Course Profile Beginning Literacy, ELD Level 1, open, Public

Unit 5: Save the Planet

Activity 1 | Activity 2 | Activity 3 | Activity 4 | Activity 5 | Activity 6

Time: 20 hours

Unit Developer(s): Jane Campbell, Hazel Excell, Michelle Flecker, Denise Gordon, Jane Hill, Paula Markus, Eleanor Minuk, Jane Sims, Betty Ann Taylor

Development Date: July 1999

Unit Description

In this unit students use the environmental concepts of reduce, reuse, and recycle for reading and writing activities. They follow audio tapes of simple books about environmental issues, watch videos, and write from teacher models and sentence starters. They discuss the reading of different forms of text and begin to write regularly in their journals. They are introduced to classified advertisements and letters. The last activity is practising for a final evaluation.

Strand(s) and Expectations

Strand(s): Oral and Visual Communication, Reading, Writing, Social and Cultural Competence

Overall expectations: A0RV.01L, .02L, .03L; AREV.01L, .02L, .03L; AWRV.01L, .02L; ASCV.01L, .02L.

Specific Expectations: AOR1.01L, 1.03L, 1.04L, 2.01L, 2.02L, 3.01L, 3.05L; ARE1.01L, 1.04L, 2.03L, 2.05L, 2.07L, 3.01L, 3.02L, 3.03L; AWR2.01L, 2.03L, ASC1.01L, 1.02L, 2.06L, 2.07L, 2.08L.

Activity Titles (Time + Sequence)

Activity 1	Understanding Pollution	5 hours
Activity 2	Reduce	3 hours
Activity 3	Reuse	3 hours
Activity 4	Recycle	3 hours
Activity 5	An Environmentally Friendly Audit	3 hours
Activity 6	Preparing for Final Evaluations	3 hours

Unit Planning Notes

Many of the concepts and the language skills of this unit could be taught using the facilities of a residential outdoor education centre or a local conservation authority. Such experiential learning is invaluable for literacy students.

Second language students may have had some preparation for this unit if they have worked with the Balance of Nature (Unit 3) of the ESLAO course profile.

Since the content used for language development in this unit is conservation, make sure to set an example by having recycling bins in place and scrap paper available for the students to use. It is important to validate students when they talk about environmental practices before they came to Canada. Many countries are more careful with their natural resources than Canada; others have not made environmental action a priority.

The last activity is preparation for the school-wide final evaluations. Parts of the evaluation preparation might be interwoven with some of the earlier activities, for example, reading the exam schedules. If the Oral and Visual Communication strand is to be evaluated during class hours, quiet activities will have to be devised for individual members of the class when they are not involved in the testing.

Reading and writing evaluation is clustered in the first activities of the unit because many schools have policies prohibiting assessments just before final evaluations.

Before beginning the read-along books in Activity 1, check over the file of A Cumulative Checklist for the Reader at the Emergent Stage Unit 2, Appendix 1. Note which students you need more information about to complete the final column of the checklist.

Prior Knowledge Required

· follows read-alongs

· finds words in a picture dictionary

· has a personal word bank of common words

· is beginning to write independently

· is maintaining a reading log which now includes personal reading

· works in co-operative groups

· understands the concept of abbreviations

· has achieved many of the expectations of ELDAO

Teaching/Learning Strategies

anticipation guide, brainstorming, categorizing, experience charts, field trips, games, journal writing, key word lists, letter writing, mock examination, quiet reading, read-along tapes of non-fiction material, reading conferences, reading graphs, reading schedules, teacher read-alongs, role-playing, writing surveys

Assessment/Evaluation Techniques

Activity	Type	Tool	Category
Activity 1	Diagnostic Formative Formative	Read-alongs Journal Writing Oral Book reports	Knowledge/Application Communication Knowledge/Communication
Activity 3	Summative Diagnostic	Answers re: Classified Ads Household Hints	Know/Communication Application
Activity 4	Formative Diagnostic	Thank-you Note Classifying Materials	Application Thinking
Activity 5	Formative Summative	Role plays Letter	Communication Application/Think/Knowledge/ Communication
Activity 6	Summative Formative	Cumulative Checklist Mock exam	Communication Application

Resources

Be Outdoorable: Outdoor Education Across the Intermediate Division. The Metropolitan Toronto School Board. 1989 (now The Toronto District School Board)

A compendium of activities in a variety of subjects that may be used within a class period in the area around the school.

