Real-World Task Guidelines:
EAL Literacy

CLB 2L

Home and Neighbourhood

Planning Context

Learners may require the following:

  • Slower rate of speech
  • Face-to-face or one-on-one digital interactions
  • Short and supportive interactions
  • Texts which are clear, sparse and very easy to read
  • Texts which are supported by visual clues (for example, pictures)
  • Very short texts which are limited to everyday words and phrases
  • Non-demanding contexts
  • Topics that are related to immediate personal needs

Instructors may need to:

  • Teach all concepts and vocabulary orally first
  • Slow their rate of speech
  • Use everyday common speech and text
  • Create simplified versions of texts and audio clips/ recordings
  • Modify instructions to limit to simple imperative sentences
  • Use increased white-space, large font size, a literacy-friendly 
font and clear images
  • Provide extensive scaffolding and support

Literacy Learner Considerations

Listening and Speaking

2L learners are meeting the requirements of CLB 2 in listening and speaking. It is important for 2L learners to develop all new language orally first so that it is familiar to them when they learn to recognize it in print. Listening and speaking should be taught and assessed orally and not through the skills of reading and writing. There is a focus on increasing basic, immediately relevant vocabulary and learning the sounds of the language, along with the ability to break words into sounds and to blend sounds into words.

Reading

To be successful in 2L reading tasks, 2L learners can work towards the development of reading skills in the context of real-world tasks, such as:

  • developing oral vocabulary related to the task
  • using short vowel sounds to differentiate between a few short, highly familiar words
  • beginning to blend sounds to read very simple words
  • recognizing familiar repeated sentence stems
  • developing some very basic sight words

Writing

To be successful in 2L writing tasks, 2L learners can work towards the development of writing skills in the context of real-world tasks, such as:

  • developing oral vocabulary related to the task
  • using a mature grip on a pencil or pen
  • forming all letters and numbers with increasingly consistent size
  • filling in missing initial and final sounds of dictated familiar words
  • spelling own name and a small set of short, familiar function words from memory

Additional Sample Real-World Tasks and Competency Areas

Listen to a few simple instructions on how to use a microwave. (Comprehending Instructions)

In a few short sentences, ask your landlord to fix a broken window. (Getting Things Done)

Read a short story of 5-7 sentences about businesses in your community. (Comprehending Information)

Copy 3-5 sentences into a short message to a friend to say congratulations on their new home. (Interacting with Others)

Digital Literacy Strategies

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

Learners may need to:

  • Look at a website.
  • Read information from a screen.

Instructors can:

  • Introduce websites that are relevant to the task(s).
  • Support learners in finding, navigating and using websites

Equity, Diversity 
and Inclusion Strategies

Instructors Can:

  • Use diverse representations of people in all learning resources and images, including people who are 2SLGBTQIA+, Indigenous, Francophone and of other cultures, and people who have disabilities or who are neurodivergent.

Trauma-Informed Strategies

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.

Strategies:

  • Learners who have experienced trauma often benefit from having routine.
  • Learners who have experienced trauma benefit from having choices.
  • Learners have the right to choose if, when and what they share about themselves.

Sample Real World Tasks

This information is aligned with the Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) and is designed to help guide you in the planning process. You can use these sample real-world tasks to guide and inform 
your selection or creation of skill-building activities, skill-using tasks and assessment tasks.

These sample real-world tasks include the following: skill, real-world task, competency area, one competency statement and two sample indicators of ability. This is not an exhaustive list: there are more indicators of ability and information about this CLB level in Canadian Language Benchmarks English as a Second Language for Adults. Consult this resource for more information and to select 
your own competencies or indicators of ability. Remember, you can use more learner-friendly language in your materials and assessments.

This is NOT a lesson plan, module plan or curriculum.