Multilingual Education
The community in the Reynolds School District speaks over 110 different languages. We welcome and value all multilingual students, families, and staff. Our district provides specialized instruction to over 3,000 students who are learning English as an additional language.
Department of Multilingual Education Guiding Principles
ODE Multilingual Learner Strategic Plan
English Learner's in Oregon: 2023-24 Annual Report
Department of Multilingual Education Vision
All Reynolds staff ensure equitable education for multilingual learners in all classes and throughout the school day.
Reynolds Families and Caregivers:
- Bring multiple perspectives to broaden and influence student and educator learning
- Lend linguistic and cultural assets to strengthen the school and community
- Build partnerships with the school to promote engagement, inclusion, and belonging in their child’s education
Reynolds School District:
- Provides an evidence-based, well defined, and well implemented language learning model that includes English language development and dual language immersion
- Creates and implements policies and practices to ensure students have universal access to core instruction, support services, and enrichment opportunities
- Provides a clear and unified process for identifying student needs
- Provides educators with training and support to improve their ability to serve multilingual learners throughout the school day
- Partners with parents and families to engage with their child’s education in a language they understand
- Hires, recruits, and retains educators who are committed to providing multifaceted instructional supports for all learners
Reynolds Multilingual Learner Students:
- Engage in meaningful learning where their multilingualism and cultural assets are valued, harnessed, and developed
- Develop language through purposeful and scaffolded interactions with peers
- Actively participate in strategic and explicit language learning in all language and content classes
- Receive differentiated supports for grade level access in content classes
- Have opportunities to develop literacy in multiple languages, including their home language
Reynolds Educators:
- Hold high expectations for all students and deliver rigorous academic instruction
- Engage in a continuous cycle of teaching, learning, and assessment
- Differentiate and scaffold academic language supports in all classes
- Celebrate and promote students’ multilingualism and cultural assets
- Collaborate to support students’ language development through focused language instruction
- Provide equitable access to rigorous grade level instruction for multilingual learners
Along with the State of Oregon, the Reynolds School District honors the languages and cultures of our community. We recognize that:
- Language is a key component of each person’s cultural identity,
- Heritage and primary languages are instrumental in student academic and cultural success, and
- Students who are multilingual/multicultural may have an advantage over students with a single language and are valued in career placements.
All Reynolds staff ensure equitable education for multilingual learners in all classes and throughout the school day. Students who qualify as English Language Learners (ELL) have access to specialized instruction called English Language Development (ELD).
How do students qualify for English Language Development services?
At registration, families provide information about their student’s languages. This Language Use Survey is the first step in qualifying a student for ELD. A language screener test called the ELPA screener measures a multilingual student’s level in English in reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Based on this test, a student can be found eligible for ELD services.
What services does my student receive?
Through the federal Title III program, we are legally obligated to ensure that students are learning grade-level academic content and English language skills at the same time.
Reynolds School District provides a range of educational programs and services to help students achieve academic success while learning English.
Grade K-5:
Language Development for All: All students in elementary schools in the Reynolds School District participate daily in The Language Block. This is a designated part of the instructional day when students learn social and academic English language skills through reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Mutlilingual and monolingual students alike receive targeted language instruction at their English proficiency level. In addition to this dedicated language learning time, teachers also use a range of strategies throughout the school day to scaffold and differentiate the content of core subjects such as language arts and math.
Grades 6-8:
In the middle schools in Reynolds, students learn academic language throughout the entire school day. In all classes, teachers use sheltered instruction strategies to make grade-level content understandable while building students’ English language skills. In addition, students receive focused ELD instruction integrated with core content or as a designated ELD class tailored to their current proficiency level. This combined approach helps students succeed academically while steadily developing confidence and fluency in English.
Grades 9-12:
At Reynolds, students in gardes 9-12 learn academic language throughout the entire school day. In all classes, teachers use sheltered instruction strategies to make grade-level content understandable while building students’ English skills. In addition, students receive focused ELD instruction as a designated ELD class tailored to their current proficiency level. This combined approach helps students succeed academically while steadily developing confidence and fluency in English. At RHS, the ELD course sequence includes: Beginning ELD A&B, Early Intermediate ELD, Intermediate ELD, Early Advanced ELD, and Advanced ELD. Placement into these proficiency levels is based on student's scores on the state ELPA (English Language Proficiency Assessment) scores.
