Introduction

UDP BILINGUAL
PROJECT

Improving English.
Developing people.
INTRODUCTION

WHAT IS THE UDP BILINGUAL PROJECT?

The UDP Bilingual Project combines the traditional teaching of English, with a focus on developing
listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills, with a fresh approach to teaching topics in a wide range of
subject areas in English. In the UDP Bilingual Project, the English language is seen as a tool that allows its
speakers to have access to a wide range of knowledge areas and experience fields. Being proficient in
English creates opportunities for personal development and takes speakers beyond borders.

Based on the expertise of the University of Dayton and the know-how of local specialists, the UDP Bilingual
Project offers a balanced and comprehensive solution for schools and teachers aiming to educate children
for the challenges of the 21st century. The project integrates the best in English language teaching and
learning, with universal values, social responsibility, and an awareness of global issues.

HOW THE UDP BILINGUAL PROJECT WORKS

In the UDP Bilingual Project, the coursebook — developed by English language learning specialists and
adapted to local needs — is the foundation for teachers’ and students’ work in the classroom. Besides
developing language skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) and systems (grammar, vocabulary,
and pronunciation), the coursebook adopts a teaching approach that integrates English and other contents
(CLIL), for a more meaningful and memorable learning experience.

The use of technology in the classroom plays a central role in the UDP Bilingual Project. Coursebook
activities are associated with pedagogically-sound digital content for classroom tasks that incorporate
different media, creating a blended learning environment.

Teachers, parents, and students in the UDP Bilingual Project have unrestricted access to the Highlights
Library, an extensive digital collection of graded reading stories with synchronized audio. It is the biggest
virtual library for children in the United States, with over 2,000 books.

The content of the UDP Bilingual Project is organized into lessons, catering for three, four, or five lessons
per week. The content plan for each level of the project lays out the ideal sequence of work with the
components but also allows time for lessons developed by the teacher or for other school activities 1.

1
In projects with four and five lessons per week.
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INTRODUCTION

PRE-PRIMARY PROJECT — SERIES: LIU AND LIAM

Authors: Sarah Ali, Victoria Bewick, Chloe R. Brown, Úna McGuiness

In Liu and Liam, students follow the adventures of two children as they explore places such as their homes,
school, and city. The series, organized into three levels, presents and practices language as part of context-
based audiovisual activities and works with emotional intelligence, values, and citizenship. Group activities
foster teamwork skills, while individual tasks develop students’ autonomy.

In Liu and Liam offers students and teachers:

 Up-to-date and contextualized language, adequate to students’ age.

 Culturally-diverse characters to promote inclusion and respect of differences.
 Activities to develop socioemotional skills.

Resources
- Digital interactive book
- Songs
- Games
- Digital posters
- Flashcards
- Stickers
- Activities for students’ portfolios
- Additional interactive games and activities (Educamos.SM)
- Guidelines for parents (in Portuguese)

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INTRODUCTION

PRIMARY PROJECT — SERIES: SMARTY

Authors: Jane Howes, Peter Loveday, Michele Guerrini, Izabella Hearn, Lois May

Smarty offers a comprehensive approach by alternating between fiction-based and content-based

introductory texts. It develops all four skills, and it is underpinned by social values. Its components are
integrated in a way that provides an easy-to-follow, feasible, and holistic course for teachers and students.

Smarty combines the latest learning methodologies and provides:

• Curricular flexibility
• Content, communication, cognition, and culture — the 4 Cs of CLIL
• Individual and group work to increase learning efficiency, autonomy, and personal initiative

Resources
- Digital interactive book
- Fiction-based and content-based texts
- Smarty Units: two projects per level
- Stickers
- Worksheets
- Photocopiable activities
- Flashcards
- Additional interactive games and activities (Educamos.SM)

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INTRODUCTION

WHAT IS CLIL?
The term CLIL stands for “Content and Language Integrated Learning” and was first used in the early 1990s
by David Marsh, an Australian educator. Although the term itself is not old, the concept is based on
different learning experiences from previous centuries, all of them happening in contexts where two or
more languages needed to coexist. Recently, CLIL has become more popular as an educational approach
because of schools’ need to create cross-cultural curricula based on the development of thinking skills and
interdisciplinary activities.

Nowadays, CLIL is seen as an approach to teach both subjects and additional language, with the learning of
content taking place through a non-native language. As an example, we can think of students in a Brazilian
school learning history through English (or any other target language). In CLIL, subject and language depend
on each other, and their integration plays a central role in the construction of knowledge.

WHAT ARE THE OBJECTIVES OF CLIL?

