Detailed Sample Task: EAL Literacy

CLB 3L-Speaking
Getting Things Done

Education and Learning

Real-World Task

Ask a child’s teacher how your child is doing in class.

Planning Context

Helpful Knowledge:

Present continuous
Question words: who, where, when
Basic greetings and courtesy phrases: hello, hi, good morning, how’s it going, nice to meet you, nice to see you, thank you and so on.

Context:

Parents often talk with teachers about their child’s learning.
Parents are expected to support children with their learning.
There are often school events where parents are invited.

Vocabulary and Grammar

Sample Vocabulary:

school words: teacher, child, student, class, learning, grade
levels of school: kindergarten/primary, elementary, junior high school/middle school, high school
some basic subjects for school such as math, English, French, science and so on.
some vocabulary to talk about performance such as good, excellent, needs help and so on.
how
support

Sample Grammar:

Information questions in the present continuous
Present continuous for actions ongoing such as “You are doing great“, “Malika is doing well in math” and so on.

Knowledge and Strategies

Textual and Functional Knowledge:

When parents talk to a teacher, there is usually a greeting and some small talk before they ask a question.

Sociolinguistic Knowledge:

Learners can support each other.

Activities and Tasks

Sample Skill-Building Activities:

At the beginning of each class, greet each learner and engage them in a little small talk. Gradually vary the greetings and courtesy expressions over time.
Discuss as a class: What does school look like for children in your country of origin? Is it similar to school in Canada or different? What time do children go to school? For how many hours each day? How old are children when they start and finish school? Be aware and sensitive to the fact that many learners may not have had access to school when they were children, and their children may not have had access to school or may not have been safe enough to go to school before they came to Canada.
As a class, look at a large photograph of a typical Canadian classroom. Look at a classroom from elementary school and one from high school. Elicit as many vocabulary words as you can. Make a list of the vocabulary on the board.
Have learners copy vocabulary words to complete a mini-dictionary.
Use vocabulary cards with words, pictures, and very simple definitions to practice the vocabulary. Do different activities/games such as Bingo, matching, Memory, fill in the blanks, and crosswords.
Incorporate phonics activities based on vocabulary words and other vocabulary related to the topic.
Listen to a dialogue between a parent and a teacher. Match vocabulary words to the dialogue. Practice as a class and then practice with a partner. Perform your dialogue for the class. Practice multiple times over the course of several lessons to reinforce pronunciation, intonation and fluency.
Review the present continuous. Write sentences about what is happening right now in the classroom.
Review question words: who, where, when. Add how. Unscramble words to make questions.
Read an answer and fill in the blank in the question with the correct question word. Read the questions and answers together with a partner.
Role-play a dialogue between a parent and teacher.
Read a simple story about school in Canada. Match vocabulary to the story. Use pictures and simple sentences to sequence the information in the story.

Sample Skill-Using Tasks:

Ask your instructor how you are doing in class.

Sample Assessment Tasks:

Ask a child’s teacher how your child is doing in class.

Teaching Considerations

Cultural Considerations:

Some learners may not be very familiar with the school system in Canada, including the levels and the student-centred approaches used in many Canadian classrooms. Some learners may expect a more traditional, teacher-led classroom environment, and may expect quizzes and tests rather than projects and collaboration. Teach learners what to expect in a Canadian school and teach that it is all right to speak with your child’s teacher if you have any questions or concerns.

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.

Instructors can:

Dedicate time to improve digital literacy for learners.
Make and/or adapt digital materials.
Introduce websites and/or apps that are relevant to the task(s).
Support learners in finding, navigating and using websites.
Teach reading strategies such as skimming and scanning to find information on websites or apps.
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:

Teach that schools are diverse and inclusive spaces for all.
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.

Trauma-informed Strategies:

Possible Trauma Triggers:

Learners who have lost their children or who do not have children and it is not by choice may be highly triggered by this topic. Allow any learner who would prefer to talk about their own learning or to work with fictional characters.
Learners who have had negative experiences in school may be triggered by this topic. Be aware of any learner who needs extra support.
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:

Invite a K-12 teacher to come talk to the class as a guest speaker. This can also be a teaching colleague who is a former K-12 teacher.
Discuss EAL/ESL in the school system in your community and what kinds of support the children of learners can expect.
Look at the website of a local school and identify key information such as the name, what level it is (e.g. elementary, junior high, high school), address, and phone number. Practice saying and writing pertinent to the learner, perhaps their children’s schools, or their own school. Be able to talk about the class and the teacher as well.

Realia:

Websites for local schools
Pictures of Canadian classrooms

Units and Modules:

Tutela (CCLB): Communicating with a Child’s School: CLB 3/4 (Not literacy but can be adapted)
Tutela: Classroom Instructions: CLB 3 (Not literacy but can be adapted)

Lessons and Activities:

LINC 3 Classroom Activities: Education (p. 311-342) (Not literacy but can be adapted)
Tutela (OCDSB): Assessment Task: Understanding School Rules: CLB 3 (Not literacy but can be adapted)
Tutela (OCDSB): Assessment Task: Filling Out a School Registration Form: CLB 3 (Not literacy but can be adapted)
Tutela: Norquest LINC Phonics Curriculum: CLB 3L
A search of NLCG (nlcg.achev.ca) may provide additional tasks that can be adapted.

Multimedia:

Tutela: ESL Image Bank: Education