What is Dual Language Instruction?
A comprehensive educational model that focuses on student strengths and provides access to all areas of instruction in two languages, Spanish and English.
Benefits of Dual Language Instruction:
The research is clear!
- Academic Achievement: Students in DLI programs often outperform their peers in reading, writing, and math.
- Skill Development: Bilingual children develop better executive function skills, such as planning, organization, and attention control.
- Global Citizenship: Being fluent in more than one language exposes children to different cultures, fostering greater empathy, open-mindedness, and appreciation for diversity.
How it Works as RSD:
RSD values multilingualism. Over 60% of our multilingual learners speak Spanish at home, so DLI expansion focuses on Spanish and English biliteracy. We partner with families to build culturally aware bilingual readers, writers, and communicators ready for college, career, and global engagement.
When all or most students in the classroom use the same language at home, that is a one-way model. Currently, this is RSD’s model. This could change as the district expands the DLI program to more schools.
Language allocation is how much instruction happens in each language.
Instruction begins 80% in Spanish at first to support foundational literacy skills, and gradually shifts to a 50/50 balance by third grade. Literacy skills learned in one language strengthen skills in the other!
| Grade | Spanish | English |
| Kinder | 80% | 20% |
| 1st | 70% | 30% |
| 2nd | 60% | 40% |
| 3rd + | 50% | 50% |
The Three Pillars of Dual Language Instruction
- Bilingualism and Biliteracy
- High Academic Achievement
- Socialcultural Competence
Reynolds is Expanding Dual Language Instruction!
Reynolds School District (RSD) acknowledges that Dual Language Instruction (DLI) is one of the most effective models for serving students who are English language learners.
Alder Elementary School: Kindergarten - 5th Grade
Davis Elementary School: Kindergarten with 1st Grade starting this fall
Hartley Elementary School: Kindergarten starting this fall
Reynolds Middle School: Spanish Language Arts, 6th-8th starting this fall
The State School Board created the Oregon State Seal of Biliteracy (OSSB) to recognize and value the native language/s students speak and bring to their English academic studies, to value language programs in schools, and to encourage students in the study of languages. This award recognizes student literacy in reading, writing, listening, and speaking in one or more World Languages, in addition to English.
The OSSB has recognized students who speak 47 different primary languages and earned the Biliteracy Seal in over 22 different languages, including Chinuk Wawa, Nez Perce, and Umatilla, three of the languages spoken by students from two of the nine federally recognized Tribes in Oregon. In addition, students who use ASL have also earned the OSSB. The Oregon State Seal of Biliteracy was the first in the nation to collaborate with post-secondary institutions to offer the Seal. Currently, two state universities and one community college offer the OSSB to their students.
At both Reynolds High School and Reynolds Learning Academy, students can take the STAMP and ALTA tests to acquire the seal of biliteracy and add to their diploma. For more information, contact the Multilingual Education department.
We welcome and value all our newcomer students and families and the assets they bring to Reynolds School District, and we want to ensure that they feel safe and supported. The challenge of integrating into their new home is compounded for newcomers who attend school, since they must learn not only how to navigate a new culture socially, but also how to function effectively in an education system and language that typically differs from their prior experience.
In K-Grade 5, specialists provide recently-arrived students with supplemental instruction that focuses more heavily on cultural competency and social English in addition to ELD push-in services. Additional measures are also taken at registration to assure that recent arrivers are welcomed to the district and connected with appropriate community resources.
At the secondary level (6-12) RSD schools have specialized course offerings for newcomers that provide a welcoming environment and a solid introduction to the cultural and linguistic skills to support their educational and career goals. Students who are eligible for these courses have recently arrived in the U.S. (within three years) and are beginners in English.
At Reynolds High School courses for newcomers include English Language Development (ELD) and a range of core-content courses that offer subject-specific credit and cover grade-level standards. The goals of the program are to equip students with foundational English language skills and a linguistically accessible pathway to graduation.
The Reynolds School District recognizes multilingualism as an asset and is committed to empowering multilingual learners to become global citizens who are linguistically, socially, and culturally equipped for success in school and beyond.
