Teaching English language learners has long presented challenges for teachers tasked with bringing these students to a level of language comprehension comparable to that of native speakers. These challenges and issues can lead to difficulty comprehending core academic topics for those learning the English language. "Optimizing Elementary Education for English Language Learners" is a critical scholarly publication that explores the importance of English as a Second Language (ESL) education as well as the challenges that can arise in striving for effective and engaging learning environments for the students involved. Featuring a broad scope of topics, such as effective lesson plans, teacher education and preparation, and the education achievement gap, this book is geared toward academicians, practitioners, and researchers seeking current research on effective teaching strategies for teachers of English language learners. This book contains the following chapters: (1) Misconceptions About ELLs: Culturally Responsive Practices for General Education Teachers (Lara Christoun and Jun Wang); (2) The Reality of Teaching Young ELLs in a Pull-Out Program: Setting Expectations and Overcoming Misconceptions (Tatiana I. Sildus, Natalie Vanderbeck, and Michelle Broxterman); (3) Striving Toward Biliteracy in Mainstream, English as a Second Language, and Bilingual Classrooms (Nermin Vehabovic and Casey Medlock Paul); (4) Young Learners: Motivation and Second Language Acquisition (Joanna Rodiki Petrides); (5) Elementary English Language Learners: Misconceptions About Second Language Learning and Teaching Practices (Khanh Nguyen Bui and Isabel L. Balsamo); (6) Reaching Rigor for English Learners Through Responsive Interactions of Care (Melissa A. Holmes, Shabina K. Kavimandan, and Socorro G. Herrera); (7) Using Brain-Based Instruction to Optimize Early Childhood English Language Education (Walaa M. El-Henawy); (8) Teaching Mathematics to Elementary ELL Students (Ozgul Kartal, Nilufer Guler, and Dincer Guler); (9) Opportunities for Engaging Young English Language Learners Through Technology Use (Joy Egbert and Reima Abobaker); (10) Strategies for Working With Image-Text Relations in Picturebooks (Luciana C. de Oliveira, Sharon L. Smith, Loren Jones, and Carolina Rossato de Almeida); (11) Teaching Reading to Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Elementary Students (Nilufer Guler and Wendy Johnson Donnell); (12) Building Academic Language Through Innovation: Teaching With a Maker's Mind (Brandy C. Judkins and Zoe Falls); (13) Teaching ELL Students in the Elementary Grades: Teaching ELL Students With Disabilities (Sue Ellen McCalley); (14) Dimensions of Success Integrating the C3 Framework and ESL Instruction: In Elementary Social Studies Classrooms (Katherine Barko-Alva and Stephen S. Masyada); and (15) Lost in Comprehension: Addressing English Language Learners' Reading Needs in the Elementary Classroom (Casey Medlock Paul and Nermin Vehabovic). (Individual chapters contain references.)