The 7 Principles of High School ESOL Decor

It's back to school season, and for many teachers, that means spending some time staring at the walls.

That's not to say we aren't hard at work. I wish more school admin understood the value of this contemplative time imagining the possibilities in your own classroom.

And for me, that always includes reimagining the wall space. I love the opportunities blank walls represent. I love thinking about what to fill it with to support my students' both emotionally and academically.

I'm picky. I want to do it right, so I've spent a good amount of time both staring at the walls and in the research and these are the principles of decor for an ESL classroom that I follow after 7 years of reimagining.

1. The Decor Must Be Age-Appropriate

But here's the problem. There's not a lot of ESOL Decor out there that doesn't seem well--elementary school. It's cute, it's fun, but it's not right for a high school or adult classroom.

English language learners are too often treated like they are starting back in 1st grade, and that's not right. ELL classes are not about starting over--they are about adding upon the language skills and background knowledge a student already has.

So please, if you teach adults or high school or even middle school, say no to the cutesy clipart.

2. The Decor Must Include Visual Supports Rather Than Translations

The research is in and it consistently points to the value of visuals over translation--especially if the visuals are used spark retrieval practice. Effective language learning requires cognitive exercise. You don't learn language just by having the information presented to you once or twice. Your brain will remember what it is required to use.

Images make that retrieval practice possible because rather than just seeing English Word/ Spanish Word, the brain has to think, has to retrieve the meaning of the picture in the learner's home language and connect that meaning to the English.

I love it when my students point to an image and sentence on the wall and ask, "Does this mean _______." That's a sign of learning.

3. Font Size Must Be Big Enough to Be Useful

This pet-peeve might come from being extremely far-sighted, but I hate it when I find posters that have fantastic info and images but that have such small print that learners have to walk over to the wall to read them.

Most high schoolers won't do that. Most teens don't want their peers to see them perusing the fascinating information on the walls. They want to be able to read them from the social safety of their seats.

And if students can't read the posters from their seats, they are impossible to for the teacher to use as a scaffold during class.

So please, for the love of all that is differentiated, choose the large-print wall decor.

4. Maybe Don't Laminate

I love the way lamination makes colors pop. I love the way it extends the life of the poster. I love the way the scissors slide through the slick plastic as I trim some fresh lamination.

But I don't always choose to laminate my wall decor because as I indicated above, I favor function and visibility and sometimes that lamination glare when the sun or overhead lighting hits just right, is a problem.

Remember, pictures help language learners the most if they are used repeatedly for retrieval practice, and this means they have to be able to read the posters from any seat at any time during the school day.

5. Students Should See Themselves in the Decor

It matters. It's not just performative. Students need to see images of people from diverse ethnicities and cultures in the decor. It builds efficacy and community. It shows students, "I thought about you as I designed this space. I want you here. I planned for you here."

Cultural responsiveness is not just about performance or checking a "good teacher" box. It's an act of love.

So there you go. Those are the standards that guide my classroom design.

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If you think this is your teacher vibe, I have a whole bundle high school ESOL posters you can purchase here.

I'd also love to know what principles you would add to the list. What are you looking for as you design for your walls this back-to-school season? Comment below. I'd really love your input!