Detailed Sample Task: Stage I

CLB 3 - Writing
Getting Things Done

Getting Around and Transportation

Real-World Task

Copy 5 to 6 route directions from a transit app or schedule to get to a Pride celebration event in the community.

Planning Context

Helpful Knowledge:

Basic knowledge of what 2SLGBTQIA+ means. The meanings of each letter in the acronym are not relevant to the lesson.
Numbers to 100
Some basic familiarity with phrases related to directions, “Take the bus downtown.” and so on.

Context:

Public transportation works on a predictable schedule (though it may be late). There are usually brochures, websites, or apps to tell you the schedule for your bus so that you can plan your trip.
Many people in Canada identify as 2SLGBTQIA+. Pride events are held across Canada to support the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. They often include parades, music, dancing, speeches and family events.
This task reflects the intention to include all people in Canada in the themes.
The language skills in this task could be applied to other contexts.

Vocabulary and Grammar

Sample Vocabulary:

Sample Grammar:

Imperative voice for directions
Format of addresses and telephone numbers

Knowledge and Strategies

Textual and Functional Knowledge:

Directions using public transportation are usually given from 2-3 key locations in the community, e.g. From downtown, take Bus #46 and get off at Richmond Street.

Sociolinguistic Knowledge:

Public transportation can often let you get around to the places you need to go, giving you independence and the chance to connect with other people.
There are usually more buses on weekdays, especially during the daytime, and fewer buses in the evenings and on the weekends.

Activities and Tasks

Sample Skill-Building Activities:

Discuss as a class: how do you get to class? Do you drive, walk, take the bus or use other public transportation? Ask learners how many take the bus on a regular basis. How do they plan their trips? Do they use the bus or other public transportation to go to other places in their cities / towns / communities? Do they have the local transit apps on their phones or do they prefer a paper schedule?
Discuss as a class: What does Pride and 2SLGBTQIA+ mean? Focus on the overall meaning of all genders and sexualities rather than the meaning of each term in the acronym. Learners may have a variety of opinions, but gently redirect and focus on what is legal and accepted in Canada. Discuss the supportive / allyship emphasis of Pride events.
Review task vocabulary. Use vocabulary cards with words, clear pictures, and simple definitions to practice the task vocabulary.
Practice the vocabulary using vocabulary cards with words and clear pictures. Have learners work in groups and take turns drawing a card and explaining it (without saying the word). The rest of the learners guess which word it is, and whoever guesses first gets a point.
Create a class word bank for transit vocabulary to use throughout the skill building activities and module. Copy the words into a vocabulary notebook or digital vocabulary journal.
Read a simple instructor-made story about taking the bus. Work with a partner and use simple sentence strips to sequence the events of the story.
As a class, look at the website or app for your local public transportation. Elicit from learners how the website / app works, if any are familiar with it. Plan a sample trip from a familiar location to your school or organization. Determine different arrival times to practice.
Listen to an instructor-made dialogue between a passenger and a bus driver describing the route, giving instructions about the buses to take, the stops for the locations and where they may have to walk to reach their destination.
Re-read the story about taking the bus and match up vocabulary cards to the story. Complete sentences to write about your own experiences with public transportation.
Review the imperative voice and use TPR (Total Physical Response) with common actions to practice. After a number of rounds, have learners take turns calling out the instructions.
Review the format for addresses and phone numbers and copy contact information for several locations in the community.
Read a set of instructions for how to take a bus from the school to a well-known local. In the text there are several errors in the imperative voice. Learners circle the errors. Learners highlight the imperative verbs which are used correctly. Learners copy the instructions into a notebook or digital document with all the errors corrected.
Using the corrected instructions above, learners take turns with a partner reading the instructions.
Review the format for addresses and phone numbers and copy contact information for several locations in the community. Learners review the address information for the school which contains 2-3 errors. In pairs, learners correct the mistakes.

Sample Skill-Using Tasks:

Copy the address and information on how to take public transportation to a local library.