What is ELPA 21?
Coming soon!
-
The community in the Reynolds School District speaks over 110 different languages. We welcome and value all multilingual students, families, and staff. Our district provides specialized instruction to over 3,000 students who are learning English as an additional language.
Department of Multilingual Education Guiding PrinciplesODE Multilingual Learner Strategic Plan
English Learner's in Oregon: 2023-24 Annual Report
Department of Multilingual Education VisionAll Reynolds staff ensure equitable education for multilingual learners in all classes and throughout the school day.
Reynolds Families and Caregivers:
- Bring multiple perspectives to broaden and influence student and educator learning
- Lend linguistic and cultural assets to strengthen the school and community
- Build partnerships with the school to promote engagement, inclusion, and belonging in their child’s education
Reynolds School District:- Provides an evidence-based, well defined, and well implemented language learning model that includes English language development and dual language immersion
- Creates and implements policies and practices to ensure students have universal access to core instruction, support services, and enrichment opportunities
- Provides a clear and unified process for identifying student needs
- Provides educators with training and support to improve their ability to serve multilingual learners throughout the school day
- Partners with parents and families to engage with their child’s education in a language they understand
- Hires, recruits, and retains educators who are committed to providing multifaceted instructional supports for all learners
Reynolds Multilingual Learner Students:- Engage in meaningful learning where their multilingualism and cultural assets are valued, harnessed, and developed
- Develop language through purposeful and scaffolded interactions with peers
- Actively participate in strategic and explicit language learning in all language and content classes
- Receive differentiated supports for grade level access in content classes
- Have opportunities to develop literacy in multiple languages, including their home language
Reynolds Educators:- Hold high expectations for all students and deliver rigorous academic instruction
- Engage in a continuous cycle of teaching, learning, and assessment
- Differentiate and scaffold academic language supports in all classes
- Celebrate and promote students’ multilingualism and cultural assets
- Collaborate to support students’ language development through focused language instruction
- Provide equitable access to rigorous grade level instruction for multilingual learners
-
Along with the State of Oregon, the Reynolds School District honors the languages and cultures of our community. We recognize that:
- Language is a key component of each person’s cultural identity,
- Heritage and primary languages are instrumental in student academic and cultural success, and
- Students who are multilingual/multicultural may have an advantage over students with a single language and are valued in career placements.
All Reynolds staff ensure equitable education for multilingual learners in all classes and throughout the school day. Students who qualify as English Language Learners (ELL) have access to specialized instruction called English Language Development (ELD).
How do students qualify for English Language Development services?
At registration, families provide information about their student’s languages. This Language Use Survey is the first step in qualifying a student for ELD. A language screener test called the ELPA screener measures a multilingual student’s level in English in reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Based on this test, a student can be found eligible for ELD services.
What services does my student receive?
Through the federal Title III program, we are legally obligated to ensure that students are learning grade-level academic content and English language skills at the same time.
Reynolds School District provides a range of educational programs and services to help students achieve academic success while learning English.
Grade K-5:
Language Development for All: All students in elementary schools in the Reynolds School District participate daily in The Language Block. This is a designated part of the instructional day when students learn social and academic English language skills through reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Mutlilingual and monolingual students alike receive targeted language instruction at their English proficiency level. In addition to this dedicated language learning time, teachers also use a range of strategies throughout the school day to scaffold and differentiate the content of core subjects such as language arts and math.
Grades 6-8:In the middle schools in Reynolds, students learn academic language throughout the entire school day. In all classes, teachers use sheltered instruction strategies to make grade-level content understandable while building students’ English language skills. In addition, students receive focused ELD instruction integrated with core content or as a designated ELD class tailored to their current proficiency level. This combined approach helps students succeed academically while steadily developing confidence and fluency in English.
Grades 9-12:At Reynolds, students in gardes 9-12 learn academic language throughout the entire school day. In all classes, teachers use sheltered instruction strategies to make grade-level content understandable while building students’ English skills. In addition, students receive focused ELD instruction as a designated ELD class tailored to their current proficiency level. This combined approach helps students succeed academically while steadily developing confidence and fluency in English. At RHS, the ELD course sequence includes: Beginning ELD A&B, Early Intermediate ELD, Intermediate ELD, Early Advanced ELD, and Advanced ELD. Placement into these proficiency levels is based on student's scores on the state ELPA (English Language Proficiency Assessment) scores.
