Dictation and Oral reading

Dictation and oral reading are two more important parts of learning a language.  Dictate several sentences and let your students write them. It helps them with listening and comprehension and tying the written word to the spoken word.

Using a tape recorder, have your ESL-ers read the paragraphs and then listen to themselves.  It helps them to correct their own errors and usually is a fun time for all.

 

You can also use the job descriptions we’ve been working with to dictate and have them write or to have them read and record their voices to work on pronunciations.

Tutor dictation/audio sheet

Ben- teacher

I’m Ben.  I work in a school.  I work full-time.  I start work at 9am.  Every day, I prepare and teach lessons.  I’m very busy.  I also mark work.  I finish work at 5pm. 

 

Martha - food assistant

Hello, I’m Martha.  I have a part-time job.  I work on Saturday and Sunday.  I make sandwiches in a café.  I work in the local park.  I start at 7am and finish at 4pm.  I also serve coffee and fill the fridge. 

 

Jack- cleaner

My name is Jack.  I work in a hospital.  I work part-time for three days a week.  I start work at 8am.  I clean the bathroom, mop the floor and polish the tables.  I finish work at 6pm. 

 

Sam - secretary

Hi, I’m Sam.  I work full-time.  I work in an office.  It’s in London.  I answer the phone and write letters.  I also make appointments.  I start work at 10am and finish at 8pm.  It’s a very long day!

 

More of what you can do with jobs:

TASK 8: Study the information.

Sam -secretary

Hi, I’m Sam. I work full-time. I work in an office. It’s in London. I answer the phone and write letters. I also make appointments. I start work at 10am and finish at 8pm. It’s a very long day!

Sam

Read the text again. What can you remember about Sam? Write some words below.

_________________________________________________

_________________________________________________

_________________________________________________

_________________________________________________

Check your writing with a partner.

TASK 9: Write the job title and duties for each person.

Ben

____Teacher_______________

_He prepares lessons_________

__________________________

__________________________


Martha

__________________________

__________________________

__________________________

__________________________

Jack

__________________________

___________________________

___________________________

___________________________

Sam

____________________________

____________________________

____________________________

____________________________

More of A Day in the Life of

Here are some more ideas for “A DAY IN THE LIFE OF”

Martha - food assistant

Hello, I’m Martha.  I have a part-time job.  I work on Saturday and Sunday.  I make sandwiches in a café.  I work in the local park.  I start at 7am and finish at 4pm.  I also serve coffee and fill the fridge. 

TASK 6: Answer the questions.  Write sentences.

Martha

1.     What is her job title?         ____________________________

2.    Does she work full-time?     ____________________________

3.    Where does she work?        ____________________________

4.    What time does she start? ____________________________

5.    What time does she finish? ____________________________

6.    Where is the café?              ____________________________

TASK 7: Read the information. 

Jack- cleaner

My name is Jack.  I work in a hospital.  I work part-time for three days a week.  I start work at 8am.  I clean the bathroom, mop the floor and polish the tables.  I finish work at 6pm. 

Jack

Write some questions for Jack.

1.     _______________________         He is a cleaner.

2.    _______________________         He works in a hospital.

3.    _______________________         He starts at 8am.

4.    _______________________         He finishes at 6pm.

5.    _______________________         No, he works part-time. 

6.    _______________________         His name is Jack.

A Day in the Life of: continued

Remember last month?  We took a job and wrote a paragraph about it and then had our students fill in the blanks. Another way to use the paragraph is to ask questions.

Ben - teacher

I’m Ben.  I work in a school.  I work full-time.  I start work at 9am.  Every day, I prepare and teach lessons.  I’m very busy.  I also mark work.  I finish work at 5pm. 

TASK 4:  Answer the questions.  Write sentences.

Ben  

1.      What is his job title?          _________________________  

2.    Does he work full-time?         _________________________

3.    Where does he work?          ____________________________

4.    What time does he start?         ___________________________

5.    What time does he finish?  ____________________________

6.    Is he busy?                         ____________________________

TASK 5: Read the information. Can you find the verbs?

Martha - food assistant

Hello, I’m Martha.  I have a part-time job.  I work on Saturday and Sunday.  I make sandwiches in a café.  I work in the local park.  I start at 7am and finish at 4pm.  I also serve coffee and fill the fridge. 

Read the text again then write about Martha. 

This is Martha.  She has a part-time job.

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

We will continue with more ways to use the jobs for lessons next month.

A Day in the Life of:

David Sharman, an ESL teacher, has a way to take simple jobs and create several lessons from them.  We will look at how to do this the next few blogs.

The four jobs are teacher, cashier, cleaner, secretary.