Law, Barbara and Mary Eckes. Assessment and ESL: On the Yellow Big Road to the Withered of Oz. Winnipeg: Peguis Publishers. 1995

Chapter 8, “Grading: The Final Nail in the Coffee” sums up the challenges and contradictions teachers face in arriving at report card marks. It is thought-provoking rather than conclusive.

Duvall, Jill. Who Keeps the Water Clean? Ms Schindler! Chicago: Children’s Press, 1998.

This book written in a photojournalistic style is one of a series of biographies designed to encourage students to think about the ways they might influence their community as adults. There are more than thirty books in the series, Our Neighbourhood, at a beginning reading level which foster an interest in a wide variety of careers. Titles include: A Day in Court with Mrs. Trinh, Flying an Agricultural Plane with Mr. Miller, Chef Ki Is Serving Dinner. The Canadian distributor is Harper Collins Canada, (416) 321-2241.

Activity 1: Understanding Pollution

Time: 300 minutes

Description

Students participate in an environmentally friendly scavenger hunt in which they sketch items from a list provided. They identify both positive and negative human interventions. After students have reached an understanding of the meaning of pollution, they participate in a read-along activity using audio tapes of books related to environmental problems. They identify key words to describe photographs depicting pollution.

Strand(s) and Expectations

Strand(s): Oral and Visual Communication, Reading, Writing, Social and Cultural Competence

Overall Expectations: AORV.02L, AORV.03Lv, AREV.02Lv, AWRV.02Lv, ASCV.01L.

Specific Expectations: A0R3.01Lv, ARE1.01Lv, ARE2.07Lv, AWR2.01Lv, ASC1.09L.

Planning Notes

· This unit has activities involving work in the schoolyard and immediate neighbourhood of the school. Permissions for the duration of their enrollment at the school or at least for an entire school year for such supervised excursions are best obtained when students register in a school. Teachers need to consult with the school administration about local policies.

· In this activity students listen to readings of several short illustrated books about environmental problems. It is important that there are enough copies of the books for each student to follow as the tapes are played.

· Prepare an audio-tape of each book chosen. This may be done by the teacher or by another group in the school such as a drama class.

· Make plans about the location and timing of this taped reading. Consider using this activity in the Learning Resource Centre so that students could be divided among seminar rooms. Ideally both books and tapes could be checked out of the Learning Resource Centre for students to use at home.

Materials Needed

· masking tape, scrap paper; clipboards; copies of lists for an environmentally-friendly scavenger hunt (Appendix 1); a tape-recording of three or four simple books or articles about current environmental issues (see resource list); a large chart divided in two columns with headings Manufactured and Found in Nature; a collection of items such as a shell, a button, a leaf, a pine needle, a pencil, a stone etc.

Prior Knowledge Required

· finds words in a picture dictionary

· has a personal word bank of common words

Teaching/Learning Strategies

1. Distribute the collection of items to students. Have students place their items on the chart under the appropriate heading: Manufactured and Found in Nature. As each item is removed, write the name of the item on the chart and on the board. Students copy this vocabulary list in their notebook.

2. As a homework assignment, have students sketch or write lists of things that are found in nature in their community. The next day students use picture dictionaries to check spelling and add to their lists.

3. Have students select one item from their list and write or draw it on a scrap piece of paper without showing it to anyone. They use masking tape to attach the paper to the back of a classmate. Students play What am I? by asking yes and no questions. Set a time limit and at the end make a list of the items which were identified and those which were not. Discuss the similarities and differences of the lists and what types of questions led to quick solutions. (Guesses usually don’t lead to quick solutions.)

4. Take students on a walk through a near-by park or ravine. Distribute clipboards, pencils, and copies of A Scavenger Hunt, Appendix 1. Read through the list making sure all the students understand what they are looking for. They sketch items on the list that they find and note the location.

5. Back in the classroom use the scavenger lists for journal writing. Model the beginnings of the sentences they may wish to use: Yesterday our class went to..., We took..., We saw..., We thought..., I couldn’t find.., .Some of the signs of humans were good. I liked..., but some things were bad. There was.… Respond to each journal and collect a list of items students identified as undesirable.

6. Show students the books they will be reading: Too Much Trash!, What Happens When You Recycle, Air Pollution, Water Pollution, Soil Erosion and Water Pollution. These books are written for various levels of reading proficiency. Ask students to tell what they understand by the term pollution. Use the pictures on the covers of the books to expand their understanding and predict what questions the books will answer. Explain that they will read all of these books by following in the text as they listen to a tape. Rotate students through groups until all of them have listened to every book. This may take part of a period for several days.

