A high-school chemistry teacher notices ELLs struggle with what to do in an experiment. Which strategy would be effective?

• A. Showing the students a diagram depicting the steps they need to perform
• B. Demonstrating by reading notes aloud
• C. Providing a long reading about the experiment
• D. Asking students to prepare a report before doing the experiment

Answer: (A)

Providing a visual, step-by-step diagram of the procedure helps English language learners understand exactly what to do in the lab by giving them a concrete, language-light guide for the task. In a science experiment, the sequence of actions, the setup, and the order of operations can be hard to grasp from text alone, especially when new vocabulary is involved. A diagram grounds learning in visible actions and spatial relationships, so students can follow along, anticipate what comes next, and perform each step with more confidence. This taps into dual coding—combining images with minimal text—to strengthen memory and comprehension while reducing the burden of decoding lengthy instructions. It also supports safety by making the required actions and sequence clear at a glance. The other strategies rely more on reading or on producing a written product before trying the work, which can overwhelm learners who are still building language proficiency; a diagram-first approach provides the essential scaffold and can be supplemented later with captions or labels as needed.