The Common Core Companion for the CA ELD Standards, co-authored by Linda Carstens and Jim Burke, includes several resources and sections with specific descriptions of what students want, what teachers can do, and vignettes and snapshots that illustrate what each standard looks like in practice. “In essence, we have deconstructed 19 standards for teachers and provided scaffolds, so that they’re more likely to use them daily,” said Soto, who is the executive director of Whittier’s Institute for Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching. Soto specializes in second language acquisition, systemic reform for English language learners (ELLs), and urban education. She has presented on literacy and language topics at various conferences and has provided technical assistance for systemic reform for ELLs and Title III. In addition to her current book, Soto is the author of The Literacy Gaps, ELL Shadowing as a Catalyst for Change, Moving From Spoken to Written Language With ELLs, and the Academic Language Mastery Series.