7. When students have listened to the tapes of the books, discuss their predictions and reinforce that thinking ahead helps understanding even when the predictions are inaccurate. Have students choose one of these texts to re-read in preparation for a conference. Explain that their assignment is to choose five pictures from the text to explain in an interview. Show students how to select key words from the page which describe the picture. Have students list the key words for each photograph. Arrange time to interview each student about his/her book. Students use photographs and their lists of key words as memory-aids to demonstrate how much general knowledge they have acquired about the topic of the book. Note how well their explanations fit the pictures.

8. Using the new information they have acquired from the read-along activities, students brainstorm how people can reduce pollution and protect the earth. Show them how their solutions fit into the categories used by environmentalists: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Record their suggestions on a wall chart to be posted for the rest of this unit.

9. Have students write a second journal entry about pollution.

Assessment/Evaluation

· ability to make predictions about Read-alongs (Diagnostic)

· volume of writing and ability to communicate in journal writing; errors are not corrected (Formative)

· book conferences, using the criteria outlined in Teaching/Learning Strategy 7 (Formative)

Accommodations

· Scribe for students as needed. These teacher-prepared notes may be copied into journals by students.

· Use a book such as Window which has no printed text.

Resources

Baker, Jeannie. Window. New York: Greenwillow Books, 1991.

Fowler, Alan. It Could Still Be Water. Chicago: Children’s Press, 1991.

Fowler, Alan. Recycle That. Chicago: Children’s Press, 1991.

Robinson, Fay. Too Much Trash! Chicago: Children’s Press, 1990.

Shapiro, Norma. The Oxford Picture Dictionary. Monolingual Canadian Edition. Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1999.

Sharp, Katie. What Happens When You Recycle. Crystal Lake, Ill: Rigby, 1998.

Stille, Darlene. Air Pollution. Chicago: Children’s Press, 1990.

Stille, Darlene. Water Pollution. Chicago: Children’s Press, 1990.

Stille, Darlene. Soil Erosion and Water Pollution. Chicago. Children’s Press, 1990.

Activity 2: Reduce

Time: 180 minutes

Description

Students discuss availability and purity of water in their home countries. They conduct a survey about what kinds of water people in their school drink and summarize the results in a graph. Using an anticipation guide as a pre-reading activity, the students read a fact sheet on water. They explore ways to reduce water use.

Strand(s) and Expectations

Strand(s): Oral and Visual Communication, Reading, Writing, Social and Cultural Competence

Overall Expectations: AORV.01L; AREV.03L; AWRV.01L; ASCV.01L.

Specific Expectations: AOR1.01L; ARE3.02L; AWR2.01L; ASC1.01L.

Planning Notes

· An anticipation guide is a pre-reading strategy that assists students in predicting and using their prior knowledge to take a stand on issues and concepts. It involves the whole class, small groups, or individual students agreeing or disagreeing with a series of statements, issues, or attitudes presented in a reading selection. An anticipation guide helps prepare students for reading by providing a context prior to the reading. (See Appendix 2A)

· Much of the information on water use involves measurement in litres. Provide litre-sized containers to aid understanding.

· Identify what group of 40 – 50 people would be willing to fill out questionnaires about the kind of water they drink.

· Explain to the class that the purification of drinking water is a municipal responsibility and local governments are required by law to provide safe drinking water. The read-aloud, Who Keeps the Water Clean? Ms Schindler! demonstrates how costly the treatment of water is and can lead to an understanding of how wasting clean water is irresponsible.

Prior Knowledge Required

· use some basic reading strategies with teacher guidance

· formulate and write questions

· read bar graphs

Teaching/Learning Strategies

1. Begin with a discussion of whether water was scarce or plentiful in their native countries: Did they buy water? Did it come from a well or a lake or a river? Was it necessary to boil drinking water?

2. Read Who Keeps the Water Clean? Ms Schindler! aloud to the class. Discuss her job and other careers people might have in the water industry such as testing levels of pollution in drinking water, bottling water commercially, or repairing damaged water pipes.

3. Discuss what types of water people drink today in Canada: tap water, filtered water, commercial bottled water. Bring examples of each to the class. Have students do an in-class blind taste test and record their results. Explain how to do a survey and determine which groups in the school should be surveyed. Have students consider such groups as a Science class or a Senior Physical Education class. Students formulate questions for a questionnaire on choices in drinking water. The teacher and/or students type, duplicate, and distribute these questionnaires to the selected groups.

