Detailed Sample Task: Stage I

CLB 3 - Writing
Sharing Information

Community and Recreation

Real-World Task

Write a few sentences about one’s personal needs on a food bank intake form.

Planning Context

Helpful Knowledge:

Basic personal information
Common questions for requesting personal information

Context:

When you apply for services such as Food Banks, or other community support programs, it is common to have to provide personal information related to more than identification. This may include information related to employment and housing status, members of your family and total household income.

Vocabulary and Grammar

Sample Vocabulary:

employment status
employed
unemployed
full time
part-time
income
dependants / children
residence
documents
allergies
dietary preferences and needs
names of foods
types of packaging such as cans, bags and so on

Sample Grammar:

Indications of a positive and a negative statement
Word order
Common everyday English spelling and punctuation

Knowledge and Strategies

Textual and Functional Knowledge:

Common cohesion links such as pronoun references
Writing information in the correct parts of a form
Proof reading to ensure accuracy
Printing or typing accurately

Sociolinguistic Knowledge:

Many Canadians use the food bank. There has been a growing need for people to access additional food sources for themselves and their families.
There are many different organizations that can support families with food insecurity.
Some organizations have restrictions on how often a person can use the food bank.

Activities and Tasks

Sample Skill-Building Activities:

Discuss as a class: What is a food bank?
Do you have food banks in your countries of origin? Do you know where the closest food bank is locally? What food can you get from the food bank?
Elicit all kinds of information that could be requested on a food bank application form including personal identification information and information related to needs.
Match vocabulary words related to personal information to visuals.
Read a simple, short description of a person who is requesting support from a food bank. In the description learners circle key words for personal information and needs such as “I need food for 4 family members, I need vegetarian foods.” and so on.
Listen to individuals talk about themselves and their family; learners match the description to visuals of different families.
Practice the names of different foods and their “groups” such as fruits, vegetables, dairy and meat. Have learners talk about what they like in pairs.
Practice vocabulary.
Incorporate phonics activities based on the vocabulary and other vocabulary related to the topic.
Discuss diet and food preferences such as vegetarian and vegan. Practice “I am vegetarian” or “I eat meat and vegetables”
“I don’t eat meat” or “I don’t eat dairy” and so on.
Practice other phrases using positive and negative statements such as “I can drive”,
“I can’t swim”, “I like potatoes”,” I don’t like bananas”, “I eat meat”, ”I don’t eat pork”
and so on.
In pairs, describe their families and the dietary needs of their families.
Copy personal information provided into a form template.
Listen to a simple instructor-made conversation about the food bank and circle key words from the conversation.
Match visuals to words to show the services at the local food bank.
Create a short, simple instructor-made story on the topic, and have learners listen as the instructor reads, following with their finger. Have learners repeat after the instructor to match intonation and fluency. Finally, have learners read the story as a group, and then individually. These activities practice vocabulary in context, show relevancy of the language and improve fluency.
Match statements on personal information and needs corresponding sections of a simplified form.

Sample Skill-Using Tasks:

Match personal information and 2 or 3 simple sentences about needs to sections
of a form. Write the information in a blank form.
Match simple questions about dietary preferences and family needs to the appropriate answers and copy the answers.

Sample Assessment Tasks:

Using an information card, fill out a form to access the food bank including 2 or 3 simple sentences about what you and your family needs.

Teaching Considerations

Cultural Considerations:

Applying to some community supports and resources can require the sharing of significant personal information in order for the agency to determine if you qualify for support.
It is not always safe or advisable to share personal information as this may result in identity theft or scams.
There may be a stigma around accessing a food bank. Be sensitive to the learners who may be facing food insecurity.

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.
Read information from a screen.
Navigate camera and microphone
Adjust volume on device

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.
Introduce tools and apps that can aid learners in coping with communication barriers, such as translation, pronunciation, text to speech, speech to text tools and so on.
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 2SLGBTQIA+, 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 issues related to economic disadvantage are often stigmatized and work to reduce the stigma.

Trauma-informed Strategies:

Possible Trauma Triggers:

Filling in forms and dealing with authority can be triggering for learners who have experienced trauma, especially for learners who have been in unsafe situations or have been in a political regime. Make sure that learners are always aware of the purpose of the form and be ready to provide support if needed.
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:

Guest speaker from the Food Bank to discuss services and supports offered
Outing to the food bank, or other relevant community support programs
Consider times when it is safe to provide personal information and times when it could be a scam or threat
Complete other forms that require personal information

Realia:

Authentic Food Bank intake forms
Forms to apply for subsidized community programs

Units and Modules:

Lessons and Activities:

Multimedia:

TVO: What is a food bank?