Ever wonder how to easily spot the difference between ELPA & WIDA Proficiency Levels on an ESL Beginner, Intermediate, and Early Advanced student? 🤔
If you’re juggling ELPA21 and WIDA levels and want a clear, simple way to understand your students’ language proficiency, I’ve got something just for you! 🎯
Here is a Teacher-Friendly Comparison break down for the key traits of each proficiency level — Beginner, Intermediate, and Early Advanced — using both ELPA21 and WIDA frameworks.
ELPA & WIDA Proficiency Levels Beginner Level
ELPA21: Level 1 – Beginning
WIDA: Entering (Level 1) & Emerging (Level 2)
Characteristics:
- Minimal comprehension of English.
- Relies heavily on gestures, visuals, and first language.
- Communicates with single words, memorized phrases, or short chunks.
- Limited vocabulary and very basic sentence structure.
- May be silent or use very simple words to respond.
What you see in the classroom:
- May need a buddy or visuals to follow directions.
- Can label objects but struggles to use complete sentences.
- Often points, gestures, or uses L1 (native language) to communicate.
- Understands simple, slow, and repeated language.
Teacher strategies:
- Use gestures, pictures, and realia.
- Speak slowly and clearly.
- Pair with peers for language modeling.
- Provide sentence frames with key vocabulary.
ELPA & WIDA Proficiency Levels Intermediate Level
ELPA21: Level 2 & 3 – Early Intermediate & Intermediate
WIDA: Developing (Level 3)
Characteristics:
- Understands and uses simple sentences.
- Can participate in basic conversations.
- Makes frequent grammar and vocabulary errors.
- Begins to use academic vocabulary but inconsistently.
- Understands main ideas with support.
What you see in the classroom:
- Can retell short stories or events.
- Participates in class discussions but may struggle with complex sentences.
- Needs support to understand grade-level content.
- Still learning how to organize writing with clear ideas.
Teacher strategies:
- Provide sentence starters and structured language practice.
- Continue to use visuals but encourage more independent language use.
- Focus on academic vocabulary in context.
- Use graphic organizers and scaffolded writing tasks.
ELPA & WIDA Proficiency Level Early Advanced Level
ELPA21: Level 4 – Early Advanced
WIDA: Expanding (Level 4)
Characteristics:
- Understands and produces connected speech and extended discourse.
- Uses a broader range of vocabulary and sentence structures.
- Errors decrease but still occur with complex language.
- Can engage in academic conversations and write organized texts with support.
What you see in the classroom:
- Participates actively in class discussions with some hesitation.
- Can read and understand grade-level texts with some support.
- Uses transition words and academic phrases in writing.
- Needs less support but may still struggle with idioms, complex grammar, or cultural references.
Teacher strategies:
Encourage writing with clear organization, supporting details, and varied vocabulary.
Push for more independent reading and writing.
Focus on refining grammar and vocabulary.
Provide opportunities for academic conversations and debate.
Let’s make language support simple, practical, and powerful for every learner! 💬🌟
Your partner in ESL!
Lori,
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