Teachers who work with English learners know that mastering an academic language takes more time than mastering a conversational language. On average, ELL students need at least two years to master conversational language and five to nine years to develop academic language skills. Many of the English words that ELL students are exposed to in school they have not yet learned or even heard in their native language, making knowledge transfer impossible. The large differences in the ability to use conversational versus academic language can pose a barrier for these students and have lasting effects on their studies and therefore their lives. I wanted to explore how teachers can help ELL students develop this type of vocabulary. and whether or not there is a highly effective technique that can benefit every student in the classroom. As teachers, we must understand the unique needs of our ELLs. We need to understand that while they are just as capable as our native speakers, they are at a distinct disadvantage due to the amount of information they have to process at once that is in a language they do not fully understand . I have found that there are a number of ways teachers can promote vocabulary growth in ELLs. I'm going to focus on the most effective: using graphic organizers. What are graphic organizers? Graphic organizers are maps or charts that essentially reveal the organization of concepts and relationships between concepts in a simple way. They help make information more precise by removing many small details to help focus on key points. This helps reduce the cognitive load on ELLs, allowing them to process lighter amounts of information middle of paper......2). Graphic organizers. Wakefield, MA: National Center on Access to General Curriculum. Retrieved November 2011 from http://aim.cast.org/learn/historyarchive/backgroundpapers/graphic_organizers Lee, CC (2007). Graphic organizers as scaffolding for student revision at the pre-writing stage. In ICT: offering choices to learners and learning. Ascilite Proceedings Singapore 2007. http://www.ascilite.org.au/conferences/singapore07/procs/lee-cc.pdfSmith, JJ (2002). The use of graphic organizers in teaching vocabulary. MA ResearchProject: KearnUniversity http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=ED463556&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=ED463556Organization author not specified. It's Colorado! how vocabulary relates to yardsticks. (2007). http://www.colorincolorado.org/educators/teaching/vocabulary/