ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages)
Welcome to the ESOL resource page of our website. Hopefully you will find the information that you are looking for right here or the links that will take you to it.
Nowadays there are so many resources, materials, and even lesson plans on the internet for teaching ESOL, that it can be daunting just to sift through what is research-based, current, helpful and reflects best practices. We have done the work for you by providing several avenues for you to access the resources that you need.
If you are looking for a curriculum or lesson plans geared to teaching life-skills, check out our publications. If you want to explore the world of ESOL, but through sites maintained by expert professionals, try one or two of the links. Or more. And if you want to know what we are doing to support your work here in Virginia, read about our current projects.
We are only an email or phone call away. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions, want to request a workshop, or would like to share your expertise (or adventures) in adult ESOL.
Publications
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Teaching Reading to Adult English Language Learners
This 15-hour training will acquaint participants with the fundamental knowledge and skills required to teach reading effectively to adult, nonnative speakers of English. -
ESOL Starter Kit
Helps teachers and program administrators begin or improve an Adult ESOL program, including information on getting organized, assessing students, preparing teachers, understanding adult learners, planning lessons, and integrating technology and civics into the curriculum. -
Virginia Adult Education Health Literacy Toolkit
This is a valuable resource designed to help adult education instructors and administrators better understand the problem of health literacy as it affects their learners. -
Fairfax Family Literacy Curriculum
This curriculum is designed to be used in a multi-level adult ESOL family literacy class. -
Fairfax EL/Civics Curriculum
These learner-centered modules stress problem-solving and learner interaction around many life skills topics and contain complete lesson plans, reproducible handouts, and optional computer-based activities. -
The REEP Family Literacy Curriculum
The goal is to assist parents in improving their English language skills and increasing their involvement in their children's schooling. It can be used as a stand-alone curriculum or as a unit of study in a more general ESOL program. -
Building Basics
Building Basics is a multi-level curriculum for teaching students that have expressed a need to learn English within the context of the construction trades. It has been organized into four modules which should be downloaded separately due to their large size: General Construction, Curb Appeal (Landscaping), Painting, and Plumbing. Each module is further divided into five units/lessons. These lessons provide a facilitator guide with step-by-step instructions for implementation, facilitator materials, and learner handouts. The facilitator materials contain copies of all the worksheets, transparencies, drawings, cartoons, handouts, etc., that the teacher will need. Hundreds of original drawings that have been created expressly for this curriculum provide visual support to each lesson.
Most Recent Weblog Post
Students Can Create Comic Stips (February 26, 2008)
Online Educational Comics Launched to Encourage Writing, Reading and Storytelling
An innovative, fun and free educational site for helping ESOL students practice writing, reading, and storytelling skills is available at Make Beliefs Comix.
This site can be used by educators to teach language, reading and writing skills, and also for students in English-as-a-Second-Language programs to facilitate self-expression and storytelling, as well as computer literacy. It is now being used in 160 countries by educators. Some educational therapists use it with deaf and autistic people to help them understand concepts and communicate. Parents and children can create stories together, print them to create comic books or email them to friends and family. Others will find the site a resource to be creative, calm down and have fun.
Try it out!
GED/ESOL Public Service Announcements on TV (February 8, 2008)
The Henrico County Adult Education Center has just launched two public service announcements promoting adult education for GED and ESOL students. The videos have been uploaded to YouTube and can be accessed by search on the general site or the Virginia government channel of YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=Virginiagovernment .
Henrico County Adult Education has done a great job in producing the segments which will run on NBC, Channel 12, in Central Virginia.
Check them out!
Older Weblog Posts
- The Media Library of Teaching Skills (January 31, 2008)
- New Report from the Center of Applied Linguistics (CAL) (January 18, 2008)
- New ESL Study on Persistence (January 7, 2008)
- Free Resources for ELL or Family Literacy Programs (December 17, 2007)
- EL/Civics Online: Integrating EL/Civics into Adult ESL Classes (December 5, 2007)
