Laidemitt Syllabus and Lesson Sample

Heidi Marie Laidemitt  ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

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Context  With my Curriculum Design team (Sarah DeMola, Audrey Gutierrez, Caroline Kelley, and Jaymee Martin) in the spring semester of 2011, I designed a community-specific, Peace and Social Justice-centered curriculum for the Peace Resource Center (PRC) in Seaside, California. Through this project, we sought to develop an ongoing and professional relationship with the PRC that benefitted the ESL students, the PRC community, and graduate students in the MIIS TESOL/TFL program. After conducting a needs analysis for the Board of Directors, ESL students, and ESL teachers, we designed a curriculum with a five-unit syllabus and sample lesson plans for each unit. Prior to our project, teachers were working independently and without a syllabus structure or lesson resources. The classes are open and do not have a set attendance to accommodate for a working student  population with usually unpredictable schedules. Consequently, classes are multi-leveled and often have complete beginners. Fortunately, each class is staffed with at least two MATESOL/TFL instructors who divide the class when necessary. Syllabus and Lesson Plan For the purposes of my portfolio, I redesigned the initial five-unit syllabus, and imbedded learner training throughout the twelve weeks. Further, I revamped a previously designed lesson plan entitled “Lessons que da la vida” from the “Education” unit that unit  that I was able to teach in one of my classes. “Education” is one of the specific topics that our learners expressed interest in and indicated was relevant to their lives in the initial needs analysis. Because my involvement with the Peace Pe ace Center has been ongoing on going through a variety of  roles, I have been able to engage with other Board of Directors who agree that any form of  instruction that empowers ESL students as citizens meets their hope for promoting peace

Heidi Marie Laidemitt  ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

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and social justice – and education is one of those themes. To give a richer idea of the unit of  “Education”, here are some som e lessons we have taught: ta ught: getting a library membership, setting academic goals, participatin in parent-teacher conferences, acquiring computer literacy, applying to adult education programs, taking the GED, and applying ap plying to community courses. My vision is to use this featured lesson as a precussor to other education lessons because it includes introductory and essential vocabulary (activities one and two), exposes the learner to greater conceptual ideas of education through the voice of culturally relatable authors (activities three and five), and allows students to expand on others’ ideas to formulate group opinions and those on their own (activities four and six). A special consideration in designing this lesson is that most students are low-level, sometimes intermediate, and the activities need to be scaffolded while carefully calling attention to completely new linguistic terms like “nouns “, “verbs”, verbs”, (activity two) and “person”, or “subject-verb agreement ” (activity three). After trying the first version of this lesson, it became apparent that I needed to include more group discussion, and dedicate more time to students creating their own definitions of education. I included these changes in this version of the lesson. The last  portion of the lesson includes “Mis Exitos”, an ongoing learning training sheet to be used by the student. For learning training, the syllabus places a high emphasis on setting goals and reflecting on learning strategies in order to promote learner autonomy (Kumaravadivelu, 2003) by incorporating regularly check-ins and class cla ss discussions.

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Heidi Marie Laidemitt ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

Peace Resource Center Empowered Citizens

Learner Training (Included throughout 12-week course)

Unit 1: Education

Unit 2: Health & Wellness

Unit 3: Our Community

Unit 4: Peace and Justice in the World

Unit 5: Professional Life

Heidi Marie Laidemitt ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

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Empowered Citizens

“Empowered “Empowered Citizens” is a 12-week 12-week outreach program of free ESL classes designed for adult learners in the local community. The classes aim to meet the needs of English learners seeking language skills and the Peace Resource Center’s mission to fost  er community community engagement, as well as to provide an opportunity for MIIS TESOL students to hone their skills in a real-world setting. The program intends to develop a mutually beneficial and sustainable relationship between all three parties that  creates “peace through understanding.” understanding.” Course Goals Cognitive Goals  As a result of taking this course… 1. students will learn words, conversational expressions and grammar related to education, health and wellness, their community, community, peace and justice in the world, and professional life. 2. students will develop a linguistic awareness of their native language and how to transfer that knowledge to their English language acquisition. 3. students will know that language learning occurs in forms beyond traditional methods such as worksheets, grammar, and translation. 4. students will be familiar and be able to use English language materials related to employment, health and education, and the community Metacognitive Goals  As a result of taking this course… 5. students will become aware of their learning styles and strategies. 6. students will be able to find appropriate learning resources, resources, such as bilingual dictionaries, websites, etc., for their own language learning needs. 7. students will set language goals and regularly self-assess and re-establish language learning needs  Affective Goals  As a result of taking this course… 8. students will feel more integrated into the Seaside community and the English-speaking community in general. 9. students will feel confident when applying for jobs and/or enrolling in educational programs of their choice.