4. Use an overhead transparency of the anticipation guide statements from Water: Pre-reading. (Appendix 2A) Read the statements aloud one by one. Students think about each statement, indicate whether they agree or disagree, and give reasons for their opinions.

5. Distribute Water: Student Reading. (Appendix 2B) Students read to confirm their opinions. Discuss their findings as an introduction for the video Down the Drain or another video on the list.

6. When the results of the drinking water survey have been collected, the group makes a chart using the headings Tap Water, Filtered Water, Bottled Water. Number the left side 1 to 40. Have students survey at least forty people and record the results on the chart. Total the numbers in each column. With the class tabulate and record the information as a bar graph. e.g., 16 people drink tap water. … people use a filtered container.

For homework, using the data on the bar graph students write the results of the survey in complete sentences: Most people…, Some….., A few…. Check the next day that the homework was completed accurately.

7. Watch one of the videos listed in Resources for additional background information on water usage. Discuss the highlights of the video.

Accommodations

· Scribe for individual students as necessary.

· Sequence jumbled student-generated sentences to practise comprehension.

Resources

Duvall, Jill. Who Keeps the Water Clean? Ms Schindler! Chicago. Children’s Press, 1998.

Down the Drain. Children’s Television Workshop. 1991. 30 minutes.

Source of Life: water in our environment. Rainbow Educational Video. 1991. 22 minutes.

Water, Water Everywhere. National Film Board. 4 minutes. 45 seconds

Troubled Water. NIS. 1993.

Activity 3: Reuse

Time: 180 minutes

Description

In this activity students discuss their values about second-hand items. They practise locating and evaluating items for sale in classified advertisements. Students also write an advertisement, following a teacher-prepared model. They make notepads from paper found in recycling bins.

Strand(s) and Expectations

Strand(s): Oral and Visual Communication, Reading, Writing, Social and Cultural Competence

Overall Expectations: AORV.03Lv; AREV.02L; AWRV.02L; ASCV.01L.

Specific Expectations: AOR3.05Lv; ARE3.01L, 3.03L; AWR2.01L; ASC1.02L.

Planning Notes

· Be prepared for considerable diversity of opinion about the purchase of used items. Hand-me-downs and second-hand items are culturally value-laden and the differing views must be respected.

· Locate a good source of classified advertisements or write some examples. Wedding gowns and motorcycles are likely to spark interesting discussions.

· Arrange for access to paper recycling bins that are likely to yield large amounts of high quality paper to make into memo pads. In some cases this will have to be pre-sorted for confidential material such as student tests that will need to be shredded.

· The use of a paper cutter requires careful instruction and supervision.

· Teaching/Learning Strategy 7 requires setting up items in centres around the classroom. This will need to be done before the class begins.

Materials Needed

· newspapers, magazines that contain classified advertisements; paper cutter; staplers; stamps or stencils (optional); a selection of often discarded household items.

Prior Knowledge Required

· reads simple materials

· works in co-operative groups

· understands the concept of abbreviations

· is familiar with Blue Boxes

Teaching/Learning Strategies

1. Discuss the students’ experiences with second-hand objects and their opinions of garage sales and flea markets. Introduce some examples of classified advertisements. Explain the practice of paying by the number of lines and the use of invented abbreviations. Select several abbreviations to write on the board and have students guess what the items might be. Draw attention to the fact that some people prefer not to use classified advertisements because they are concerned about the safety of having people telephone them or coming to their homes.

2. Distribute a set of simple questions: What is for sale? How much does it cost? How does the buyer contact the seller? What is special about this item? Have students practise the answers to these questions orally and then, using five advertisements, have them write answers in their notebooks.

3. For homework have students write an advertisement for an item they would like to sell, based on the questions used in class. The next day, check their work and have the students copy their advertisements onto file cards to post in alphabetical order on a large poster entitled For Sale. Repeat Teaching/Learning Strategy 2, using a few of the students’ advertisements. The answers are to be handed in for assessment.

4. Establish that paper comes from trees by showing one of the videos listed in the resource guide or another from your board catalogue. Paper can be recycled or it may be reused. Generate a short list of rules about what can go in a Blue Box. Post this list near the classroom Blue Box.

5. Show students memo pads that are made from used paper and explain that the class will make scrap paper pads. Assign roles: paper sorting and straightening, paper cutting, stamping with the school logo, stapling. Decide together which areas of the school should be the recipient of their efforts. Students should also be encouraged to take a memo pad home to their family.

