Integrating Transitional Academic Skills
into Upper Level ESOL Classes
Prepared by Barbara Piccirilli Al-Sabek, MED TESL
For the Effective Transitions in Adult Education 2011 Conference
November 14 - 15, 2011
Providence, RI
To the workshop participant,
Every learner has ‘gaps’ in his or her education, and language development skills are not usually
balanced. As ESOL instructors preparing learners for transition to post-secondary education, we
can not fill all of these gaps, but attending to them before college makes the transition process
smoother, and often removes some of the stumbling blocks to higher level literacy and
language performance. In twenty years of teaching English language learners at all levels,
including college ESOL and learning strategies courses, I have observed, assessed, and
attempted to remedy some of these gaps. This presentation takes a linguistic approach, and
covers the following;
Phonology
Rules and concepts of voicing, articulation of vowels and consonants, supra-segementals
including syllable stress, alphabetics, decoding, understanding syllable types, IPA.
IPA symbols http://macchiato.com/unicode/IPA.html
Morphology
Roots, affixes, common English language word building processes,
Syntax
Nomenclature of language structures, parts of speech, verb tense form and function, word
forms
Semantics/Vocabulary
Second tier vocabulary, semantic connections, vocabulary domains, vocabulary in context
denotation vs connotation
Discourse level/Writing
Explicit instruction in formats: summary writing, cause and effect, compare and contrast,
brainstorming with graphic organizers
Familiarity with standard correction symbols with emphasis on developmental language errors
(word forms, tense, agreement, reference, etc)
Standard correction symbols http://papyr.com/hypertextbooks/grammar/error_chart.htm
Genesis Center
Room 7
Regular Verb Pronunciation
Name ________________________________________ Date ________________
Instructions: Listen to the regular past tense verbs and write the ending pronunciation you
hear. Write /t/, /d/, or /Id/ before the verb.
1. _______ inspected
2. _______ worked
3. _______ packed
4. _______ used
5. _______ carded
6. _______ served
7. _______ washed
8. _______ cooked
9. _______ baked
10. _______ boiled
11. _______ fried
12. _______ mixed
13. _______ roasted
14. _______ assisted
15. _______ helped
16. _______ cleaned
17. _______ instructed
18. _______ showed
19. _______ trained
20. _______ operated
21. _______ greeted
22. _______ moved
26. ______ advised
27. ______ analyzed
28. ______ arranged
29. ______ advocated
30. ______ calculated
31. ______ compared
32. ______ completed
33. ______ communicated
34. ______ consulted
35. ______ controlled
36. ______ created
37. ______ decided
38. ______ determined
39. ______ demonstrated
40. ______ mowed
41. ______ shoveled
42. ______ planted
43. ______ landscaped
44. ______ filled
45. ______ filed
46. ______ changed
47. ______ developed
23. ________folded
24. ________ironed
25. ________ordered
48. _______ fixed
49. _______ repaired
50. _______ translated
Genesis Center
Alphabetics Class
Spring 2010
Name ________________________________ Date______________
Double Vowel Syllable Type
Part 1. Instructions: Provide words that illustrate the following vowel pairs within a syllable.
1. Give a word that shows the common pronunciation of ‘ee’: ___________
2. Give two words that show how the long ‘a’ sound is usually spelled:
_____________________ ________________________________
3. Give the two examples of how the vowel sound / / is written:
_____________________ ________________________________
4. What is another vowel combination that gives the sound of ‘oy’ in boy? ___________
Part II. Double Trouble Combinations
1. ‘oo’ is usually pronounced in two ways: ___________ and ___________
2. ‘ei’ is commonly pronounced in three ways:
a. ______________
b. ______________
c. ______________
3. Give three words that demonstrate the different pronunciations of ‘ea’:
a. ______________
b. ______________
c. ______________
4. Give four words that show the different ways ‘ou’ can be pronounced:
a. ______________
b. ______________
c. ______________
d. ______________
5. What are the two common ways ‘ie’ is pronounced?
___________________ ______________________
6. Give two words that illustrate the two pronunciations of ‘ue’.
___________________ ______________________
VOCABULARY STRATEGIES
Analogies
A list of the top 200 English vocabulary items for the nursing / health-care industry, based on the
Occupational Handbook provided by the United States Department of Labor is available at:
http://esl.about.com/od/englishformedicalpurpose/a/nursing_vocabulary.htm
There is also a list for essential food services, landscaping, and other work related vocabulary.
