any history of learning and thinking differences in your family? - Are there any situations at home that might make it hard for your child to get to school on time or attend regularly? - Have you observed any behavior or learning problems in your child? (These might include difficulty following directions or difficulty speaking clearly in the native language.) - How and when can the teacher reach you to discuss your child’s progress? If your child is having trouble in school, you might want to learn more about [learning and thinking differences in ELL students](https://www.understood.org/en/articles/understanding-learning-and-thinking-differences-in-ells). Understanding the signs is a good first step toward helping your child. --- ## Explore related topics and articles - [10 things for teachers to know about English language learners](https://www.understood.org/en/articles/10-things-you-need-to-know-about-your-english-language-learners) - If you have English language learners \(ELLs\) in your class, you may have questions about how best to teach and support them, especially if theyre struggling. You already understand the importance of getting to know your students. But learning about ELLs their strengths, challenges, and background e - [How to help if English language learners are struggling in school](https://www.understood.org/en/articles/understanding-learning-and-thinking-differences-in-ells) - - It can be challenging to learn a language while learning to read, write, and do math in that language. - Sometimes its hard to figure out what kind of support an emergent bilingual needs to thrive in school. - Teachers and families can work together to find out if a child is struggling with a l - [4 challenges of English language learners who learn and think differently](https://www.understood.org/en/articles/challenges-facing-ells-with-learning-disabilities) - - You can ask the school to evaluate your child for learning and thinking differences. - It can be helpful for you to get to know your childs ESL or bilingual teacher. - Your child may need special services in a language other than English. English language learners \(ELLs\) with learning and thin --- ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://www.understood.org/en/articles/checklist-10-things-your-ells-school-needs-to-know#webpage","url":"https://www.understood.org/en/articles/checklist-10-things-your-ells-school-needs-to-know","description":"To help your English language learner (ELL), the school needs to understand your child's language background. Here are important things to tell the school."},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://www.understood.org/en/articles/checklist-10-things-your-ells-school-needs-to-know","name":"Checklist: 10 things your ELL’s school needs to know"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","datePublished":"2019-10-16T11:44:01.108Z","description":"To help your English language learner (ELL), the school needs to understand your child's language background. 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