6. Review with the students the steps the class followed to make scrap paper pads. Record the steps in point form on the board. Have students use the point form notes to write a composition entitled: How to Make Memo Pads.

7. Use an overhead transparency to introduce students to the household hints section of a magazine or newspaper. Draw attention to hints for reusing an item that is often discarded. Set up stations around the classroom with various items: newspapers, bed sheets, egg cartons, towels, twist ties. Have pairs of students visit each station and suggest as many uses as possible for each item. Post lists over each item. Then have each student choose one idea and write it as a household hint. Encourage peer help with spelling.

Assessment/Evaluation

· Responses to Classified Ad Questions. Evaluate use of capitalization, punctuation and simple sentence structures. (Summative)

· Household Hints, evaluating use of the imperative (Diagnostic)

Accommodations

· Make and apply stencils for the memo pad activity.

· Scribe for students as required.

· More advanced students compile the hints into a page for a newsletter using a header and double columns.

Resources

Videos

How Paper is Made. AIMS Media. 1993.

Paper. Kaw Valley Films. 1986. 13 minutes.

Activity 4: Recycle

Time: 180 minutes

Description

In this activity students discuss how Canada and other countries dispose of their garbage. They listen to a guest speaker explain recycling programs and write a thank-you note. They review the variety of text forms they have learned to read in this course. Individually they answer questions based on reading a schedule.

Strand(s) and Expectations

Strand(s): Oral and Visual Communication, Reading, Writing, Social and Cultural Competence.

Overall Expectations: AORV.03L; AREV.01L; AWRV.01Lv; ASCV.02L.

Specific Expectations: AOR1.03L, 2.01L; ARE3.03L; AWR2.01Lv; ASC1.02L.

Planning Notes

· Arrange for a speaker: a student from the Earth Day committee, Environmental Club, a teacher with a special interest in the environment, or a community volunteer to speak briefly to the class.

· If a speaker cannot be arranged, the language experience summary of key points exercise could be attached to the video viewed.

· The reading focus of this activity is designed to raise students’ awareness of how much they have learned about the nature of texts. These pragmatic cues range from noting the quality of paper of a flyer, size, and print styles, to the spacing of words on a page.

· Make up five or six questions about garbage schedule, Appendix 3. e.g., When will the garbage be picked up next? What day can people put out Christmas trees? What date is a holiday? Students add their own question and answer it.

Materials Needed

· video on recycling; a bulletin board display including environmental brochures, some brochures in other languages, junk mail of many kinds, print material from other units: e.g., recipes (Unit 2), school rules (Unit 3), timetable (Unit 1); a class set of local garbage schedules or Appendix 3.

Prior Knowledge Required

· is familiar with a variety of print forms

· writes simple texts

· knows the form of a thank-you letter

Teaching/Learning Strategies

1. Discuss with students how garbage was recycled and disposed of in their native countries. Explore what they already know about recycling programs. Show one of the videos listed or another available from your school board.

2. Have a speaker come to the class and explain community recycling programs. Recapitulate the key points of the talk using a language experience approach. Students copy these into their notebooks.

3. Model a thank-you note that you have written for a similar occasion. Include a reference to something you learned. Highlight the sentence starters in your version that students may use. Have students write first drafts of a thank you letter to the speaker. Work with them to edit their drafts and copy the corrected version. Forward these to the speaker.

4. Arrange a selection of printed material such as those listed in Materials Needed on a bulletin board. Make the display very random: upside-down, sideways, back to front. Have one student follow the directions of classmates to organize the materials so that all are right side up. Remind students to use expressions such as: I’m next, It’s my turn. Discuss the different text forms students have become familiar with during this course. Draw their attention to a brochure written in another language. Ask how they knew how to arrange it right side up. Select other features they can identify without understanding the words: titles, numbers, prices, times. Point out how much they have learned about reading.

5. Title the display: How to reduce, recycle, and reuse. Have students arrange pieces of print under the correct heading, explain what the remaining items are about and why they do not fit in the display. If any students can give good reasons about why an item is connected, reinstate it in the display.

6. Distribute copies of garbage schedules, see Appendix 3 with questions to answer. Explain that this is practice for a test and they must try to do the work without consulting classmates.

Assessment/Evaluation

· thank-you note (Formative)

· observation of students’ ability to classify printed material (Diagnostic)

Accommodations

· Students having difficulty with handwriting may use a computer for thank-you notes.