Heidi Marie Laidemitt ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

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10. students will feel empowered when encountering unfamiliar texts and interactions in English. Performative Goals  As a result of taking this course… 11. students will attend events at the Peace Resource Center and the Seaside community where engagement engagement with Native English speakers is possible 12. students will be able to identify and describe learning successes and challenges 13. students will utilize speaking, listening, reading, and writing in a variety of situations with the target language population and their classmates classmates 14. students will develop communicative competence through grammar knowledge, sociolinguistic awareness, and strategic moves.

12-Week Syllabus

Week  1

Week  2

Week  3

Education

Learner Training - American classroom behavior work  sheet  - Learner Resources Survey - My Education Goals - Accessing materials - Classroom supplies and organization - Getting a library card - Grammar in Spanish: Activating Linguistic Heuristics - Mis Exitos

Lessons Life’s Lessons: Lecciones que da la l a vida My beliefs about education Developing native language literacy Library membership Lessons Setting academic goals Parent-teacher conferences Computer Literacy Lessons Applying to adult education programs Taking the GED and other adult-assessments Community courses (recreation, personal, skills)

Heidi Marie Laidemitt ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan 4

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Health and Wellness

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Our Community

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Peace and Justice in the World

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Professional Life

Learner Training - Personal Goals: How to stay healthy - American Health Practices Survey - Performative Goals: Recognizing, Reacting, & Responding - Mis Exitos

Learner Training - Introduction to Project-Based Learning - “Fun Run” in Seaside - Our Voices event at the PRC - Bilingual Movie events at the PRC - Volunteering - Brainstorming about community - Mis Exitos Learner Training - Online Communities - Journalism - Events at the PRC - Mis Exitos

Learner Training - Learner Autonomy - Personal Strategies and Learning Styles - Creating a self-portfolio self-portfolio

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Lessons Introduction to Health Awareness Awareness Community Health & Seaside Guest speaker(s) from local medical providers My Medical History: An Autobiography Lessons Filing out new patients forms Doctor-Patient Doctor-Patient Appointments Medical Diagnosis & Treatment  Lessons Welcome to Seaside History of Peace and Justice in Seaside People in the Community Community My Place in Seaside Lessons Changes in the Community How to do Peace and Justice Writing for Peace and Justice Lessons Historical Perspective on English as a colonial language Peace and Social Justice through Music Current Events: Peace and Social Justice in the News and Radio Lessons Human and Civil Rights Immigration Rights in the News Event at the Peace Resource Center Lessons Describing our current jobs or dream jobs Developing a resume Applying for Jobs

Heidi Marie Laidemitt ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan 11

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What have I learned?” “What do I want to learn?” Mis Exitos

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Guest speakers from local businesses

Lessons Job search strategies Interview skills and language Language used in the workplace Lessons Email Communication (Job search, interview) Phone Communication (Job search, interview) Interview skills and language Language used in the workplace

Heidi Marie Laidemitt  ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

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Sample Lesson Plan from Plan from “Education” 

Lecciones que da la vida Life’s Lessons Lo que en los libros no está, la vida te enseñará. What isn’t in books, life will teach you. Classroom Context  The population varies, but ages of students range between 19 – 65 and their native language is Spanish. Some of our learners have not received much formal education in their native language, therefore their speaking spe aking and listening skills are often stronger than reading and writing. The lessons are taught by two team teachers and usually an additional assistant  