As a teaching approach, CLIL has some objectives. First,
through the integration of subject and language, it aims to
develop content, communication, cognition, and culture in a
holistic way. Second, it intends to introduce the notion of yet
another “C” for “citizenship.” In this teaching context, the
presentation of the additional language becomes natural and
relevant and can be used as the basis for intercultural
studies.

The third objective of CLIL is to work with the curriculum subject and the additional language by presenting
learners with tasks that call for critical thinking to develop cognition and learner autonomy. To do so, CLIL
incorporates other approaches into the classes, such as Project-Based Learning (PBL) and Task-Based
Learning (TBL), which favor hands-on learning experiences and make learners more cognitively active.

WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF CLIL?

The collaborative nature of CLIL fosters aspects of global citizenship in learners, along with the following
advantages:

 confidence building: by playing a central role in the learning process and being cognitively challenged all
the time, learners tend to grow more confident, analyze content critically, and develop proficiency in the
additional language without any negative effects on their first language.

 development of negotiation skills: from the very beginning, learners need to work on skills to interact
with others in search of solutions to problems and challenges in tasks, which fosters the socioemotional
and communication skills needed to cope with different everyday situations.

 fostering of intercultural understanding: the work on the 4 Cs prepares learners to understand other
cultures, developing the acceptance of differences, tolerance of others, and collaboration among
different peoples.
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INTRODUCTION

HOW DO LIU AND LIAM AND SMARTY WORK WITH CLIL?

The work with the units in the series follows a tried-and-tested syllabus for linguistic development,
featuring themes that help to integrate content and language. Learners start by working on the
subject/topic and then are exposed to relevant language to engage in several activities. In the first level of
Liu and Liam, for example, Unit 1 works with the recognition of the self and of the learners’ environment,
as well as with the perception of the other. In the same way, content from math, science, arts, and other
subject areas are presented throughout the levels of the series in different units, with students learning
English in practical and motivating contexts, but also using it as a tool to learn other subjects.

In Smarty, the CLIL subject area for every unit is clearly indicated in the Contents Map. In unit 3 of
Smarty 2, for example, learners are stimulated to think critically about space and where furniture goes in
the house, especially in the Smarty Mix section of the unit. They are also encouraged to develop an
ecological attitude towards objects in the house. This is all done in a social context, involving collaboration
among peers, forging a cultural bond, and helping learners to form a conscious learning community.

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INTRODUCTION

WHAT IS BLENDED LEARNING?

People working in education are always looking for ways to improve the teaching and learning processes,
intending to achieve consistent learning results with the resources available. As an educational approach,
Blended Learning optimizes this process and responds to the contemporary challenges presented by the
growing use of technology and the need to develop digital skills.

Blended Learning, as the name suggests, combines traditional face-to-face classroom time with technology,
with a mix of different learning interactions and “media” (technologies, activities, and procedures) to
enhance a learning project. The term has been around for a long time and has been adopted in English
Language and Bilingual Teaching to define the combination of face-to-face teaching with technology.

The use of technology for entertainment and education has been

growing among people of all ages. A study run in 2014 by King’s
College London and the University of London showed that family
possession of touchscreen equipment had increased from 7% to
71%, while kids’ daily exposure to these devices had risen from
51.22% to 92.05%. This dramatic increase in the use of touchscreen
equipment in homes around the world constitutes strong evidence
for the expected integration of technology into the educational
system.

BENEFITS OF BLENDED LEARNING

One of the most commonly reported benefits of Blended Learning in English language learning contexts is
related to the attitudes and engagement of learners in the class. Using the approach, they perceive the
experience as more positive and encouraging compared to those provided by the traditional face-to-face
approach only. The interactivity adds variety to classes and offers learners chances to practice, review, and
consolidate language. Additionally, the instant feedback provided by technology-assisted activities is
usually seen as helpful by teachers and learners. The empowerment of learners is another motivating
factor, as they can set their rhythm and work through materials as and when they wish.

The combination of engagement, interactivity, variety, and empowerment when using resources with
substantial pedagogical purposes promotes learners’ autonomy and self-efficacy in the classroom and
beyond it. In a principled Blended Learning approach, the responsibilities of teachers and technology are
complementary to ensure that pedagogy determines teaching and technology supports it.

Historically, teachers promote, support, and personalize the interaction in classrooms by assessing learners’
needs, getting to know their personalities, attitudes, and interests. Blended Learning provides teachers
with the best of two worlds: human collaboration with face-to-face interactions and technology for the
things it does better, such as providing infinite exposure to the target language, guided practice, and
instant feedback. Also, technology optimizes teaching time for more in-depth, relevant interventions in
authentic interactions, explanations, and clarification in the classroom.