· Individual students may redo the bulletin board activity with the different types of print.

Resources

Videos

Reducing, Reusing, and Recycling: environmental concerns. Rainbow Educational Video.1990. 20 minutes

Recycle me. Handel Film. 1992. 12 minutes

Recycling: the endless circle. National Geographic Society.1992. 25 minutes

Recycling with David Suzuki. Robin Electronics. 10 minutes

Activity 5: An Environmentally Friendly Audit

Time: 180 minutes

Description

In this activity students consider energy use and litter in the school environment. They collect data using an energy survey form that they construct. They weigh and classify schoolyard litter. They compose a group letter to the principal making recommendations.

Strand(s) and Expectations

Strand(s): Oral and Visual Communication, Reading, Writing, Social and Cultural Competence

Overall Expectations: AORV.01L; AREV.02L; AWRV.02Lv; ASCV.01L.

Specific Expectations: A0R2.02L; ARE2.05L; AWR2.01Lv; ASC1.01L, 1.09L.

Planning Notes

· Speak with an administrator to gain co-operation with this activity. If possible, arrange a partnership with the school environmental club, Earth Day committee, or a senior science class for the schoolyard garbage audit. Invite a school administrator to join in; the inclusion of others raises the positive profile of the students as actively participating in the life of the school.

· Props, costumes, and name cards are helpful in de-personalizing role-plays.

Materials Needed

· disposable gloves or baggies; a plastic grocery bag for each student; a weigh scale (science departments, nurse’s office).

Prior Knowledge Required

· understanding of recycling and energy use from previous activities

· experience with role-playing

Teaching/Learning Strategies

1. With the students brainstorm ways in which a school might waste energy. Review/teach the term energy: light and heat. Make up a checklist and assign different areas of the school for a group of students to monitor for one day after school looking for lights left on in empty classrooms, curtains left open at the end of the day, overheated classrooms. Summarize the answers on a classroom chart.

2. Discuss the problem of litter and explain how the class can make a difference by cleaning up the schoolyard. Remind students that if they were to find a syringe they should not touch it but report the site to the administrator. Also review the reasons for wearing gloves when handling garbage.

3. Together with a school administrator and with students from another organization or class, assign teams to each of four quadrants of the schoolyard: North, South, East and West. Tell them they have 20 minutes to work and establish a signal for calling teams back. Weigh the material. Then have them sort the garbage into separate types: metal, paper, styrofoam, leftover food. Put aside items that can be recycled and put the rest in the proper place for disposal.

4. In the classroom, discuss which quadrant had the most garbage and why. Have them discuss how their team worked and whether they spent any time planning their activity. Another entry for their journals might be to describe what they liked or dislike about this activity.

5. Explore ways in which students think the amount of schoolyard litter might be reduced. List these randomly on the board and then have students organize them into a semantic map by suggesting which things belong together using the topics: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

6. Prepare for partner role-plays in which one student is the principal and the other represents their class in presenting ways to improve the school environment. Review ways to express opinions politely and positively: maybe we could, perhaps it might be possible... Have students practise the role plays several times switching partners and roles. Assess a final performance of the role plays using Appendix 5.

7. Prepare a group letter using a language experience approach. Discuss who would be the most effective person to receive the letter. Incorporate the suggestions students have expressed during the role play. Have students decide whether they wish to send their letter or not.

8. Students prepare a note for their journal about one way a family could live in a more environmentally friendly way.

Assessment/Evaluation

· evaluate role plays using rubric in Appendix 5 (Formative)

Accommodations

· Stronger students assist their peers in categorizing activity.

· A stronger student may be chosen to type the final version of the letter to the principal.

· First language scribes from senior classes could write dictated letters from students.

Activity 6: Preparing for Final Evaluation

Time: 180 minutes

Description

Students familiarize themselves with final evaluation procedures for all of their courses, work out a study timetable, learn the vocabulary and organization of examinations. They practise test-taking skills using a mock examination. They correct their responses by sharing with partners.

Strand(s) and Expectations

Strand(s): Oral and Visual Communication, Reading, Writing, Social and Cultural Competence.

Overall Expectations: AORV.02L; AREV.03L; AWRV.01L; ASCV.02Lv.

Specific Expectations: AOR1.04L; ARE3.03L; AWRV.02L; ASC2.03L, 2.06Lv.