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Time: 2 Hours Lesson Overview This lesson is part of a content-based content- based syllabus about “Living in the United States.” This lesson is based on a short reading excerpt from “Chicken Soup for the Latino Soul” (Canfield, Hansen, Sánchez-Casal) and a video in Spanish, but focuses on discussing it in English. Materials and Equipment  Computer with internet access Red and green pens or crayons or markers Web address to “A mother’s message to her 8 th grader”: http://www.ed.gov/blog/2011/04/a-mother’s http://www.ed.gov/blog/2011/04/amother’s-message-to-her-eighth-grader-message-to-her-eighth-grader-– –“it’s-not-if-you-go-to-college-but“it’s when”/ -not-if-you-go-to-college-but-when”/ Activity 1 Worksheet: Previewing Vocabulary (Appendix A) Activity 2 Worksheet: Recognizing Parts of Speech (Appendix B) Activity 3 Worksheet: Expressing Beliefs with Verbs (Appendix C) Activity 4 Worksheet: Reading Comprehension (Appendix D) Activity 5 Worksheet: Video & Using new verbs (Appendix E) Activity 6 Worksheet: Defining My Own Beliefs About Education E ducation (Appendix F)   

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Heidi Marie Laidemitt  ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

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Lesson Objectives Cognitive 1. students will learn words and phrases basic to education contexts like adult  education in California 2. students will be able to express their personal opinions about education, drawing from their unique backgrounds and experiences. Metacognitive 3. students will recognize cognates in Spanish and English to aid in vocabulary development  4. students will find commonalities and differences from classmates and class material to inform their own beliefs on education.

 Affective 5. students will feel more comfortable when encountering unfamiliar un familiar educational texts. 6. students will feel empowered by expressing their the ir own opinions about education in order to support their decision to learn English and, hopefully, other subjects beyond the ESL classroom. Performative 7. students will be able to identify nouns and verbs in English using their knowledge of  Spanish and simple comparison of the two languages. 8. students will be begin to conceive navigating n avigating through social processes such as registering for classes, helping their children with schoolwork, and participating in parent-teacher conferences.

Heidi Marie Laidemitt ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

Sample Lesson Directions and Materials Sequence

Activities

Brainstorm Activity: 2 minutes minutes Students will brainstorm common places of education

Activity 1: 5 minutes Activity 1: 3 minutes

Ss will match the vocabulary words (Appendix A) and definitions (column A and column B on worksheet) on their own.

Activity 1: 5 minutes

Then, Ss will compare their answers with a partner or in small groups. Ss will learn the term “cognates” and will identify cognates in the list. Ss will come up with other cognates between English and Spanish, if they can. (Ingles!, (Ingles!, Centro, estudiante) estudiante)

Activity 2: 10 minutes

Ss will implicitly hypothesize the differences between verbs and nouns and complete the worksheet (Appendix B)

Ss will listen to teacher read “on teaching” twice by Salvador González and fill in the blanks when they hear hear them. (Appendix C) Activity 3: 10 minutes

Ss will check answers with a partner. Ss will review answers with the teacher. Ss will identify the cloze answers as “verbs”.

Activity 3: 5 minutes

Teacher will introduce: o present verbs o subject and conjugation

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Heidi Marie Laidemitt ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

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Activity 4: 8 minutes

Ss will conjugate for 3 rd person singular while writing a summary of what the author believes. (Appendix D)

Activity 4: 2 minutes

Ss will again identify nouns and verbs in the sentences.

10 minute break 

Activity 5 10 minutes

Ss will review the meanings from the previous activity to scaffold the same questions used in Activity 5. (Appendix E) Learners will preview the questions and watch the video (10 minutes). Ask students to take notes if it helps. In groups of 3-4, students will be assigned 1 of the 3 questions to answer as a group. They will prepare their answers on a poster paper.

Activity 5: 7 minutes

Learners share their posters with the class.

Activity 6: 5 minutes

As a class, the Ss will brainstorm their ideas about education: What are their experiences? Why do they take classes at the PRC? What are their hopes for their children, family, or friends? (Appendix F) Using dictionaries, Ss will have 15 minutes to write their own beliefs as teachers walk  around to assist.

