Everyone used to believe that math was the easiest subject for ELLs. NOT SO! 
ELLs have a number of hurdles to jump over when it comes to math:

*Multiple meanings of words (operation, plot, problem, table, etc.)
*Structures (add to, greater than, less than, …)
*Cultural knowledge (periods instead of commas, commas instead of decimals, different computational methods,different measurement system, and more)
*Lack of exposure to certain concepts since their native country curriculum did not spiral.

ELLs will benefit from some of the same strategies used to teach math to other students including:
*Explicitly teaching the academic vocabulary of math and having it on a math word wall with illustrations that students can refer to
*Providing students with manipulatives and multiple opportunities to practice (LOTS of REPETITION)
*Providing lots of visuals, gestures, realia, and opportunities to act out problems
*Using sentence frames/sentence stems/language lines to teach the students how to respond:

​

The answer is a __________because it has three sides.
Each of these problems has ______________________________.
The strategy I used to solve this problem was _________________.
Another way I could solve this problem is ______________.
I checked my work by _____________.
I knew I was right when ________________.

 

*Doing think alouds and having opportunities for math talk

*Utilizing technology to reinforce concepts taught

​

Here is a glossary of math terms in English and Spanish:

​

​

Check out the document below from the Virginia Department of Education which has multiple math strategies for ELLs. 

Another document below was produced by the Northwest Regional Educational Lab and lists strategies for teaching math and science to ELLs.