Detailed Sample Task: Stage II
CLB 5 - Writing Getting Things Done
Financial and Numerical Literacy
Real-World Task
Complete a TD1 form to claim personal deductions when starting a new job.
Planning Context
Helpful Knowledge:
- General knowledge of the process involved in starting a new job in Canada.
- Some knowledge of taxes in Canada.
- Experience completing forms and/ or online forms with personal information.
Context:
- Completing TD1 forms are a part of the typical onboarding or orientation of a new job. Employers are required by law in Canada to collect this information from new employees.
Vocabulary and Grammar
Sample Vocabulary:
- TD1 form
- Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)
- income
- taxable income
- basic personal amount
- disability
- tuition
- dependent
- infirm
- spouse
- common law partner
- caregiver
- retirement
- pension
- Canada Pension Plan (CPP)
- select, fill out, complete, submit and so on
Sample Grammar:
- Conditionals (qualifications for categories).
- Simple capitalization and punctuation rules.
- Modals of obligation.
Knowledge and Strategies
Textual and Functional Knowledge:
- Identify parts of a form.
- Identify different types of questions on forms, such as date format, short answer, formatted answers like numbers and postal codes, check boxes and so on.
- Scan to identify key vocabulary in form categories.
- Review to check for errors in capitalization, punctuation and spelling to ensure form accuracy.
- Use Canadian conventions for dates and addresses.
- Use common abbreviations.
- Use asterisks to identify if a question is required.
- Double-check capital letters on names and addresses to ensure accuracy.
Sociolinguistic Knowledge:
- Typical onboarding process with a new employer in Canada: common forms and information.
- Awareness of penalties for avoiding paying taxes and/ or providing false information when completing forms.
- Use of taxes in Canada to fund public services and programs, including LINC.
Activities and Tasks
Sample Skill-Building Activities:
- Elicit ideas about and experiences with starting a new job.
- Discuss taxation in Canada.
- Introduce common tax-related vocabulary.
- Listen to a CRA video about the purpose
of TD1 forms and identify the gist and key details:
https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/news/cra-multimedia-library/individuals-video-gallery/learn-taxes-part-one.html - Listen to a CRA video about the parts of TD1 forms and identify key details: https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/news/cra-multimedia-library/individuals-video-gallery/learn-taxes-part-two.html
- Review common question types found on forms.
- Scan to identify different sections on a TD1 form.
- Discuss critical thinking skills to identify which sections apply to you or someone in a scenario.
- Review Canadian conventions for names, addresses, dates and other personal information.
- Practice completing other employee forms, or forms found in daily life, with a variety of question types and requiring personal information.
Sample Skill-Using Tasks:
- Complete a TD1 or similar form from a sample employee profile.
Sample Assessment Tasks:
- Complete a TD1 form to claim personal deductions when starting a new job.
Teaching Considerations
Cultural Considerations:
- Discuss and compare approaches to taxation and public services and programs in Canada and other countries to develop intercultural awareness.
- Discuss progressive taxation system in Canada; how taxes and qualifications for some benefits are based on income.
- Review and discuss how money and personal finances can be sensitive topics in Canada and are not appropriate topics for small talk or casual conversation with neighbours, classmates and colleagues.
Digital Literacy Strategies:
Successful completion of some tasks may require some baseline digital knowledge and skills.
Learners may need to:
- Use and navigate a government website.
- Download online documents.
- Use online fillable forms and digital signatures.
- Use PDFs.
- Have keyboarding and typing skills.
- Scan online resources to find information.
- Recognize online scams and phishing through messaging on social media platforms, email or phone calls.
Instructors can:
- Introduce websites that are relevant to the task(s).
- Support learners in finding, navigating and using websites.
Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Indigenization Strategies:
Instructors can:
- 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.
- Recognize that some learners may have different views. You can be sensitive to their differing opinions, but all learners benefit from EDI, and all learners have the right to an inclusive and equitable learning environment.
- Teach that race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, family status, genetic characteristics and disability are all protected grounds under the Canadian Human Rights Act.
- Review accessible options for filing forms and communicating with the CRA.
Trauma-informed Strategies:
Possible Trauma Triggers:
- Discussions of income, taxation, money, scams and fraud may be triggering for learners who have experienced trauma, especially those who have lost their homes, possessions, and or money. Make space for learners to feel safe and recover from the experience of sharing their experiences.
- 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 benefit from having choices.
- Give learners advance warning of discussions of this topic.
- Learners have the right to choose if, when and what they share about themselves.
- Make space for learners to feel safe and recover from the experience of sharing their experiences.
- Giving learners the knowledge, skills and language to access resources can be empowering.
Resources
Outings, Guest Speaker Suggestions, Extension Activities:
- Attend a free tax clinic at a local library or community centre.
- Invite a tax professional as a guest speaker.
- Participate in a CRA webinar for newcomers.
- Find information about different available benefits and credits on the CRA website and identify which to apply for.
Realia:
Units and Modules:
- Avenue Course Builder: Select the theme Banking and Financial Service, and CLB 3, 4, 5 and 6 for units related to work schedules (adapt for the CLB level you teach).
- CLB 3 Finding Information on a Pay Statement
- CLB 4 Having an Orientation to the Workplace
- CLB 5 Pathways to Employment: Starting a New Job
Lessons and Activities:
Detailed Sample Task
This exemplar is aligned with the Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) and is designed to guide and inform your lesson and module planning. Consult the Canadian Language Benchmarks English as a Second Language for Adults for detailed performance descriptors at this benchmark and skill.
The information in this document is not exhaustive and can be expanded on. As well, you can use more learner-friendly language in your materials and assessments.
This is NOT a lesson or module plan.
