Pre-teach the vocabulary involved in the writing assignment. If the assignment deals with the Great Depression, write the key vocabulary on the board and discuss the meaning and use of each word. Give students time to look these words up in their dictionaries.
Model the writing assignment by providing an outline or even an outstanding example of past work on a similar topic. Modeling is especially important because the five-paragraph expository essay that is so popular in the United States is not a universally accepted standard of academic writing throughout the world.
Use the buddy system by pairing English learners with native English speakers in your class. Have these buddy pairs peer review and edit each other's essays. The English learners benefit from reading examples of age- and grade-level appropriate writing, while the native speakers benefit from having to consider their native language from the point of view of a non-native learner.
Write essays in drafts. Give all students the opportunity to revise their first drafts after they have seen examples of other students' work. Remind students that it is okay to borrow ideas from other students' work, but it is never okay to steal other people's words.