Educational preparation ESL literacy programs
In my class, I taught my learners how to choose a "just right" book for extensive reading, and then we promptly went to the public library where they had the opportunity to practice their new skill.
This journal is useful for teaching practical learners to self monitor their own work and edit their writing.
This activity was not initially used with LIFE learners, but I am told that it would be a fun and effective activity in the literacy classroom.
In class we had been studying women's suffrage in Canada in reading. We also had been practicing speaking by using modal verbs to give advice. As a final activity, we visited the suffragette statues in Olympic Plaza. Learners used speech-bubble white boards to put the words "into" the mouths of statues. Learners were given a pen and a board, and created their own phrases - often with grammatical corrections by their peers. Finally, they had their photo taken with their "speech bubble".
Students in my Youth in Transition class were responsible for various aspects of producing a talent show for their program. They made decisions on talent criteria and advertised auditions for the talent show by creating posters and presenting to other classes. They were also responsible for introducing the various acts during the talent show. Seven students performed a variety of numbers that included dancing and singing, and many students participated in the fashion show finale.
We started with an introductory PPT on slavery, abolition and the Quakers to introduce the topic. There was a 90 minute lesson on the background information, then reading the next day.
The outcomes are:
reading a text at a GE 2-3 level
answering questions at a literal level
participate in a discussion about the text
A basic spreadsheet design lesson using Microsoft Excel. Learners had previously worked in groups of 3 with sample receipts, bills, bank statements and budget templates (see the Financial ESL Literacy Toolbox link) to calculate incoming and outgoing funds. They had populated a monthly budget template and used a calculator to total expenditure before moving to the computer lab.
Outcomes:
- Identify needs and wants
- Create budget spreadsheet
- Enter data into a spreadsheet
- Write basic formulas in Microsoft Excel
Calgary recently hosted the ATESL (Alberta Teachers of English as a Second Language) Conference 2011. The theme of the conference was Igniting Language Learning and Leadership. Several Bridge instructors had the opportunity to present at the conference.
The presentation in this showcase discusses reasons and ways to adapt texts to make them accessible for emergent readers, with a focus on an adapted versions of the novel Alive!
Learners in the Bridge program have the opportunity to become involved in a leadership group. The purpose is to help learners increase their confidence in speaking in front of a group and give them a safe forum to practice new skills.
This activity is a classroom election of a Spelling Prime Minister. The outcome is to participate in a democratic election from nomination to declaration of winner.
Learners in the Bridge program use action plans to assist them with future goal planning. An action plan is an outline of the major steps needed to reach a long term educational or career goal. It helps learners understand post-secondary pathways. An action plan breaks down the steps a learner needs to complete along their educational pathwya.
Every class in the Bridge program participates in a weekly management meeting. This is a whole class activity where learners have time to organize themselves and their binders. Learners also work on setting and reflecting on short and long-term goals.
Chocolate Tasting was a joint activity with two classes. The unit was food and nutrition. The activity consisted of two parts: a reading component and an extension activity (chocolate tasting).
The outcomes were:
- find information in an unformatted text and answer questions
- acquire and use new vocabulary (focus on adjectives) in speaking and writing
- record information in a chart
- write sentences in the past tense to describe an event
- use capital letters and punctuation in sentences
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