Besides the benefits for learners mentioned above, technology can also improve the use of time spent
planning lessons. Teachers can recycle lessons that have been delivered, adjust those as needed, and
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INTRODUCTION

collaborate with peers by sharing plans, ideas, and resources on-line. Another advantage is the savings
technology represents for teachers and institutions in terms of resources such as paper and printing.

When it comes to curriculum, another benefit of well-designed Blended Learning projects is an improved
environment, something that is the core of the teaching and learning process. Studies show that English
language learners in projects that combine face-to-face interactions with technology performed better than
those working in 100% face-to-face environments. Those learners reported the approach directly impacted
their learning, enhanced their language skills and autonomy, improved teacher interactions, and allowed
for stimulating experiences.

BLENDED LEARNING IN LIU AND LIAM AND SMARTY

The resources available on the Educamos.SM platform (https://br.educamos.sm) promote the integration
of face-to-face classroom work and digital content. The interactive activities available for every unit of the
series provide learners with extra opportunities for language practice, review, and consolidation in a fun
and engaging way. They also foster the development of fine motor skills, visual accuracy, and
categorization.

For teachers, a variety of resources are available to optimize teaching and planning time, via planners’
templates by unit, extra practice worksheets for practice, review, and assessment, interactive activities,
audio tracks, flashcards and posters for download, among other resources. Apart from the teaching
material, there are also downloadable articles for professional development available on the platform.

In order to use Educamos.SM, teachers should use the access code in the Teacher’s Guide to register on
the platform and create a login name and password.

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INTRODUCTION

WHAT IS HIGHLIGHTS LIBRARY?

Highlights Library is a comprehensive digital collection of
authentic-leveled stories, with synchronized audio. Teachers,
learners, and parents can access the platform anywhere and
anytime, using desktop computers, tablets, or smartphones.

In the classroom or at home, Highlights Library offers an engaging

reading experience, intending to build learners’ confidence as well
as their lifelong love for reading.

There are over 2,000 digital books on the digital platform, across 30 reading levels, and covering multiple
content areas in fiction and non-fiction. Highlights Library creates an engaging reading experience for
beginner to advanced learners, motivating, and challenging them across the CEFR spectrum as they build
their reading and vocabulary skills.

Besides being organized into reading and language levels, digital books on the Highlights Library are also
divided into ten content areas: School, Animals, People & Places, Sports, Art & Culture, Family & Friends,
Science & Nature, Community, Health & Wellness, and Fun Stories.

HOW CAN TEACHERS USE HIGHLIGHTS LIBRARY?

1. Following the UDP Bilingual Project Content Plan (Intensive reading)

For every regular unit of [series’ title], we have selected a reader from Highlights Library 2. The readers
consolidate and expand the content and themes from the units. The teacher reads the book with the whole
class on a tablet or by projecting it.

A typical classroom procedure

Do pre- Do while- Do post-

Read the
reading reading reading
content
activities activities activities

Here are some suggestions for activities:

Pre-reading
Pre-reading activities aim to get learners interested in the book they are going to read
and to retrieve their schemata related to a topic.
1. Read the book cover and title to predict the story.
2. Show the book cover, using a sheet of paper to cover the title. Learners predict the title.

2
In projects with four and five classes per week, there are two readers per unit.
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INTRODUCTION

3. Read the book cover to brainstorm possible words in the story.

4. Match a summary sentence to the book cover.
5. Read the book cover and make a list of questions learners would like to have answered in the story.

While-reading
While-reading activities aim to get learners to interact with texts. Therefore, it occurs at
any stage of the reading.
1. Learners use graphic organizers to take notes.
2. Use who/what/where/why/how as guided questions to help students understand the content.
3. Use the audio function to practice reading out loud or read the next sentence.
4. Learners predict what happens next in the story.

After-reading
After-reading activities aim to check learners’ understanding of a text, and learners are
given opportunities to apply the knowledge and language learned.
1. Read a list of questions for discussion on specific points. (e.g., what happened to the duck
after his friend visited him?)
2. Invite students to share their personal experiences related to a specific incident described in the story.
3. Think of a sentence to summarize the reader or another ending for a story.
4. Role-play a situation based on the content.
5. Extend the search on a specific point in the reader (e.g., find out more about what other endangered
animals are and what made them endangered).

2. As a class/home library (extensive reading)

When Highlights Library is used as a class/home library, students and their parents can choose a reader
from a selection of suitable levels and themes. The goals for students are to read extensively anytime and
anywhere and to get engaged with the content they want to read.