Planning Notes

· Toward the end of the course, ELD teachers should familiarize themselves with local school policy about final evaluations. Since most of the protocols about examinations and other evaluations are unfamiliar to literacy students, they will require considerable preparation.

· Appropriate levels of accommodation or decisions to exempt beginning literacy students from parts of final evaluations in all subjects need to be agreed upon with administrators and communicated to the students. For policy support, refer to the document, Program Planning and Assessment, p. 7. Some practical demonstrations such as making a drawing in art, or demonstrating a first aid technique in Physical Education may be suitable. Many students are able to respond orally if questions are read aloud to them. Some schools may provide a special examination room for this purpose.

· Identify areas to highlight in explanations to students: silence in exam room, staying for a minimum amount of time, finishing on time, attendance policies for students at times when final evaluations are not taking place for them.

· Consider how students can best demonstrate their progress in literacy. Identify the key expectations that can be measured and devise ways to test knowledge, thinking, communication, and application of the skills learned.

· A school or department decision must be made on the format of a final evaluation for ELDAO. The particular suggestions for a mock exam in Appendix 4 have content from several units in the course. In some schools teachers may wish to use only the materials and content of the final unit.

· Draw up a mock final examination. This is intended to be used in a class period as a preparation for a final evaluation. It should be thought of as an hour of independent work in which students can demonstrate what they have learned. An examination in ELD is often esteem-enhancing for students; they appreciate being part of the mainstream.

· Because this course has an oral-visual strand, some of the evaluation requires individual or group interviews. Decisions must be taken about whether these will be scheduled as part of the school-wide special timetable or whether class time will be used. If class time is used students need to work quietly while others are tested. Possible work could be silent reading of additional titles from the series suggested for classroom reading for final additions to reading logs and/or a final journal entry based on the topics, Here’s what to remember about me and My best memories of this class. Law, Barbara. Eckes, Mary. Assessment and ESL: On the Yellow Big Road to the Withered of Oz. p. 252.

· Make sure the file of Cumulative Checklists for the Emergent Reader are completed and included as part of the term mark.

Materials Needed

· agenda books or calendar; calculators; pens that write in a colour other than black, blue, or red.

Prior Knowledge Required

· study skills

· achievement of many expectations of ELDAO

· experience with informal quizzes

Teaching/Learning Strategies

1. When the specialized calendars and exam schedules for the end of semester or year are available, design another exercise like the one used in Activity 4, strategy 5 with the garbage schedule. Then work with students to transfer information about special end of year events such as assemblies, school picnics, locker clean-ups, evaluation times to their agenda books or a personal calendar. Check carefully that students have the correct room number, time, and date of all examinations. Be aware of all accommodations being made for students so that misunderstandings do not arise.

2. Review the study skills they developed in Unit 4. Discuss what they can do to prepare for examinations in other subjects. e.g., repeating a question for each exercise, copying meanings for words, sounding out words, working with a partner. Help students develop a plan for preparing for other subjects.

3. Continue to review material that students have studied and brainstorm with them the ways they might be able to show what they have learned during the course.

4. Use a number of examples to demonstrate the relationship between term marks and final evaluation marks. Emphasize the importance of attendance at the final evaluation.

5. Introduce the mock examination using an overhead transparency. Students locate headings, length of time available, and numbering systems. If there are choice questions indicate the key words. Highlight the words which tell what the student is to do: circle, match, etc. Examine the marking scheme to decide how much time to spend on a question.

6. The next day separate the desks and reorganize the room to resemble other rooms in the school during examinations. Give the students the paper and a work paper if applicable. The students attempt the mock examination. The teacher may read the directions aloud but they must do the other reading on their own. Model the school protocol for examinations during this hour.

7. Return the marked practice examinations assuring students that this mark will not be recorded. Explain that you will however assign a mark for how well they correct their errors and complete unfinished answers. Distribute pens that write in another colour such as green or purple. Have students work in groups of four and with the assistance of partners who have the correct answers and consultations with the teacher the students correct the exam. Collect the papers and assign marks for the completeness and accuracy of the corrections. Provide model answers for difficult questions. Assign a similar question for homework and work together until students understand what is required.

Assessment/Evaluation

· Checking of mock examination corrections (Formative)

· Cumulative checklist for emergent readers (Summative)

Accommodations

· Some students may be able to do a final examination if it is broken into 10- or 15-minute chunks.

· Decisions about whether a student will benefit most from repeating a course need to be made in consultation with department heads, and guidance staff.

Resources

The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 9 and 10: Program Planning and Assessment. Toronto. Ministry of Education and Training, 1999.

