McLoughlin High School

ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS - The ELL program offers non-remedial courses in English as a Second Language, social studies, science and math to international students grades 9-12 on the basis of language proficiency. These basic skills and transition courses may only be elected with permission from the ELL program.

          ELL MATH:  Prerequisite: Math dept and instructor approval LAS 1-5.  This course is intended for intermediate or lower-level students who may or may not have the math skills, or the English language, to succeed in the mainstream course. Basic arithmetic and math skills are reviewed, with heavy emphasis on vocabulary and language. This class teaches the skills necessary for ELL’s to mainstream into pre-algebra; a student’s placement in a math class the following year will depend on math and language skills acquired. Math credit is not granted for this course.

          ELL TUTORIAL:  Prerequisite: LAS 1-5 and instructor approval.  One-half credit will be awarded per semester. Students will receive individual instruction during this study time. This class is designed to improve academic skills and provide support for completing outside class work. Class activities will include exploration of specific strategies to improve academic performance, including those related to note-taking, memory, organization, time management, reading, writing, and test taking.

          ELL READING I:  Prerequisite: LAS 1-2 and instructor approval.  This course is designed to develop and advance reading fluency and comprehension skills such as predicting outcome, making inferences, identifying main ideas, understanding paragraph development, and thinking strategies. This course is used to prepare students for their reading content area course work. ELL Reading I is specifically for ELL students who have passed Newcomers ESL, but who have not achieved a 2 on the LAS test. It is required to be able to enroll in ELL English or English I or English II. Main emphasis is on strengthening reading comprehension, vocabulary building and stressing skills needed to pass the CIM.  Secondary emphasis is on English grammar and writing skills.

          ELL READING II:  This course is designed to develop and advance reading fluency and comprehension skills such as predicting outcome, making inferences, identifying main ideas, understanding paragraph development, and thinking strategies. This course is used to prepare students for their reading content area course work and state reading benchmarks. ELL Reading II is specifically for ELL students who have passed at least a 2, but who have not achieved a 4 on the LAS test. It is required to be able to enroll in ELL English, English I or English II for students who meet the above criteria. Main emphasis is on strengthening reading comprehension, vocabulary building and stressing skills needed to pass the CIM.  Secondary emphasis is on English grammar and writing skills.  Instructor permission is required. 

NEWCOMERS - The Newcomers Center is designed to assist students new to the School District an opportunity to acclimate to school. Students will receive instruction in English and review basic study skills necessary to succeed academically. Students needing help will also receive instruction in fundamental math, science and history concepts. Also, students will learn to navigate the school, be exposed to extracurricular activities, and become familiar with community resources.                             

          NC LANGUAGE ARTS:  This course offers ELL’s the opportunity to extend their knowledge of and practical use of writing to better function and succeed in high school and in environments and situations outside of school.  Emphasis is on writing with attention also given to listening, speaking, and reading English to achieve academic and social goals.  Students enrolled in Language and Composition are/should be concurrently enrolled the parallels and complimentary English language grammar course (Level 1 Newcomer English, 611).                                                 

          NC ENGLISH:  This course offers basic vocabulary and survival English to entry level students who are new to the United States.  Upon completion of the program, students will enroll in appropriate ESL English course(s).  Reading is introduced through the practice of reading short passages using familiar vocabulary.  This course offers Newcomer Level 1 ELL’s the opportunity to learn grammar, with a focus on form, function and meaning, in order to succeed in high school and in social and academic environment outside of school.                 

          NC SCIENCE:  This course offers a survey of Science curriculum that includes basic vocabulary in relation to use and study of materials in the science classroom.  Topics may include; simple science equipment operation, simple machines, density, physical aspects of science, using a microscope, photosynthesis, cell structure, atmospheric science, layers of the atmosphere, air pressure, relative humidity, the particle model of matter, and models of the atom.  Second Semester will focus on the Human body.  The course is designed to help ELL’s increase their health knowledge in order to make good decisions regarding their and their families’ health.  Course content includes units on physical,  community and environmental health, nutrition, emotional and mental health, human sexuality, personal safety and emergency care, and the effects of alcohol and other drugs on the body.