Know ELLs possess a range of ____ foundations.

Know ELLs possess a range of ____ foundations.

• A. Linguistic
• B. Cognitive
• C. Social
• D. Academic

Answer: (A)

Understanding how English learners access literacy starts with recognizing their linguistic foundations. Students come to school with diverse language backgrounds—different home languages, phonologies, vocabularies, and ways of forming sentences. This linguistic base shapes how they hear sounds, recognize words, and use grammar as they learn to read and write in English. So, effective literacy instruction builds on what they already know about language, making new English skills meaningful and connected to their existing knowledge. Cognitive, social, and academic factors all matter in literacy, but the statement points to language as the starting point for learners’ literacy development. By valuing and leveraging these linguistic foundations, teachers can tailor instruction to support decoding, vocabulary growth, and comprehension in a way that respects each student’s language background.

Understanding how English learners access literacy starts with recognizing their linguistic foundations. Students come to school with diverse language backgrounds—different home languages, phonologies, vocabularies, and ways of forming sentences. This linguistic base shapes how they hear sounds, recognize words, and use grammar as they learn to read and write in English. So, effective literacy instruction builds on what they already know about language, making new English skills meaningful and connected to their existing knowledge.

Cognitive, social, and academic factors all matter in literacy, but the statement points to language as the starting point for learners’ literacy development. By valuing and leveraging these linguistic foundations, teachers can tailor instruction to support decoding, vocabulary growth, and comprehension in a way that respects each student’s language background.