[NIFL-ESL:6746] Re: Illiterate in primary language

From: Pauline McNaughton (pmcnaughton@language.ca)
Date: Wed Nov 21 2001 - 16:23:16 EST


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From: Pauline McNaughton <pmcnaughton@language.ca>
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Subject: [NIFL-ESL:6746] Re: Illiterate in primary language
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The Canadian Language Benchmarks 2000:  ESL for Literacy Learners 
lays out the progression of reading, writing and numeracy skills for 
ESL adults who have little or not literacy skills in their first 
language.  The benchmarks are descriptions of what ESL Literacy 
students are able to do at various stages of their development - 
divided into Foundation Phase, then Phase I, II and III.

The Foundation Phase sounds like where you are beginning with this 
gentleman. I am quoting some portions from the above book that may be 
helpful.  If you'd like to obtain a copy please email 
info@language.ca for information.

EXCERPTS FROM FOUNDATION PHASE OVERVIEW
"The Foundation Phase describes a small minority of beginning ESL 
Literacy second language learners who need to develop and practice 
the specific visual and motor/mechanical skills that are needed in 
the pre-reading and pre-writing literacy processes.  Pre-reading and 
pre-writing concepts may need to be explained in their first language 
by interpreters if learners lack previous reading experience or are 
unable to make the connection between what is learned in English and 
what they already know in L1.

READING
A Foundation ESL Literacy learner may have limited or no understanding of:
- reading readiness concepts such as the connection between the real 
world and oral language and print
- reading conventions such as left-right or top-down directionality
A learner in this phase has:
- no understanding of letter/sound correspondence
- no ability to phonetically decode or sound out new words
- very little or not sight word recognition except for a small number 
of familiar words in predictable contexts related to immediate needs

WRITING
A Foundation ESL Literacy learner in this phase has no ability to 
phonetically enclode and write unfamiliar words and may be unfamiliar 
with:
- the basic mechanics of writing at the level of letter, numeral or 
word, such as holding a pencil, tracing and copying
- basic writing conventions, such as where to write on the page or 
line, and the importance of spacing between letters and words
-pre-writing concepts, such as the understanding that language can be 
ordered, structured and captured graphically to make meaning

SOCIOCULTURAL AND LINGUISTIC CONSIDERATIONS
The learner will understand (with the help of an interpreter if available)
- the importance placed on the written word in Canada
- the importance of carrying ID such as a health card
- the importance of being able to spell name and address in case of a 
911 emergency call or finding one's way home if lost
-the relevance of pre-writing activities which provide a necessary 
base for developing writing skills
- that literacy skills develop along a continuum over a long period of time
- that in a Canadian classsroom they may have to deal with
--- sitting at a desk or being indoors all day
--- a teacher/student of the opposite sex
--- a young teacher

EXCERPTS FROM READING FOUNDATION PHASE - INITIAL (THERE IS ALSO A 
DEVELOPMENTAL)
Sample Tasks include:
Naming realia and pictures
- pick up, point to or show realia, pictures/photos, or geometric 
symbols or pseudo letters
- play games such as Simon Says, Bingo, Memory, Tic Tac Toe
- sing songs or chant
- cut out / match pictures from flyers and paste them on a worksheet or poster
- go on a mini field tgrip of the site to find same/different items
- participate in interactive activities to look for items that are 
different or same/different
- sort items into piles

Left-right and top-down directionality
- arrange pictures according to teacher stimulus, on a boxed grid, to 
show left-right, top-down directionality
- cut, pastse and arrange visuals on instructgor made worksheets 
according to model
- play games
- listen to teacher and point to or arrange the correct picture 
showing left-right, top-down directionality
- listen, point to or arrange pictures to follow left to right, 
top-down sequencing of events in a story or a story on a tape
- make a class picture book of eventgs based on field trip or 
classroom experience, such as making a fruit salad
- participate in total physical response activities modelled after a 
series of pictures placed in a left-right, top-down sequence, such as 
miming morning routines

Letter names
- read aloud the name of the letters on flashcards in small groups, 
pairs, individually or with a volunteer
- listen and place/tape/match letters sequentially on a worksheet or 
into a pocket chart
- cut out letters from newspaper headlines or flyers
- go on a walk-about to identify letters on street signs/building
- play games to reinforce letter names

The book goes through the related language competencies, literacy 
competencies and conditions for each of these sample tasks.  And of 
course it goes into writing and numeracy in depth as well.
-- 



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