Sample Assessment Tasks:

Copy 5 to 6 route directions from a transit app or schedule to get to a Pride celebration event in the community.

Teaching Considerations

Cultural Considerations:

Depending on where you live, there may be a variety of public transportation, such as buses, trains, subway, or ferries. There may also be very little public transportation. Adapt the task to fit the community you live in. If you live in a rural area with little public transportation, choose a regional bus if there is one instead.

Digital Literacy Strategies:

Successful completion of some tasks may require some baseline knowledge and digital skills.

Learners may need to:

Have keyboarding and typing skills.
Locate, navigate and use websites.
Use familiar apps, social media platforms and web pages.
Type information to appear on screen
Send and receive text messages and messages on other texting apps.
Send and receive email messages
Complete formatted texts online, such as forms
Navigate and use online learning management systems (LMS) such as Avenue.
Use a search engine to find information

Instructors can:

Dedicate time to improve digital literacy for learners.
Make and/ or adapt digital materials.
Introduce websites that are relevant to the task(s).
Support learners in finding, navigating and using websites.
Use digital tools such as translation or pronunciation tools to support language learning and foster autonomous learning.
Share knowledge and strategies to ensure online safety.
Refer learners to programs to improve their digital skills

Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Indigenization Strategies:

Use diverse representations of people in all your learning resources and images, including people who are 2SLGBTQ+, Indigenous, Francophone and of other cultures, and people who have disabilities or who are neurodivergent. Consider this diversity as you choose names for characters in stories you create as well.
Recognize that some learners may not feel safe on public transportation, including women and learners who are 2SLGBTQIA+. Discuss strategies for safer use of public transportation, including riding with a friend and avoiding riding after dark, and for other options for transportation, such as ride shares.

Trauma-informed Strategies:

Possible Trauma triggers:

Learners who have experienced trauma may not feel safe on public transportation. Acknowledge this concern and discuss strategies for safer use of public transportation or alternatives to public transportation.
When teaching about Canada, you may teach about things that are triggering to learners who have experienced trauma. We can’t know what the triggers might be and what seems commonplace to us may have a triggering component for learners. Be aware of this and be prepared to support learners as needed.

Strategies:

Give learners advance warning of this topic and be aware that there may be learners who require support.
Learners who have experienced trauma often benefit from having routine. Create a safe and supportive classroom environment by establishing familiar routines, repeated activities, and model friendly and non-evaluative interactions.
Learners will benefit from positive relationships established in the classroom with the instructor and peers.
Learners who have experienced trauma benefit from having choices.
- Allow learners choice:
  - the choice to work on a different topic
  - the choice to share or not share their own experiences
  - the choice to work alone or to work with others
  - the choice to take care of themselves
  - the choice to step out of the learning environment
When learners have shared personal distressing or traumatic experiences, make space for learners to feel safe and recover from the experience of sharing their experiences. Follow the activities which may make learners feel vulnerable with routine, predictable and comforting activities.
Giving learners the knowledge, skills and language to access resources can be empowering.

Resources

Outings, Guest Speaker Suggestions, Extension Activities:

Take a field trip using public transportation and elicit an LEA (Language Experience Approach) story when you return to class. Have learners use your local website or app to plan the trip together.
Visit the local transit centre and learn about different options for transit, fare tickets and passes and options for subsidized fares.
Draw routes on large maps to show how to travel by transit around various sites in the community.

Realia:

Websites and apps for local public transportation
Maps
Bus schedules

Units and Modules:

Tutela (CCLB): Getting Around the City: CLB 3/4

Lessons and Activities:

Tutela (OCDSB): Assessment Task: Finding Information about the Train or Bus or Subway: CLB 3
LINC 3 Classroom Activities Transit Schedule (p. 490)
Tutela (OCDSB): Assessment Task: Interacting with the Driver on the Bus: CLB 3
A search of NLCG (nlcg.achev.ca) may provide additional tasks that can be adapted.

Multimedia: