Many English language learners (ELL) struggle to function in English-only classes and to compete with their native English-speaking peers, and tend not to fare well on high-stakes testing. One such example is the Vietnamese American students at City Middle School whose reading levels ranged from an alarming 1.5 to 4 (mid-year first grade to fourth grade), and English language development from level 1 (beginning) to level 3 (intermediate). In this article, the author relates how she helped 14 "at risk" students at City Middle School. In addition to the after school program that the author recommended for these students, a 20-item survey was designed and administered to the students. Here, the findings and the discussion of the results of the survey are presented. A list of seven key factors that teachers should take into account when working with students of a similar language and culture as these Vietnamese Americans is presented. (Contains 2 tables.)