ELL+and+Wallwisher

**ELL/ESL and Padlet (formerly Wallwisher)**
One challenge many teachers face is how to meet the needs of their ELL/ESL students. Wallwisher is the tool many of these teachers have been searching for. It can help provide their ELL/ESL students with richer and fuller educational experience. Wallwisher is a free website that allows you to create sticky notes. It is an intuitive notice board maker that has a 160 character limit per sticky note. This free resource is the timesaver teachers have been looking for! What a great way to collaborate, study vocabulary words, plan writing activities, brainstorm, have debates, hold speaking activities, post classroom rules and other notifications, etc. The possibilities are just about endless! Wallwisher can help ELL/ESL gain the confidence they need to participate more fully in class. This site is beneficial for students of all ages. I could see this also being helpful for English speaking students who are learning another language. I see myself getting the most use out Wallwisher with vocabulary and grammar practice and test preparation for students. This site makes studying seem less intimidating and more enjoyable. Meeting the needs of ELL/ESL students can be quite the challenge. With the use of Wallwisher the job of educators can be made easier and the experience for their students of higher quality.

Resource: [|www.wallwisher.com] First, it is important to know that Wallwisher is now called Padlet. The URL for Padlet is: [|__https://padlet.com/__] The name was changed to Padlet in 2013.
 * Wallwisher has a “new” name. **

[|__https://jonathanwylie.com/2013/02/10/wallwisher-is-relaunched-as-padlet/__]

Referring to a Padlet post as a “sticky note” or to Padlet as a “notice board maker” does not do justice to this web 2.0 tool. Padlet allows images to be embedded in each post. Then text can be used to give these images titles, and more text can be added to describe the image. Because Padlet can combine image and text together, it is a powerful tool for ELL/ESL students to use when building their vocabulary and developing descriptive writing skills. For example, each student could create a visual index card for each new vocabulary word in a unit. The card could have the word (e.g. cat) as the title along with a picture of a cat from the Internet. The student could then add (perhaps at a later date) a short descriptive sentence about the cat (e.g. The cat has yellow eyes.) Another idea would be for the instructor to create a Padlet and post an image. Each student could add a post in which he/she describes the image. At a later date, the same Padlet could be used as a reading exercise by having the students read their classmates’ posts.
 * More than a notice board or a sticky note**



The language learners (depending on their level) might have some difficulty maneuvering on the site because all of the descriptors and tips are in English. This barrier could be overcome by a) a hands-on training session, b) a screencast where the teacher explains slowly and clearly how to use Padlet, and c) a handout with visual images showing each step. If necessary, a bilingual aide could also assist the student.

For additional ideas on how to use Padlet with ELL/ESL learners: 1) See this Padlet: [|__https://padlet.com/Tsisana/4i7g7j9qaoh3__] 2) See this blog post: __ [] __