Detailed Sample Task: EAL Literacy

CLB FL-Reading

Employment: Finding a Job

Real-World Task

Read a very simple instruction accompanied by a visual for appropriate body language in a Canadian job interview (such as make eye contact or shake hands).

Planning Context

Helpful Knowledge:

Capital and lowercase letters
Some phonics knowledge

Context:

Appropriate body language is important in Canadian workplaces and may be different from other cultures where some actions may be seen as inappropriate or disrespectful

Vocabulary and Grammar

Sample Vocabulary:

Sample Grammar:

Spaces between letters and words

Knowledge and Strategies

Textual and Functional Knowledge:

Each word in a sentence refers to one spoken word.

Sociolinguistic Knowledge:

Making eye contact and shaking hands is considered polite in most job interviews.

Activities and Tasks

Sample Skill-Building Activities:

At the beginning of each class, greet each learner in turn and have a short conversation. Repeat greetings and other phrases and gradually expand over time: Hello, nice to meet you, how are you?, what is your name?
Discuss as a class: How do you greet someone in your culture? Do you shake hands? Bow? Kiss cheeks? Something else? Do men and women greet in the same way in your culture? Have each learner teach a greeting in their own language and share a gesture, such as shaking hands or bowing.
Sing the alphabet song: Phonics Alphabet Song.
Discuss as a class: What is a job? Do you have a job in Canada? What do you do? Did you have a job before coming to Canada? What did you do? How do you get a job?
Discuss eye contact. Do you make eye contact in your culture? Show what is common in Canada for eye contact (consistent but not staring). Practice making eye contact with and greeting each learner. Have learners mingle and greet each other and make eye contact.
Teach task vocabulary using clear photographs and acting out or describing as necessary. Give each learner a set of vocabulary cards. Practice the vocabulary using TPR (Total Physical Response).
Practice the vocabulary by playing Bingo and matching.
Incorporate phonics activities based on vocabulary words and other vocabulary related to the topic.
Practice making straight lines and curves using air writing, sand trays, or pencils.
Practice tracing letters.
Copy own name.
Copy very simple job words such as eyes or hands.

Sample Skill-Using Tasks:

Look at a card with a simple, familiar word like eyes or hands, accompanied by the same clear photograph for eye contact and shaking hands. Respond by doing the action.

Sample Assessment Tasks:

Read a very simple instruction accompanied by a visual for appropriate body language in a Canadian job interview (such as make eye contact or shake hands). Demonstrate understanding by saying what it is or by doing the action.

Teaching Considerations

Cultural Considerations:

Expected and appropriate body language is different in different cultures. Help learners to know what is expected in Canada without judging what is expected in any other culture. Note that eye contact, physical greetings (shaking hands, bowing, kissing, and so on.), and distance to stand from someone are all culturally informed and are different in different cultures.

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.
Complete formatted texts online, such as simple forms.

Instructors can:

Dedicate time to improve digital literacy for learners.
Make and/ or adapt digital materials.
Introduce websites or apps that are relevant to the task(s).
Support learners in finding, navigating and using websites or apps.

Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Indigenization Strategies:

When discussing jobs, include many jobs that are common for learners at this level to have, as well as jobs of people they may come into contact with, like cleaners, babysitters, gardeners, labourers, security guards, store clerks, teachers, doctors, or nurses.
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 experienced trauma may be triggered by authoritarian questioning or figures of authority, such as a boss. Make all discussion of jobs gentle and be aware of any learner who needs 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:

Visit a nearby employment centre.
Look at pictures of people doing different jobs. Have learners identify jobs they have done and would like to do.
Cut out pictures of people doing different jobs and glue them to a jobs poster.
Bring in items associated with different jobs, like a doctor’s coat, a hammer, a spatula, and so on. Have learners role play different jobs.
Review a variety of body language and other non verbal communication gestures. Compare between Canadian and other cultures.

Realia:

Items associated with different jobs: doctor’s coat, hammer, spatula, and so on.

Units and Modules:

Tutela (CCLB): Safety at Work: CLB 1L/2L (Not the right level but can be adapted)
Tutela (CCLB): Greetings and Introductions: CLB 1L/2L (Not the right level but can be adapted)
Tutela (Archway): Saying No to a Work Shift: CLB 1L/2L (Not the right level but can be adapted)
Tutela (Archway): Warehouse Worker Module: CLB 1L/2L (Not the right level but can be adapted)

Lessons and Activities:

LINC 1 Classroom Activities: Job Application Forms (p. 295) (Not literacy or the right level but can be adapted)
The Literacy Centre of Expertise at TIES: Reading Skills Stories
The Literacy Centre of Expertise at TIES: Adults Learn to Print
Tutela: Norquest LINC Phonics Curriculum: CLB FL
Tutela: Foundation L-CLB 2L Phonics Curriculum
A search of NLCG (nlcg.achev.ca) may provide additional tasks that can be adapted.

Multimedia:

Tutela: ESL Image Bank: People in Different Jobs
YouTube: Phonics Alphabet Song