Week 1 · Know the learner
What I learned
No note recorded.
My planned trial
No note recorded.
Evidence and reflection
No note recorded.
Next step / mentor conversation
No note recorded.
EAL Department · A practical first six weeks
New to EAL: your first six weeks
Build learner knowledge, analyse language demands, plan support, assess responses and work with colleagues—one manageable teaching enquiry at a time.
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Learn · try · notice · discuss
A manageable introduction to EAL practice
This induction is for teachers entering EAL work and subject teachers developing their partnership with EAL colleagues. Work through it with a mentor, a peer or independently. Each week builds on a real teaching task and produces one useful record.
Suggested rhythm: allow around 30 minutes to read and plan, a small trial during your normal teaching and a 15-minute conversation with a colleague. These are planning estimates, not accredited CPD hours. Adapt the pace to your role and school.
Use one learner or small group as your focus, without making them responsible for your training. Ask for their perspective and use a pseudonym in your notes. Keep identifiable student information in your school’s approved records.
Your first six weeks
01
Know the learner
What can this learner already do, and what helps them take part?
Make: A strengths-first learner snapshot and one participation goal.
Open week 1 → 02Identify language demands
What language does this task require learners to understand and produce?
Make: One annotated task with a subject goal and a focused language goal.
Open week 2 → 03Plan and fade support
What support will help now, and how will I know when to reduce it?
Make: A support plan with a model, a guided trial and an independence check.
Open week 3 → 04Connect talk, reading and writing
How will learners meet, rehearse and use the language in a meaningful sequence?
Make: A short lesson sequence connecting input, interaction and an individual response.
Open week 4 → 05Assess learning and language
What does this response tell me, under these task and support conditions?
Make: A small evidence review with a separate content judgement and language next step.
Open week 5 → 06Collaborate, review and plan next steps
How will we keep responsibility shared and make the next step manageable?
Make: A shared teaching agreement and a focused plan for the next six weeks.
Open week 6 →Keep the learning practical
- Choose a real upcoming lesson rather than inventing extra work.
- Keep the subject goal ambitious and identify what language would help learners take part.
- Collect a small response or observation, including the support available.
- Discuss what changed and what you still do not know.
Use it in your role
New EAL colleague: use the specialist prompts to connect language evidence, provision and subject teaching.
Subject teacher: use the partnership prompts to bring your curriculum knowledge into a shared plan.
Mentor or department lead: agree a small weekly outcome and protect time to review evidence together.
Your learning record
Each weekly page has four note fields and a completion check. Notes and progress stay in this browser on this device; they do not sync across devices or website addresses. Download your record for a separate copy. Clearing browser data may remove saved work. Use pseudonyms and brief observations.
Review my six-week record
Week 2 · Identify language demands
What I learned
No note recorded.
My planned trial
No note recorded.
Evidence and reflection
No note recorded.
Next step / mentor conversation
No note recorded.
Week 3 · Plan and fade support
What I learned
No note recorded.
My planned trial
No note recorded.
Evidence and reflection
No note recorded.
Next step / mentor conversation
No note recorded.
Week 4 · Connect talk, reading and writing
What I learned
No note recorded.
My planned trial
No note recorded.
Evidence and reflection
No note recorded.
Next step / mentor conversation
No note recorded.
Week 5 · Assess learning and language
What I learned
No note recorded.
My planned trial
No note recorded.
Evidence and reflection
No note recorded.
Next step / mentor conversation
No note recorded.
Week 6 · Collaborate, review and plan next steps
What I learned
No note recorded.
My planned trial
No note recorded.
Evidence and reflection
No note recorded.
Next step / mentor conversation
No note recorded.
What comes next?
Use your final review to choose a focused next learning cycle. Explore professional-learning resources, training and qualifications or the site’s longer learning pathways.
An original EAL in Practice self-directed induction, developed by Duncan Rose. Examples are fictional illustrations for professional learning. Completion records your activity; it does not confer an externally accredited qualification or school teaching licence. Reviewed 16 October 2026. Each week links to further reading and related site resources.