Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) was developed to provide teachers with a well-articulated, practical
model of sheltered instruction. This model is the result of the work of Jana Echevarria, MaryEllen Vogt and Deborah J. Short. The
SIOP Model is currently used in most of the 50 states and in hundreds of schools across the U.S. as well as in several other
countries.
The SIOP Model includes teacher preparation, and instructional indicators, such as comprehensible input and the building of
background knowledge. It comprises strategies for classroom organization and delivery of instruction. The intent of the model is to facilitate high
quality instruction for ELLs in content area teaching. The SIOP Model can be viewed as an umbrella under which other programs
developed for improving instruction can reside. The SIOP Model is not another "add on" program but rather it is a framework that
can bring together a school's instructional program by organizing methods and techniques, and ensuring that effective practices are
implemented -- and can be quantified.
Eight Interrelated Components, 30 Features
I. Lesson Preparation
1. Clearly defined content objectives for students
2. Clearly defined language objectives for students
3. Content concepts appropriate for age.and educational background level of students
4. Supplementary materials used to a high degree, making the lesson clear and meaningful (e.g., computer programs, graphs, models, visuals)
5. Adaptation of content (e.g., text, assignment) to all levels of student proficiency
6. Meaningful activities that integrate lesson concepts (e.g., surveys, letter writing, simulations, constructing models) with language practice opportunities for reading, writing, listening, and/or speaking
II. Building Background
7. Concepts explicitly linked to students' background experiences
8. Links explicitly made between past learning and new concepts
9. Key vocabulary emphasized (e.g., introduced, written, repeated, and highlighted for students to see)
III. Comprehensible Input
10. Speech appropriate for students' proficiency level (e.g., slower rate and enunciation, and simple sentence structure for beginners)
11. Explanation of academic tasks clear
12. Uses a variety of techniques to make content concepts clear (e.g., modeling, visuals, hands-on activities, demonstrations, gestures, body language)
IV. Strategies
13. Provides ample opportunities for students to use strategies
14. Consistent use of scaffolding techniques throughout lesson, assisting and supporting student understanding, such as think-alouds
15. Teacher uses a variety of question types, including those that promote higher-order thinking skills throughout the lesson (e.g., literal, analytical, and interpretive questions)
V. Interaction
16. Frequent opportunities for interaction and discussion between teacher / student and among students, which encourage elaborated responses about lesson concepts
17. Grouping configurations support language and content objectives of the lesson
18. Consistently provides sufficient wait time for student response
19. Ample opportunities for students to clarify key concepts in Ll
VI. Practice/Application
20. Provides hands-on materials and/or manipulatives for students to practice using new content knowledge
21. Provides activities for students to apply content and language knowledge in the classroom
22. Uses activities that integrate all language skills (i.e., reading, writing, listening, and speaking)
VII. Lesson Delivery
23. Content objectives clearly supported by lesson delivery
24. Language objectives clearly supported by lesson delivery
25. Students engaged approximately 90% to 100% of the period
26. Pacing of the lesson appropriate to the students' ability level
VIII.Review/Assessment
27. Comprehensive review of key vocabulary
28. Comprehensive review of key content concepts
29. Regularly provides feedback to students on their output (e.g., language, content, work)
30. Conducts assessment of student comprehension and learning of all lesson objectives (e.g., spot checking, group response) throughout the lesson