1) The first task or lesson involves reading and writing.

Have pictures of the jobs, along with the vocabulary.

You can teach the job titles and also the location the jobs take place.

teacher, cashier, cleaner, secretary

school, grocery store, hospital (or any other building with a cleaner), office.

Under each picture have two sentences.

I am a  ________________.

I work in a  ___________________.

Teach the vocabulary and then have the students write the correct words under each picture.

2) The second task involves listening, reading and marking.

Have the pictures of the jobs and below them, have a list of duties.

teacher
I teach lessons.	P
I mark work.	P
I answer the phone.
I write letters.
I prepare lessons.	P

As you read of the list of duties of the job, have the student check off any duties that apply to the job.

secretary
I make appointments.
I mop the floors.
I answer the phone.	P
I write letters.	P
I prepare lessons.

3) The third task involves reading and writing (3^rd person verbs).

Read the information. 

Ben - teacher

I’m Ben.  I work in a school.  I work full-time.  I start work at 9am.  Every day, I prepare and teach lessons.  I’m very busy.  I also mark work.  I finish work at 5pm. 

Write about Ben.

This is Ben.  He works in a school.  He  works  full-time.  He ____________ work at 9am.  Every day, he __________ and ____________ lessons.  He _______ very busy.  He also _________ work.  He _____________ work at 5pm.

We will continue with more ways to use the jobs for lessons next month.

The Furrowed Brow

I was watching my two year old grandson at his two year birthday party.  The party was an open house for all the cousins and friends.  Every few minutes someone would arrive with a present for Silas and he was required to open it and say thank you to these people, some of whom he seldom sees.

He was overwhelmed.  People were calling him, oohing and aahing over him, kissing and hugging him, and pushing presents at him.

Several times during the course of the afternoon I saw him furrow his brow and scowl.

This was fascinating to me.  I had just read (for ESL prep) that one of the main reasons people need and want to learn English is so that they know what is expected of them and how to behave in different settings. The author went on to say that it was very common for someone who does not understand what is going on, or how to behave, or what to say will have a furrowed brow and may even scowl.

And here we thought Silas was just being cranky and tired.

This is the way our immigrants and refugees feel.  They are in a new place with people talking all around them that they do not understand.  They are trying to move among them, perhaps riding a bus, or shopping or trying to find help and they do not understand what is going on, or how to behave, or what to say . 

Watch your learner(s).  Do their brows furrow?  They may not only be missing the word you are trying to teach; they may not understand what they are suppose to do or how they relate to you. This certainly can affect learning. Realize that they are not just tired or cranky or unresponsive.  They may be totally overwhelmed or confused. Help alleviate those feelings by taking it slower or taking a calming moment.

 Keep your eyes open for the bigger picture. 

ACCULTURATION: WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT ENTERING A NEW CULTURE

  In addition to the challenges of a new language, our learners also have to cope with a new culture.
The technical terms are acculturation and assimilation.  People are establishing their "membership" in American culture. They want to be a part of the group. 

Acculturation means that they become part of the new culture but they still maintain important aspects of their native culture.

Assimilation requires that they choose one culture over the other; they "mainstream" into the new culture and discard the old.

Back in the 30's and 40's, America had a large influx of European immigrants.  Although the children were sent to schools and assimilated into the new culture, many of the parents remained in both cultures.  There was an abundance of social clubs that sprung up to help hold on to the old, The German Club, the Slovenian Society etc.
In our multicultural society in the States today, we encourage acculturation.  This is very difficult for newcomers. America has a basic culture but also many, many sub-cultures. 

Our newcomers often are confused, they simply don't understand what is expected of them.

Top that off with the fact that many of our newcomers come from refugee camps where every day they were told what to do and when they could do it.  And every day they lived with memories of atrocities from their home country.  It is certainly understandable why they sometimes have difficulties absorbing a new culture.

Studies have shown that newcomers to the States are extremely lonely, frustrated and fearful. They are trying to live daily in a world in which everything is new and nothing is familiar.  They can feel mentally and physically exhausted from the stress incurred by a new culture.

Sometimes this manifests itself by silence.  Your newcomers may not talk much until they feel safe in the environment, whether classroom or teaching in the home.

What can you do to help?   Validate and understand.  Encourage and be patient.  Explain what the expectations are. 

Learn something about their culture.  There are great internet sites to do that. Two that come to mind are www.culturalorientation.net  and www.culturalcrossing.com

Most of the immigrants and refugees from Africa, Asia and Middle East have strong family ties.  Sometimes just asking about their families will encourage a relationship and help to bridge the loneliness gap.

Remember that learning English, while vitally important to them, is just a part of what they need to learn.