Non-fiction in ESL class?

Hello colleagues, Many ESL teachers are getting acquainted with the College and Career Readiness Standards and Key Instructional Advances articulated by the standards for English Language Arts. The Key Instructional Advances include:

1. Complexity: Regular practice with complex text (and its academic language)
2. Evidence: Reading, writing, and speaking grounded in evidence from text
3 .Knowledge: Building knowledge through content-rich information text
 
Rigorous lessons based on nonfiction have not always been routine in adult ESL, but I know this is changing, and many teachers are striving to enhance the rigor of their teaching with a goal of accelerating learners' language acquisition -- that would include me! I wonder if members would share how they are working with non-fiction texts in their classes. Are there teachers working with beginners who are incorporating non-fiction? It would be great to hear some concrete examples from the classroom.
 
Cheers, Susan Finn Miller
Moderator, English Language Acquisition

Comments

Hello colleagues, I'm teaching a beginning ESL class this term, and one of my goals is to bring more informational text into the classroom. We are deep into the cold winter season here in Pennsylvania, so this week we focused on seasons and weather and tackled the question, "Why do we have winter?" I found a text on this topic at an appropriate level by Rachelle Kreisman on the ReadWorks.org site. (This site is free, but it requires registration.) I also located a great 3-minute video on YouTube, "Why do we have seasons?", which I showed before we read the text. The video helped students to consider what they already knew about seasons.  I showed the video without the sound, since the visuals communicate the concepts so beautifully.

We are doing a variety of activities with the text including vocabulary study, buddy reading, partner dictation and writing. I am also identifying words from the text to teach spelling patterns.

I would LOVE to hear how other teachers are using non-fiction.

Cheers, Susan Finn Miller

Moderator, English Language Acquisition

Hello Susan & All,

One of my main sources of non-fiction text for my ESL adults comes from the multiple documents I use when we study for U.S. citizenship. As we begin review of the 100-civics questions, we gain information that prompts us to travel many divergent paths. The first 10 questions alone lead students to research fundamental principles of the Constitution in order to comprehend how it became the "Supreme Law of the Land" in America. As a teacher, I learned early on about the necessity of providing some foundational facts before immersing students in the lengthy study for citizenship. They need to be taught such terminology as amendments, democracy, freedom, government branches and be exposed to such documents as The Bill of Rights, The Fourteenth Amendment, The Pledge of Allegiance, The Star-Spangled Banner, etc. As a result, I developed a Thematic Unit as a preparation tool for studying the 100-questions because I realized without all the above-mentioned strategies, students struggled with comprehension, meaning and purpose. These non-fiction texts and documents provide building blocks of knowledge so students gain confidence to learn more complex materials during the naturalization process. I developed my unit as a participant in the Learner's Lives as Curriculum course to address these issues on a personal level for my students.

Another non-fiction text I use in my classroom is the Easy English News (EEN) monthly subscription newspaper. Parallel to the activities you mention above, this tabloid offers a limitless variety of ideas for lesson plans! Not only do the students keep up with current events but the newspaper suggests educational exercises that accommodate all learning styles. Even my beginners enjoy the challenge of working with EEN because it is so student-oriented, providing brief articles, crossword puzzles, an Idiom Corner, a page for student publications, and a full page devoted to dictionary definitions for new vocabulary used throughout the newspaper. Without exaggeration, I value EEN as a critical instructive resource for our ESL students.