The headsets are packed up. The testing signs are down. And your team—understandably—is tired. After the long weeks of ELP testing, it’s tempting to close the door and just move on.
But this post-testing window is more than just a breather—it’s an opportunity. This is the perfect time to reflect on what went well, reset your instructional focus, and reengage with the heart of your EL/ML program: your students and the educators who support them.
As my students finished their final sections, their faces showed a range of emotions—some relieved, some unsure, some quietly confident. One newcomer student looked up at me and asked, “Did I do okay?” That question stuck with me because it reminded me that ELP testing isn’t just about data—it’s about student growth, identity, and effort.
Now that the rush of testing is behind us, it’s easy to jump right into the next task. But this moment matters. It’s a chance to pause, process, and re-center your EL/ML program on what matters most: your students, your educators, and your shared purpose.
Here are three purposeful steps to help you reflect, reset, and reengage after ELP testing.
1. Reflect – What Did We Learn (Beyond the Scores?)
Before you dive back into daily routines and end-of-year planning, take a moment to reflect—not just on the test scores, but on the process, the people, and the progress you’ve seen.
One year, our team gathered in a quiet room the day after testing wrapped up. We were tired, but we brought fun snacks. We started simply by sharing what we noticed. Things like “I saw one of my quietest students take her time and finish every writing task,” or “Taking deep breaths as a group before we started set the tone”, and “We need a better plan for tech issues next year” surfaced. We found patterns that led to planning procedures, and sharing in challenges and successes helped to serve as motivation for the rest of that school year and beyond.
That honest, low-stakes reflection shaped our next steps more than the data ever could.
Try This: A Teacher Team Reflection
Set aside 20–30 minutes for an informal reflection with your team. Use our Teacher Reflection Guide to lead your conversation or provide as a take-home tool. Focus on:
- What went well in terms of logistics and student behavior?
- What surprised you about student performance—academic or emotional?
- What would you change or plan differently for next year?
Let this be a chance to reset—not just logistically, but emotionally. Celebrate the effort your team put in. They carried students through a challenging process with care and professionalism.
Don’t Forget Student Voice
Testing can feel high-stakes and abstract to students, especially multilingual learners. Taking time to reflect with them helps normalize the process, build confidence, and affirm their effort.
One year, I handed out a simple reflection sheet and asked students to write or draw about how they felt during the test. Their answers were honest and insightful:
“I was nervous, but I tried my best.”
“I didn’t know all the words, but I kept going.”
It led to one of the most heartfelt class discussions we had all year.
Try This: Student Reflection + Mini Celebration
Use our ready-to-print Student Reflection Guide to guide individual or whole-class reflection. Then, follow it up with a simple celebration—stickers, class shout-outs, or letting students share their drawings or favorite test-day strategies.
Reflection builds self-awareness. Celebration builds confidence. And when paired together, they set the stage for meaningful learning beyond the test.
2. Reset – Refocus on Instruction
After testing, there’s often a collective exhale—and then a quiet moment of, “Now what?”
Oftentimes after testing and with the disruptions that are natural during the end of the year, I wasn’t quite sure where to pick things back up. I had spent weeks coaching students through writing prompts and reminding them to click the right buttons on their listening test—and now it felt like I had to rekindle our instructional rhythm from scratch.
But that in-between space? It became one of the most valuable parts of our year.
This is the time to reset—not just your schedules or seating charts, but your instructional focus.
Start With Student Strengths
Use what you observed during testing to guide next steps. Did your students power through writing prompts but struggle with complex sentence structures? Did they freeze up during speaking sections, or surprise you with how much vocabulary they’ve acquired?
Ask teachers to reflect on 1–2 key areas of strength and challenge for their students. These small insights can shape the next six weeks of instruction more meaningfully than broad data alone.
Bring Back What Works
Testing season often means routines get paused—morning meetings are shortened, small groups are put on hold. Now’s the time to bring those language-rich practices back.
Try reintroducing:
- Sentence stems during class discussions or written responses
- Visual aids to support complex vocabulary
- Oral rehearsal before writing tasks or content-based responses
- Language objectives alongside content goals
These scaffolded supports benefit all students, but they are lifelines for multilingual learners.
Reignite Joy in Learning
Testing can feel rigid, repetitive, and draining—for both students and teachers. One of the best ways to reengage is by tapping back into curiosity, creativity, and student voice.
I once played a simple guided drawing video on a rainy Monday and invited students to describe their creations in writing. What started as a 10-minute filler turned into some of the best writing I’d seen all semester. One student wrote: “This is my dragon. She protects her island and only eats mangoes.” The vocabulary wasn’t perfect, but the confidence was real.