Instructions: Complete the analogies.
1. cardiology : _______________ = podiatry: feet
2. RN: registered nurse = LPN: ________________________
3. pediatrics: ______________= ______________________: the elderly
4. ____________________: high blood pressure = _______________ “’sugar”
5. acute: ______________________ = chronic : persistent
6. DDS: Doctor of Dental Surgery = MD: __________________________
7. diagnosis: diagnostic = certification: ______________________
8. heart: circulation = ______________: breathing
9. illness: ________________ = difficult :hard
10. medication: medications = facility: __________________
Instructions: Circle the word that does not belong.
oncology, cardiology, psychiatrist, gastroenterology, gynecology
doctor, nurse, patient, CNA, emergency, medtech
intensive care, surgery, emergency room, procedures, laboratory
Vocabulary Domains
(vocabulary taken from“Walk, Amble, Stroll, Vocabulary Building Through Domains, Level 2. Trump, Trechter,and Holisky.,
Heinle, 1992)
Summary: For learners who have compiled a basic vocabulary, the necessity to add synonyms
and even nuance to their speaking and writing becomes evident. Teaching and using vocabulary
in ways that make use of concrete referents and role playing reinforce the learner’s
understanding of the differences among words that comprise a vocabulary domain.
Example: The teacher can act out the various ways of walking while providing sentences
employing some of the many English language ‘walk’ domain words, and emphasize the
differences in speed, pace, or attitude.
Walk Domain
Speed
Step
Attitude
edge
pace
strut
creep
march
stride
stroll
toddle
shuffle
hurry
limp
trudge
hasten
waddle
swagger
Teachers can write paragraphs or just sentences using the domain words, ask students to give
examples of who would walk this way, and when, and model the different ways of walking.
Ideally, the modeling reinforces the descriptive nature of the word, so the learner viscerally
understands the difference between tiredly plodding home from school and slinking into the
house after curfew, between tiptoeing quietly upstairs and stomping round.
Teaching and learning vocabulary in domains allows the learner to sample some of the richness
of the English language lexicon as it expands the students’ vocabulary beyond the minimally
descriptive verbs like ‘walk’ or ‘talk’, or adjectives too often relied on like ‘happy’ and ‘sad’.
Concept of the ‘degree’ inherent in words like ‘content’, ‘pleased’, thrilled’, ‘excited’, ‘ecstatic’
can be introduced with modeling and sentence examples.
Second Tier Vocabulary – see handout
WRITING A SUMMARY
In order to think critically about what you have read, you need to precisely understand what
the author has said. Writing a summary helps you to clarify an author’s thesis and ideas. Using
your own words, you condense the main points of an essay or article. In this way you can not
only understand the author’s main idea and intent, but you can also better analyze the
strengths and weaknesses of the author’s writing.
When writing a summary, remember to:
1. Include the title of the article you are summarizing, as well as the author’s name, and the
source of the article, at or near the beginning of the summary.
2. Identify the central idea of the article and state it.
3. Determine what the major supporting arguments are and state them. OMIT most details
and examples; use details and examples only when they are necessary to explain the
author’s main idea.
4. Paraphrase, or use your own words. Use quotations sparingly A summary is a BRIEF
and objective explanation of the author’s main point(s), but not a copy of the author’s
words.
5. Remember that your opinion or response does not belong in summary. A response is
another type of writing.
SAMPLE SUMMARY OF “The Birth Order Myth”
pages 33-35 of Concepts for Today
In “The Birth Order Myth”, Alfie Kohn discusses some popular misconceptions about the
position of a child in a family. The author maintains that despite what we believe, the oldest
child is not necessarily the most successful, and the youngest is not always the most charming of
the siblings.
But Kohn tells us that some research on families has indicated there are some factors that
could influence a child’s temperament or personality. These are the number of children in a
family, the number of years between children (spacing), and the idea of the self-fulfilling
prophecy. The self fulfilling prophecy occurs, for example, when we believe our oldest child will
be the most responsible, and treat him or her like a responsible person, or when we ourselves
“spoil” the youngest sibling.
Understanding Vocabulary from CONTEXT CLUES
Context refers to the words, phrases, and sentences that surround a given word. Often times, the
“context” in which a word appears gives clues or hints as to the meaning of the word. For our purposes,
there are four types of context clues. Let’s examine each type.
