This qualitative research study examined the extent to which novice and student teachers drew upon pre-service preparation to use scaffolding practices identified in the literature as supportive of bilingual learners' (EBs') acquisition of academic content. Data sources included videotaped class observations, lesson plans and teaching materials, and semi-structured interviews to elicit participants' perspectives on how they scaffolded instruction. The results suggest inexperienced content teachers can develop an instructional repertoire to scaffold instruction for EBs. Participants consistently used four types of scaffolds: visuals, vocabulary instruction, graphic organizers, and adapted and/or annotated texts. Classroom experience and the support of a mentor teacher, who could provide site based coaching seemed to increase participants' ability to scaffold content instruction for EBs. Further research is recommended that shifts the focus from teacher learning to student learning to examine the extent to which scaffolding instruction improves learning opportunities and outcomes for emergent BLs.