Community English Worksheets - Minnesota Literacy Council,2012 (Page 8 of 26) in pdf

Community English Worksheets - Minnesota Literacy Council,2012 Page 8

IMPORTANT NOTE about discussing FAMILY: Talking about family in the adult ESL classroom can be a

sensitive topic. Keep in mind that many learners have experienced trauma related to war, many have

lost or been separated from family members, including young children. Some may not know to date

where there siblings are living or if they are even alive. And many have had to make the difficult choice

to leave children in the care of family members in their home country.

As much as possible, try to keep discussions about family open ended and allow learners to volunteer

only the information they are comfortable talking about. For example, it may be better to ask “Tell me

about your family” and avoid specific questions like “How many brothers and sisters do you have?”

Even with these precautions, some learners may feel sad or anxious talking about their families. Watch

closely for feelings of discomfort. Allow learners to step out or take extra breaks as needed. And offer a

compassionate ear if learners feel compelled to talk about sad or worrisome family issues and events.

Teacher Directions:

Review of Previous Lessons

-Where is Your Family?

Step 1:Teacher Models

Use a projector to model filling in the names, relationships, and

places where people in your family live.

Ask questions about the information on your form: “Who is

Linda?” “Where does Linda live?” “Who lives in San Francisco?”

Step 2: Independent Practice

Learners complete their own copy of the form.

Step 3: Listening and Speaking Practice

Write on the board: My _________’s name is _________ and he lives in ____________.

Practice several examples as a class. Draw attention to the apostrophe + S and changing “he” to

“she.”

Write on the board: Tell me about your family.

Learners mingle around the classroom with their papers and practice asking each other about their

family.

Jessica Grace Jones, Minnesota Literacy Council, 2012

p. 8

Beginning Family Unit

Community English Worksheets - Minnesota Literacy Council,2012 Page 8