1. EXAMPLE: Within the sentence or passage an example of the word is given which allows the reader
to determine the word’s meaning.
To avoid the burning sun in TORRID climates such as deserts, many animals come out only at night.
What does TORRID mean? How do you know this?
WORDS OR PHRASES THAT SIGNAL TO A READER THAT AN EXAMPLE MAY BE COMING IN THE
SENTENCE OR PASSAGE INCLUDE:
SUCH AS
INCLUDING
FOR EXAMPLE
FOR INSTANCE
2. SYNONYMS: Sometimes the clue that may appear within the sentence or passage is the word’s
synonym.
The instructor’s LUCID or clearly worded lectures made it easy for me to understand the difficult subject
matter.
, - ( ) OR THAT IS I.E.
3. ANTONYMS: Sometimes the clue that may appear in the passage or sentence is the opposite in
meaning to the word the reader needs to define.
Karen wears FLAMBOYANT clothing. In contrast, her sister wears only white and gray.
WORDS, SYMBOLS, OR PHRASES THAT SIGNAL TO A READER THAT AN EXAMPLE MAY BE COMING IN
THE SENTENCE OR PASSAGE INCLUDE:
HOWEVER IN CONTRAST BUT YET
ON THE OTHER HAND
4. SENSE: Sometimes readers get an idea of the meaning of a word simply from the sense of the
sentence or passage. In this case, the reader needs to think about the situation posed in the passage or
sentence.
It was IMPRUDENT of John to skate on the lake without checking to see how thick the ice was.
PRACTICE DIRECTIONS: WORK WITH YOUR GROUP TO DETERMINE THE MEANINGS OF THE UNDERLINED
WORDS IN EACH OF THE FOLLOWING SENTENCES. THEN, ANSWER THE QUESTIONS THAT FOLLOW EACH
SENTENCE.
1. Nocturnal animals, such as bats and owls, have highly developed senses that enable them to function
in the dark.
Nocturnal means:
a. feathery
b. flying
c. active at night
What clues in the sentence helped you to determine the meaning of the word?
What word, phrase, or symbol signaled the clue word or words?
2. The adverse effects of this drug, including dizziness, nausea, and headaches, have caused it to be
taken off the market.
Adverse means:
a. deadly
b. harmful
c. expensive
What clues in the sentence helped you to determine the meaning of the word?
What word, phrase, or symbol signaled the clue word or words?
3. Are you averse – opposed to – the decision?
Averse means:
a. frightened of b. for
c. opposed to
What clues in the sentence helped you to determine the meaning of the word?
What word, phrase, or symbol signaled the clue word or words?
4. His naivete, or innocence, was obvious.
Naivete means:
a. easiness
b. innocence
c. boldness
What clues in the sentence helped you to determine the meaning of the word?
What word, phrase, or symbol signaled the clue word or words?
5. My sister Kathy is lively and outgoing. I, on the other hand, am rather introverted.
Introverted means:
a. strong and athletic b. friendly and outgoing c. quiet and withdrawn
What clues in the sentence helped you to determine the meaning of the word?
What word, phrase, or symbol signaled the clue word or words?
6. That brook is not static, but changing, unlike the nearby marsh that is full of garbage and has nothing
living in it.
Static means:
a. unknown
b. not changing or growing
c. shifting
What clues in the sentence helped you to determine the meaning of the word?
What word, phrase, or symbol signaled the clue word or words?
7. The boy’s mother was irate when she found out that he had colored the wallpaper in the dining room
with his crayons.
Irate means:
a. angry
b. pleased
c. indifferent
What clues in the sentence helped you to determine the meaning of the word?
What word, phrase, or symbol signaled the clue word or words?
8. My party was a fiasco because the guests showed up on the wrong day.
Fiasco means:
a. success
b. disaster
c. surprise
What clues in the sentence helped you to determine the meaning of the word?
What word, phrase, or symbol signaled the clue word or words?
9. The voracious lion devoured the deer.
Voracious means:
a. wild and hungry
b. strong
c. old and tired
What clues in the sentence helped you to determine the meaning of the word?
What word, phrase, or symbol signaled the clue word or words?
10. The deranged killer struck again. Police are concerned that these murders are being committed by a
mentally unbalanced, or even psychopathic, individual.
Deranged means:
a. young
b. unbalanced, insane
c. normal, average