Objectives

Level 1-2

• Identify places and buildings in the community and basic services they provide
• Identify symbols for community services
• Identify & practice direction vocabulary
• Identify the days and hours that an organization is open by reading signs and/or ads
• Discuss community resources in Durham (public library, El Centro Hispano, etc.)
• If you have time, discuss one or two community organizations in depth (Post Office, Library, Bank, etc.)

Making telephone calls to organizations

• Write dictated phone numbers
• Ask for clarification of dictated phone number
• Practice calling organizations to ask for basic information like hours, location, etc.
• Look up a known organization in the phone book, using the White Pages
• Browse for organizations by category, using the Yellow Pages
• Identify government organizations in the Blue Pages of the phone book
• Learn when it's appropriate to call 211 (see details below)

Level 3

Objectives for Levels 1-2, plus:

• Identify your neighborhood and importance of neighborhoods
• Choose a community organization (Library, Post Office, School) and discuss it in-depth.
• For example, Library Objectives (A representative from Durham County Library will visit classes on Thurs. Nov 3 to give an overview of services in Spanish):
• Identify basic library vocabulary
• Copy/write basic personal info onto library card application
• Identify basic library services
• Identify additional library services: children’s programs, study rooms, events, computer use, etc.
• Alphabetize a list of words
• Check out materials
• Demonstrate understanding of rights & responsibilities: ie. Fines/penalties for overdue/damaged materials
• Request assistance

Oxford Picture Dictionary Resources

Basic Oxford Picture Dictionary (Red Book)

• The Community, p. 68
• An Intersection, p. 72-3
• Banking, p. 70 or
• The Post Office, p. 71

Oxford Picture Dictionary (Black Book)

• City Streets, p. 88-89
• An Intersection, p. 90-91
• A Childcare Center, p. 94-95 or
• U.S. Mail, p. 96 or
• A Library, p. 98

Basic Oxford Picture Dictionary Workbook

• The Community, p. 68 - Fill in the missing letters in basic community vocabulary words; Read a paragraph featuring this vocab.

Basic Oxford Picture Dictionary Teacher's Resource Book

• The Community, p. 121-132. Listening, TPR, Information Exchange, Mixer, Board Game, Reading activites on community theme.

Web Resources

Beginning

• An activity from Boogle's World that combines giving directions with community institutions. For instance, students may work with partners to figure out which is the best place to “rent a bike”, “get some sushi”, “buy some software”, etc. You could do the same with your own list of local institutions, like Food Lion, Kestrel Heights, La Favorita, etc

Intermediate

• The East Side Literacy website has several phone dialogues (in .pdf format), including calling up a school and dealing with telemarketers.
• In this marketplace game, students decide what they would like to sell. The game practices interrogatives, making suggestions, and refusing suggestions.
• Boggle’s World has a great page with all sorts of activities that deal with the city theme. I think students may enjoy working on the crossword puzzle (it’s in MSWord format, all you have to do is print it out). The exercise dealing with relative clauses (ex. “A bakery is a place where people bake bread, etc.”) is a great way to get students to define their own community.
• Boggle’s World has some conversation questions and corresponding worksheets that help reinforce vocabulary and comprehension. Try the “City and Country”, or “Habits, Customs and Traditions” links.
• In this activity, students use the YellowPages to find relevant businesses for the needs of a hypothetical character. Scroll down to the “John and his new house” lesson plan.

Advanced

• In this game, called “Guilty”, the teacher describes a crime that happened last night. It can be as simple as “who moved the marker?” or as complicated as “who stole the red car?” Students practice use of the past tense to create alibis, etc.

Resources at Kestrel

United Way 211

Please give your students Spanish or English handouts about 211 (available at Kestrel)

• 24-hour hotline for information and referral to service agencies
• Spanish language staff available M-F, 8am-8pm
• Multi-lingual intepreters available 24 hours
• Most frequently requested services are:
  • Financial assistance
  • Food and other basic needs
  • Health and mental health care
  • Housing resourcse
  • Donations and volunteer opportunities
• Serves Chatham, Durham, Orange, Wake counties
• From a cell phone, call 1-800-831-1754

Please remind students that another valuable resource for Spanish speakers is El Centro Hispano, 687-4635, 201 W. Main St., Suite 100. We'll have Spanish-language handouts at Kestrel Heights listing the programs and services available at El Centro.

As usual, there are a number of books set aside on the current themes bookshelf at Kestrel. Relevant pages are marked with a bookmark. Please explore!

Beginning

• English in Everyday Life, p. 108, "Your Community." Town places and directions vocabulary, plus simple partner role play conversations.
• LifePrints: ESL for Adults (Literacy Level). Chapter 3, "In the Neighborhood." Practice writing addresses and phone numbers; basic vocabulary about places around town.
• LifePrints: ESL for Adults (Green book labelled "1"). Chapter 1, "Neighborhoods." Simple activities featuring phone numbers, yellow pages, places around town.
• Taking Off: Beginning English, Unit 9, "Where's the Post Office?" p. 107. A review of directions, plus vocabulary about different organizations and businesses around town.
• Taking Off: Beginning English - Workbook. Unit 9, "Where's the Post Office?" p. 77. Activities to practice using place names, street names, prepositions.

Intermediate

• Side by Side, p. 120, "Calling People on the Telephone." Sample dialogues for basic phone conversations and leaving a mesage. (Beginning to Intermediate).
• English in Everyday Life, p. 110, "The Telephone." Vocabulary and practice activities about leaving a message, responding to a wrong number. (Begining to Intermediate).
• LifePrints, Level 3. Chapter 2, "What the Community Offers." Reading activity featuring ad for recreation center; writing activity requiring students filling out a library card application; partner activity requiring students to dictate phone numbers to each other; more.
• Basic Grammar in Action, p. 70-71. Library Card Application (sample form) and paragraph describing a visit to the library.
• English for Everyday Activities. p. 51-55, "Making a Phone Call." Brief illustrated stories written in past tense, describing the process of Making a Phone Call, Answering a Phone Call, Leaving a Message, Taking a Message.

In the newspaper folder, a number of short articles that may be used for levels two through four. They are about: the pavilion that is being built for the Farmer’s Market; notification of a religious nonviolent group’s meeting time; how to apply to the state for financial assistance for heating costs. There is also a little comic strip about a king who needs some jokes for his speech.