Law, Barbara and Mary Eckes. Assessment and ESL: On the Yellow Big Road to the Withered of Oz. Winnipeg: Peguis Publishers, 1995.

Appendix 1: A Scavenger Hunt

Find Sketch Location Found

an animal’s home

food for a bird

food for a squirrel

an insect on a plant

a pine needle

a leaf

a seed that travels by wind

Natural Objects in Shapes

circle

rectangle

square

oval

Signs of People

Appendix 2A: Water: Pre-Reading – Overhead Transparency

Agree or Disagree and Give Reasons.

Water

1. The worst room in the house for wasting water is the kitchen.

2. Canadians use more water than any other people.

3. Water is dirty because chemicals are dumped in the lakes and rivers.

4. A shower uses more water than a bath.

5. The water in the oceans is undrinkable.

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Appendix 2B: Student Reading

· Earth is mostly water.

· Oceans, lakes, and rivers cover more of the globe than land does.

· Much water cannot be used. The water in the ocean is salty. The water in the Arctic ocean is frozen into ice.

· Canadians use more water per person that any other people.

· Almost half the water used in Canada is used in homes.

· Much of Canada’s water is becoming polluted.

· The worst room in the house for wasting water is the bathroom.

· How much water do we use at home?

Shower - 25 litres a minute

Bath - 50 litres

Dripping tap- 25 litres per day

Dishwasher- 50 litres per load

Laundry - 85 litres per load

· Gasoline and fertilizer pollute underground water.

· Poisonous chemicals and garbage are dumped in rivers, lakes and oceans.

Appendix 3: Garbage Pickup Schedule

Adapted from Toronto 1999/2000 Garbage and Recycling Collection Calendar

Appendix 4: Suggestions for Preparing a Mock Examination

I. Oral Work (10 marks)

(completed with teacher individually)

· Students bring their journal or their Canada Portfolio to the interview.

· Teacher makes up a series of simple readings based on water and copies them on file cards.

· Student selects one file card.

Sample Activities:

a) Choose your best piece of writing and explain it.

b) Read the paragraph on your card several times. Turn the card over. Explain the paragraph to the teacher.

II - Spelling (10 marks)

a) ten high frequency words that students have studied previously

b) a few sentences that students have studied specifically in advance

III - Reading (10 marks)

1. Provide groups of three or four familiar words then use some of the sample activities listed below.

a) Circle the words that start with the same letter as the first word.

b) Underline the word that rhymes with the first word.

c) Circle the words in the past tense.

d) Match the word to the symbol:

2. Reading Passage (5 marks) Fill in the blanks in this paragraph with a word that makes sense.

(This passage should be a passage they have studied.)

3. Sight Passage (5 marks) (This passage should be on a topic studied recently and should include familiar vocabulary but there should be some new ideas.)

Answer the questions that come after the paragraph.

IV - Writing (10 marks)

1.Write a thank you letter to a guest speaker

or

Write a composition explaining how to make something (e.g. memo pads)

2. Fill in the following form.

(This might be based on an information chart about a locker break in or similar school related problem where students might be expected to fill in a form answering the questions and following the format they learned in Unit 3.)

Appendix 5: Assessment of Role Plays

Category	Level 1 50-59%	Level 2 60-69%	Level 3 70-79%	Level 4 80-100%
Knowledge/ Understanding Understands the concept of improving the school environment	The student demonstrates: - limited understanding of improving the school environment	The student demonstrates: - some understanding of improving the school environment	The student demonstrates: - considerable understanding of improving the school environment	The student demonstrates: - thorough understanding of improving the school environment
Communication Introduce themselves Use polite forms of greetings and leave-takings Uses standard Canadian English speech patterns	- limited ability to introduce themselves - limited ability to use polite forms of greetings and leave-takings - limited ability to use standard Canadian English speech patterns	- some ability to introduce themselves - some ability to use polite forms of greetings and leave-takings - some ability to use standard Canadian English speech patterns	- considerable ability to introduce themselves - considerable ability to use polite forms of greetings and leave-takings - considerable ability to use standard Canadian English speech patterns	- thorough ability to introduce themselves - thorough ability to use polite forms of greetings and leave-takings - thorough ability to use standard Canadian English speech patterns
Application Uses language skills to persuade	- limited ability to use language skills to persuade	- some ability to use language skills to persuade	- considerable ability to use language skills to persuade	- thorough ability to use language skills to persuade

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