As a teacher, you know that science class is often one of the most exciting, yet challenging, places for your English language learners (ELLs). It’s where curiosity takes center stage, but it’s also where students must navigate complex vocabulary and abstract ideas.
But there’s good news! Science can actually unlock language growth when you pair content with the right strategies and tools.
Why science is a powerful gateway for language learning
No matter a student’s native language, they bring background knowledge and unique experiences that they naturally apply to any lesson. For example, in a high school astronomy class, a student with limited English proficiency might not yet be able to explain the phases of the moon using new vocabulary, but they can describe the moon’s phases in Spanish and connect the material to their experiences using a telescope with their grandparents.
Science gives multilingual learners (MLLs) a natural space to use language with purpose. Through experiments, discussions, and investigations, students practice speaking, listening, reading, and writing in meaningful, connected ways.
Science builds language through hands-on learning
Hands-on science strategies for ELL students help level the playing field. Visuals, models, and real-world connections let multilingual learners in STEM demonstrate understanding even before they’ve mastered English vocabulary.
Hands-on experiments, labs, and virtual simulations turn abstract concepts from a textbook into concrete learning moments, ideal for supporting English language learners in science as they build both content and language skills.
Common challenges for ELLs in science classrooms
You’ve probably seen how easily students can get lost in vocabulary overload, struggling to remember scientific terms and their meanings. Others may have limited background knowledge about certain topics, making it harder to connect new ideas to what they already know. Add in fast-paced instruction and the pressure to “cover it all,” and even your most motivated learners can fall behind.
To truly support dual language learners in science, you need approaches that provide them time, tools, and confidence to engage deeply with content and language.
Strategies for supporting ELLs with supplemental science tools
Supplemental science tools can make a big difference when you’re working to reach all learners. Here are a few ways to use supplemental science resources to strategically enhance your core curricula and support all students in your classroom.
- Use visuals, models, and interactive simulations. Graphic organizers, diagrams, and interactive tools, such as Gizmos, make complex ideas visible and accessible. They help ELLs connect vocabulary to visuals and see cause-and-effect relationships unfold in real time.
- Encourage peer collaboration and language practice. Activities like think-pair-share and small group investigations give students structured opportunities to discuss their ideas. Language supports, like vocabulary lists and sentence frames, can help multilingual learners explain their thinking to peers while incorporating new vocabulary.
- Integrate real-world connections. Tie lessons to your students’ lives to help them draw on familiar experiences. Real-life connections build background knowledge, boost engagement, and give students personal buy-in to learn more.
- Provide multiple entry points for learning. Allow your students to demonstrate their understanding in different ways—such as drawing or manipulating an interactive simulation—before requiring written responses. Starting with non-writing tasks reduces language barriers while reinforcing key concepts students can later apply in writing.
How Gizmos support multilingual learners as a supplemental science tool
Gizmos virtual science labs and digital investigations encourage authentic, real-world problem-solving with a full suite of interactive, inquiry-based simulations for grades 3-12. For multilingual learners, Gizmos Simulations, Investigations, and STEM Cases are especially powerful because they combine visuals, interactivity, and guided exploration.
Gizmos use a learning approach validated by extensive research as a highly effective way to build conceptual understanding in science and math. Gizmos utilize best practices to support English language learners through:
- Rich visuals and virtual models support student understanding
- Multiple modes of representation (discussion, pictures, graphs, writing, etc.)
- Varied activity levels scaffold and differentiate learning
- Opportunities for individual and guided practice
- Concepts and vocabulary connections to real-world experiences
550+ Gizmos cover various topics, including a large library of ready-to-use STEM collections. Each Gizmo comes with pre-made and customizable supplementary lesson materials for easy planning and assessment, with many offline resources available in Spanish and French.
Using the Weight and Mass Gizmo, students can apply their knowledge and foster language development using the Student Exploration Sheet in English or Spanish.
Gizmos in dual language settings
You can use Gizmos during whole-group lessons, small group work, or as a supplemental activity for targeted language and concept reinforcement.
Whether you’re previewing new content, differentiating instruction, or helping students review, Gizmos give multilingual learners a safe space to experiment, ask questions, and make meaning from what they see and do. Gizmos are also powerful for MTSS, allowing you to tailor instruction to meet students' diverse needs across Tiers 1–3.
Dr. Scott Sutherland, a middle school science teacher in South Carolina, investigated the impact of Gizmos on English language learners’ verbal and written comprehension of science content. Using Gizmos, his students had fewer language barriers because they could access new science content through more interactive visuals instead of reading complex text.
“Gizmos had a positive effect on English language learners' ability to understand science at proficient levels due to the visual connections they provide that maximize what’s considered comprehensible input. The visual nature of simulations was proposed to help reduce the language barrier between connecting prior knowledge to new learning by allowing the student first to comprehend the concept in their own way.” –Dr. Scott Sutherland
Christine Scovill, a fifth-grade science and math dual language teacher in Texas, uses Gizmos to bring complex STEM topics to life. “They give me that connection to something that is concrete. Gizmos bridge that gap with things that can be sort of abstract,” said Scovill. “I usually get some very innate interest and engagement right there, because students have the power to manipulate things. I use it in that way to personalize extensions.”
For multilingual families, Scovill has also found that Gizmos offer visual experiences that can transcend language and school walls. “When you're working with a group that is a second language group, [Gizmos] also give you enough visuals and interaction that I can use with the families, so that those parents can have that discussion in the native language that they have, but they're still addressing the content.”
Boost ELL success with Gizmos
Gizmos make new vocabulary accessible by turning abstract concepts into interactive learning journeys that build both confidence and comprehension.
Try Gizmos for free and see how supplemental science resources can help every student get hands-on with science with interactive visual representations.