-
What is Dual Language Instruction?
A comprehensive educational model that focuses on student strengths and provides access to all areas of instruction in two languages, Spanish and English.Benefits of Dual Language Instruction:
The research is clear!
- Academic Achievement: Students in DLI programs often outperform their peers in reading, writing, and math.
- Skill Development: Bilingual children develop better executive function skills, such as planning, organization, and attention control.
- Global Citizenship: Being fluent in more than one language exposes children to different cultures, fostering greater empathy, open-mindedness, and appreciation for diversity.
How it Works as RSD:
RSD values multilingualism. Over 60% of our multilingual learners speak Spanish at home, so DLI expansion focuses on Spanish and English biliteracy. We partner with families to build culturally aware bilingual readers, writers, and communicators ready for college, career, and global engagement.
When all or most students in the classroom use the same language at home, that is a one-way model. Currently, this is RSD’s model. This could change as the district expands the DLI program to more schools.Language allocation is how much instruction happens in each language.
Instruction begins 80% in Spanish at first to support foundational literacy skills, and gradually shifts to a 50/50 balance by third grade. Literacy skills learned in one language strengthen skills in the other!
Grade Spanish English Kinder 80% 20% 1st 70% 30% 2nd 60% 40% 3rd + 50% 50% The Three Pillars of Dual Language Instruction
- Bilingualism and Biliteracy
- High Academic Achievement
- Socialcultural Competence
Reynolds is Expanding Dual Language Instruction!
Reynolds School District (RSD) acknowledges that Dual Language Instruction (DLI) is one of the most effective models for serving students who are English language learners.
Alder Elementary School: Kindergarten - 5th Grade
Davis Elementary School: Kindergarten with 1st Grade starting this fall
Hartley Elementary School: Kindergarten starting this fall
Reynolds Middle School: Spanish Language Arts, 6th-8th starting this fall
-
The State School Board created the Oregon State Seal of Biliteracy (OSSB) to recognize and value the native language/s students speak and bring to their English academic studies, to value language programs in schools, and to encourage students in the study of languages. This award recognizes student literacy in reading, writing, listening, and speaking in one or more World Languages, in addition to English.
The OSSB has recognized students who speak 47 different primary languages and earned the Biliteracy Seal in over 22 different languages, including Chinuk Wawa, Nez Perce, and Umatilla, three of the languages spoken by students from two of the nine federally recognized Tribes in Oregon. In addition, students who use ASL have also earned the OSSB. The Oregon State Seal of Biliteracy was the first in the nation to collaborate with post-secondary institutions to offer the Seal. Currently, two state universities and one community college offer the OSSB to their students.
At both Reynolds High School and Reynolds Learning Academy, students can take the STAMP and ALTA tests to acquire the seal of biliteracy and add to their diploma. For more information, contact the Multilingual Education department. -
We welcome and value all our newcomer students and families and the assets they bring to Reynolds School District, and we want to ensure that they feel safe and supported. The challenge of integrating into their new home is compounded for newcomers who attend school, since they must learn not only how to navigate a new culture socially, but also how to function effectively in an education system and language that typically differs from their prior experience.
In K-Grade 5, specialists provide recently-arrived students with supplemental instruction that focuses more heavily on cultural competency and social English in addition to ELD push-in services. Additional measures are also taken at registration to assure that recent arrivers are welcomed to the district and connected with appropriate community resources.
At the secondary level (6-12) RSD schools have specialized course offerings for newcomers that provide a welcoming environment and a solid introduction to the cultural and linguistic skills to support their educational and career goals. Students who are eligible for these courses have recently arrived in the U.S. (within three years) and are beginners in English.
At Reynolds High School courses for newcomers include English Language Development (ELD) and a range of core-content courses that offer subject-specific credit and cover grade-level standards. The goals of the program are to equip students with foundational English language skills and a linguistically accessible pathway to graduation. -
The Reynolds School District recognizes multilingualism as an asset and is committed to empowering multilingual learners to become global citizens who are linguistically, socially, and culturally equipped for success in school and beyond.
What is ELPA 21?
-
Coming soon!