Here are a few low-prep, high-engagement ideas to re-spark energy in your classroom:
- 🎨 Guided Drawing + Writing: Let students follow a short drawing video, then describe their creation using vocabulary frames or sentence starters. Bonus: Compile them into a class book!
- 📚 Interest-Based Reading Groups: Offer short texts on high-interest topics (sports, animals, music, space), then guide small group conversations with sentence frames like “I learned that…” or “In my opinion…”
- 🧠 Show & Tell with Academic Twist: Have students share an item or drawing connected to their interests, but describe it using vocabulary from recent science or social studies units.
- ✍️ Collaborative Storytelling: Use visual prompts and let small groups co-write short stories, focusing on sequencing, transition words, and group presentations.
These activities are simple to implement—and even more powerful in reminding students (and teachers) that language learning is not just about testing. It’s about expression, connection, and joy.
3. Reengage – With Students, Staff, and Families
After the last headset is unplugged and the last test ticket collected, it can feel like the natural thing to do is jump back into “normal.” But testing—especially for multilingual learners—can create a quiet disconnect. From their learning. From their sense of identity. And even from their relationships with the adults who support them.
That’s why this moment is more than just a reset. It’s an invitation to reconnect—with the students in your classrooms, the staff who carried testing on their shoulders, and the families who may be wondering, What happens next?
With Students: Celebrate, Then Center Their Voices
One year, after a particularly challenging round of testing, I handed each of my students a blank notecard and asked them to write one sentence: “What are you proud of from the test?”
The answers were honest and sometimes funny:
“I didn’t cry this time.”
“I finished my writing. Even the conclusion!”
“I didn’t know all the words, but I kept going.”
We turned those reflections into a classroom wall of affirmations. It became a reminder that effort matters just as much as achievement.
Reengaging students doesn’t mean diving into new content right away. Start by honoring the experience they just had:
- Host a class circle to let students share one thing they learned about themselves
- Use the Student Reflection Sheet for written or artistic processing
- Pair reflection with a mini celebration—stickers, music, a five-minute dance break
Small moments of celebration help multilingual students feel seen, respected, and motivated to keep growing.
With Staff: Reflect, Refill, Reground
Your team made it through testing, and that deserves real acknowledgment. From proctoring to prepping, calming nerves to troubleshooting tech, they showed up with care and professionalism.
Now, they need space to breathe, reflect, and be re-grounded in their “why.”
Try a 15–20 minute debrief during your next team or PLC meeting:
- Ask teachers to complete the Teacher Reflection Sheet
- Invite them to share a moment of pride or a strategy that worked
- Remind your team: testing is a snapshot, not the full picture of the incredible progress they’ve supported
Even better? Pair the meeting with coffee, donuts, or a shout-out wall.
With Families: Keep Communication Warm and Clear
For many families—especially those navigating a new language, system, or country—testing can feel like a black box. What happens after it ends can either build trust or deepen uncertainty.
This is a chance to reengage with empathy:
- Send home a brief update explaining what the ELP test was and what happens next
- Share a general timeline for when results will come and how they’ll be used
- Offer 2–3 tips for continuing language growth at home (e.g., reading in any language, speaking together about their day, asking questions)
Even a simple message like:
“Your child worked hard during ELP testing. We’re so proud of their effort!”
can go a long way toward building bridges with multilingual families.
Reengagement doesn’t have to be big, flashy, or perfect. It just has to be human.
Whether it’s a conversation, a card, or a class celebration, these small gestures remind everyone that behind every test score is a learner, a teacher, a family, and a story still being written.
Let this be the moment where you bring everyone back to the heart of the work, together.
Keep the Momentum Going
ELP testing may be over, but your work—the heart work, the people work—is far from done.
This post-testing window is more than a breather. It’s a rare and valuable opportunity to pause and reflect on what went well, what surprised you, and what still matters most: your students, your team, and your shared purpose.
When we take time to reflect, we make meaning of the experience.
When we reset, we realign with our instructional goals.
When we reengage, we remind students, staff, and families that they’re seen and supported—not just during testing, but in every season of learning.
So take that deep breath. Celebrate the small wins. Follow your students’ lead. And remember: the best growth often happens after the test.
Want a ready-to-use reflection activity for your students or teachers?
Download our free Post-ELP Reflection Sheets to help guide your next class discussion or PLC:
👉 ELP_Test_Reflection_Student_Sheet_EduSkills.pdf
👉 Post_ELP_Teacher_Reflection_EduSkills.pdf
And don’t forget—EduSkills has more tools to support vocabulary, instruction, and compliance all year long.
Check it out here.