Activity 5: 3 minutes Activity 5: 10 minutes

Activity 6: 10 minutes Activity 6: 5 minutes

Learner Training: 10 minutes

Ss will share their beliefs with each other as a class.

Ss will review their “Mis Exitos” Sheet (utilized throughout the p rogram) and add new successes.

Heidi Marie Laidemitt  ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

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Appendix A  Activity 1: Previewing Vocabulary

Match the definitions: to believe (creer)

facts, information, or skills

power (el póder)

to try hard; to attempt 

knowledge (el conocimiento)

to make; to produce

change (el cambio)

a connection; an association

to create (crear)

to trust; to accept as true

education (la educación)

a chance

notice (darse cuenta)

to realize, to observe

relationship (la relación)

becoming different 

to miss (perderse)

teaching, schooling, instruction

to strive (esforzarse por hacer algo)

to fail to notice

to teach (eñsenar)

to educate; to instruct 

opportunity (la oportunidad)

the ability to influence others

1. What cognates are in the list?  ________________________________ ______________________________________________________ ________________________________________ __________________ 2. Can you think of other common cognates?  ________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ____________________________________ _____________________ ____

Heidi Marie Laidemitt  ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan Appendix B  Activity 2: Noun or Verb?

to 1. With a partner, discuss the differences between words like “ to el conocimiento)?  believe” (creer  ) and knowledge ( el 

2. With a partner, organize the words in two groups: List 1

List 2

- to believe (creer)

- knowledge (el conocimiento)

List 1 includes in cludes words that are _________________________. _________________________.

List 2 includes in cludes words that are _________________________. _________________________.

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Heidi Marie Laidemitt  ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

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Appendix C  Activity 3: Expressing Beliefs with Verbs

Please listen to the teacher read an excerpt from “On Teaching” by  Salvador González and fill in the blanks when you hear them. We will  listen to it two times. (Script - For Teacher Only) I believe in the power of knowledge to effect change and create better lives. I  believe in education, not just as a means to an end, but as an instrument of  lifelong learning and relationship. relationship. I strive to leave an indelible mark on the life of every child I teach, and I never miss an opportunity to notice the beauty and  the love in every step we take together.

I ___________________ in the power of knowledge to ______________ change and ________________ better lives. I _________________ in education, not just as a means to an end, but as an instrument of lifelong learning and relationship. I ________________ ________________ to leave an indelible mark on the life of every child I teach, and I never ________________ ________________ an opportunity to ______________ __________________ ____ the beauty and the love l ove in every step we __________________ together.

Now, compare your answers with a partner.

What part of speech is found in the blanks? 

Heidi Marie Laidemitt  ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

Appendix D  Activity Four: Reading Comprehension

In your own words, answer the following questions: What does the author believe?  He believes in knowledge to create change and to improve lives.

He ________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________. _____________________.

What does the author strive to do?  He ________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________. _____________________.

What does the author never miss doing?  He

Now, with a partner, circle all of the verbs in red and nouns in green.

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Heidi Marie Laidemitt  ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan

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Appendix E  Activity Five: Video & Using new verbs

Watch the video and consider the following questions while you watch: 1. What does the mother believe? 2. What does the mother strive to do? 3. What does the mother never miss doing? http://www.ed.gov/blog/2011/04/a-mother’s-message-to-her-eighth-graderhttp://www.ed.gov/blog/2011/04/a-mother’s -message-to-her-eighth-grader-– –-“it’s “it’s-not-notif-you-go-to-college-but-when”/ if-you-go-to-college-butwhen”/

Now you will be assigned to a group of 3-4. Each group will answer  one question. Please answer the question on a poster paper with drawings and  words. Please tell us if you like what the mother says. Why or why not?   After 10 minutes, you will share your answers with your group in front  of the class.

Heidi Marie Laidemitt  ❧MATESOL Component 9 ❧Syllabus and Lesson Plan Appendix F  Activity Six: Defining My Own Beliefs About Education

What do you believe about education?  Write your own definition here. We will share our definitions as a class. ________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ ______________________ ________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ ______________________ ________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ ______________ ________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ ______________________ ________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ ______________________ ________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ ______________________ ________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ ______________________ ________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ ______________________

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