Detailed Sample Task: Stage I

CLB 2 - Reading
Interacting with Others

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Real-World Task

Read a few short, simple sentences about a local Indigenous community leader to identify their name and where they are from.

Planning Context

Helpful Knowledge:

It is important in Canada to learn about Indigenous Peoples.
Elders and Community Leaders are respected figures in Indigenous cultures.
Personal information words

Context:

Indigenous Peoples are the first Peoples in Canada. There are many different Indigenous Peoples, cultures and languages in Canada. Indigenous Peoples live throughout Canada. Indigenous Peoples have distinct cultural practices.
Learning about Indigenous Peoples is a respectful practice.
In Canada, Indigenous leaders play an important part in their communities.

Vocabulary and Grammar

Sample Vocabulary:

Sample Grammar:

Simple present with “be:”
“He is a leader. She is from (Nation)”.
“From” to show place
WH questions- What is his name?
Where is she from?
Personal pronouns – He / She / I

Knowledge and Strategies

Textual and Functional Knowledge:

Beginning recognition of main ideas

Sociolinguistic Knowledge:

Beginning recognition of textual clues to interpret the purposes of a text

Activities and Tasks

Sample Skill-Building Activities:

Greet learners everyday as they come into the classroom. Ask them their names as practice.
Discuss as a class: What is a ladder? A leader helps people. Who is a leader? Show pictures of a school principal, the supervisor or director of the program, the Prime Minister or premier, an Elder and so on.
Match words from the vocabulary list to corresponding images. When the instructor reads out words from the vocabulary list, hold up the corresponding flash card and repeat saying the word aloud.
In a circle, practice answering and asking “What is your name? Where are you from?“ When learners are comfortable, have them introduce themselves to the class.
Introduce the personal pronouns I / He / She. Show that the pronoun takes the place of the name. “My name is Lydia. Lydia is from Canada. → My name is Lydia. I am from Canada. This is Carlos. Carlos is from Colombia. → This is Carlos. He is from Colombia. “ Do practice worksheets on personal pronouns.
In pairs, have learners introduce themselves to each other, saying their names and where they are from. Partners present their partner’s information to the class using “This is _______. He / She is from_________.”
Using scrambled simple sentences about personal information with I / He / She on separate cards, In small groups, arrange the words into the correct order to make sentences.
Copy these sentences into a notebook or digital document.
Incorporate phonics activities based on vocabulary words and other vocabulary related to the topic.
Read a simple instructor-made text about a community leader in a local First Nation. Answer two simple questions about the reading to identify the details. Complete sentence stems to show comprehension.

For example:
- This is Chief Dylan Whiteduck.
- He is a leader.
- He is from Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg
  First Nation in Quebec.
- He works with the community.
- He helps the people.

Instructor reads aloud and then reads with learners repeating. Learners read silently and then read with a partner, taking turns reading aloud.
Partners ask and answer “Who is he? What’s his name?”.
As a class, read several short texts about different leaders and identify the name and where they are from.

Sample Skill-Using Tasks:

Read a few short, simple sentences about
a learner in another class to identify their name and where they are from. Tell a partner what you learned.

Sample Assessment Tasks:

Read a few short, simple sentences about
a local Indigenous community leader to identify their name and where they are from. Answer true or false questions.

Teaching Considerations

Cultural Considerations:

Recognize and teach learners that Canada is a diverse place and
has people from many different cultures. Canadian culture includes the cultures of all people in Canada, including Indigenous peoples.
Learning about Indigenous culture is a part of Truth and Reconciliation and is the responsibility of everyone in Canada.
In Canada, “Indigenous” means the first peoples who lived here before settlers came. However, Indigenous does not mean one identical group. There are many different Indigenous peoples in Canada. Each one has its own language, culture, traditions, and teachings. Indigenous peoples in the forest, mountains, prairies, or North have different foods, homes, stories and ceremonies. So we say there are many Indigenous Nations, not just one way of being Indigenous.

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.
Navigate and use websites.
Use familiar apps, social media platforms and web pages.
Read information from a screen.
Scan online resources 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.
Teach basic reading strategies such as skimming and scanning to find information on websites.

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.
Ensure that the images and cultural representations of Indigenous peoples are free from stereotypes and biases.
Raise learner awareness of the need for using appropriate language when discussing and addressing Indigenous peoples.
Acknowledge that you are learning too, and avoid speaking for Indigenous peoples.
Use resources and voices from Indigenous communities when possible (e.g., guest speakers, videos, or approved materials).
Use Indigenous sources for researching information related to Indigenous peoples and traditional ways of being.

Trauma-informed Strategies:

Possible Trauma triggers:

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.
Newcomers who come from Indigenous groups in their home countries may be triggered by considerations of the experiences of Indigenous peoples in Canada.
Teaching an Indigenization theme may result in some difficult conversations and may revisit past trauma, oppression and discrimination your learners have experienced.

Strategies:

Raise learner awareness of the need for using appropriate language when discussing gender-related issues and model positive language to avoid stereotypes when discussing women.
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 local Indigenous cultural centre or museum to observe aspects of Indigenous culture.
Learn about objects that are important in local Indigenous culture.
Attend an Indigenous cultural event, such as a dance, ceremony or musical event.
Create a class poster about important / local leaders and write the name and where they’re from.
Host a show and tell where learners bring in a photograph if possible and briefly introduce someone important to them.

Realia:

Images of different leaders
Actual objects that are important to local Indigenous culture, such as sweetgrass, a drum, pipe, herb, moccasins and so on.
Images of Indigenous artists, dancers, or speakers to introduce

Units and Modules:

TIES (TIES Learn). (2021). Indigenous voices in the classroom: CLB 4.
(Not correct level but can be adapted.)

Lessons and Activities:

The Literacy Centre of Expertise at TIES: Canadian Indigenous Content
Tutela: Indigenous Peoples: Vocabulary and Maps Stage 1
A search of NLCG (nlcg.achev.ca) may provide additional tasks that can be adapted.

Multimedia: