These materials were created for use in an Intermediate/High Intermediate ESOL class, to complement a more traditional ESOL curriculum (one of my favorites is English Unlocked from Literacy Minnesota).

With these materials, I aim to give students opportunities to read longer texts, practice more reading and listening outside of class time, and to dig deeper into some of the topics typically covered in ESOL curriculum.

 

Text-focused materials

 

America Street

America Street is a short story collection which features diverse perspectives. It is not designed for adults (it is geared toward middle-grade readers) but I have found the stories rich enough to be interesting to adult learners with language that is simple enough for an ESOL class. I have generally used these materials (and variations of them) in classes with intensive schedules, where students want additional reading practice and are able to commit to doing work outside of class. Since the book is an anthology, students have the opportunity to engage with a variety of styles and a range of vocabulary. Though I have designed the activities to be completed online, I suggest providing students with physical copies of the book.

Text	In-class activities	Homework
“Thank You, Ma’am” by Langston Hughes (also available online)	First pass questions (discuss orally after reading together in class) Post reading/homework discussion Writing practice	Questions – “Thank You, Ma’am” by Langston Hughes
“The First Day” by Edward P. Jones	Post reading/homework discussion Writing practice	Questions – “The First Day” by Edward P. Jones
“The Circuit” by Francisco Jiménez	Preview: Spanish vocabulary in The Circuit Post reading/homework discussion Comparison: “The First Day” and “The Circuit”	Questions – “The Circuit” by Francisco Jiménez
“The White Umbrella” by Gish Jen	Summary (compose together as a class) Post reading/homework discussion Writing practice	Questions – “The White Umbrella” by Gish Jen
“The Journey” by Duane Big Eagle	Post reading/homework discussion Summary (compose in groups) Writing practice	Questions – “The Journey” by Duane Big Eagle
“Water Names” by Lan Samantha Chang	Writing practice	Questions – “Water Names” by Lan Samantha Chang
“Passing the Bread” by Veera Hiranandani	Post reading/homework discussion	Questions – “Passing the Bread” by Veera Hiranandani
“Alone and All Together” by Joseph Geha	Writing practice	Questions – “Alone and All Together” by Joseph Geha (WHOLE STORY) Questions – “Alone and All Together” by Joseph Geha (LAST PART)
“Drum Kiss” by Susan Power	—	Questions – “Drum Kiss” by Susan Power

Flying Lessons

Similarly, Flying Lessons is a short story collection which features diverse perspectives. It is not designed for adults (it is geared toward middle-grade readers) but I have found the stories rich enough to be interesting to adult learners with language that is simple enough for an ESOL class. I have generally used these materials (and variations of them) in classes with intensive schedules, where students want additional reading practice and are able to commit to doing work outside of class. Since the book is an anthology, students have the opportunity to engage with a variety of styles and a range of vocabulary. Though I have designed the activities to be completed online, I suggest providing students with physical copies of the book.

(Shout out to my former graduate students who introduced me to this book, because they were using it with their ENL high schoolers!)

Text	Lesson plans	In-class activities	Homework
Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push	Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push – Class 1 and 2	Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push part 1 Vocab – Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push Story elements – Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push	Sometimes a Dream needs a Push – part 2
Main Street	Main Street – Class 1 and 2 and 3	Vocab – Main Street part 1 Descriptive language Close reading – Main Street part 1 Vocab – Main Street part 2	Main Street part1 Main Street part 2
The Difficult Path	The Difficult Path – Class 1 and 2 and 3	Vocab – The Difficult Path part 1 Vocab – The Difficult Path part 2	The Difficult Path part 1 The Difficult Path part 2
Sol Painting, Inc.	Sol Painting, Inc. – Class 1 and 2 and 3	Vocab – Sol Painting, Inc. part 1 Vocab – Sol Painting, Inc. part 2 Describing feelings Discussion – Sol Painting, Inc.	Sol Painting, Inc. part 1 Sol Painting, Inc. part 2
The Beans and Rice Chronicles of Isaiah Dunn	The Beans and Rice Chronicles of Isaiah Dunn – Class 1 and 2 and 3	Vocab – The Beans and Rice Chronicles 1 Vocab – The Beans and Rice Chronicles 2 After the story writing activity	The Beans and Rice Chronicles part 1 The Beans and Rice Chronicles part 2
Secret Samantha	Secret Samantha – Class 1 and 2	Vocab – Secret Samantha part 1 Secret Samantha part 1 Vocab – Secret Samantha part 2 Transition Words and Phrases -1	Secret Samantha part 2
Choctaw Bigfoot, Midnight in the Mountains	Choctaw Bigfoot, Midnight in the Mountains – Class 1 and 2 and 3	Vocab – Choctaw Bigfoot 1 Writing Practice – Storytelling Vocab – Choctaw Bigfoot 2	Choctaw Bigfoot part 1 Choctaw Bigfoot part 2
Flying Lessons	Flying Lessons – Class 1 and 2 and 3	Vocab – Flying Lessons 1 Character chart Vocab – Flying Lessons 2 Character chart – someone they know	Flying Lessons part 1 Flying Lessons part 2

 

 

Other Readings

In-class reading practice

Text	In-class activities
Original: Our Stories Carried Us Here – Story 1 Clearer text: Our Stories Carried Us Here – Story 1	Our Stories Carried Us Here 1 Timeline – group activity
Indigenous people of New York
Rainbow Crow	Questions – Rainbow Crow
Why Leaves Change Color	Questions – Why Leaves Change Color

 

Homework/independent reading

Text	Homework
“Wild Flower” by Amrita Pritam	Questions – “Wild Flower” by Amrita Pritam
“Daughter of Invention” by Julia Alvarez	Questions – “Daughter of Invention” by Julia Alvarez
“Mother Tongue” by Amy Tan	Questions – “Mother Tongue” by Amy Tan
“San Martín in the Mist” by Laura Resau	Questions – “San Martín in the Mist” by Laura Resau
“Raymond’s Run” by Toni Cade Bambara	Questions – “Raymond’s Run” by Toni Cade Bambara
“Recognition” by Victor Lavalle	Questions – “Recognition” by Victor Lavalle
“From Scratch” by Susie Castellano	Questions – “From Scratch” by Susie Castellano

 

 

Films

Sometimes, I like to use films when students want more listening practice outside of class. I generally assign these films as homework, so I look for movies that are available for free online (usually with ads), through websites like Youtube, Tubi, and Plex. The selection on these sites vary over time, but I’ve found that the below movies are available periodically. You might also be able to find some of these movies on other sites, or you can watch a rented/purchased version with students.

I prioritize films that center the experiences of women, immigrants, and/or people of color, and I aim to avoid narratives that focus on violence, traumatic experiences, or sex/romance (because of the backgrounds of many of my students).

Film	Homework	In-class activities
The Farewell	Questions – The Farewell
Knock Down the House	Questions – Knock Down the House
20 Feet From Stardom	Questions – 20 Feet From Stardom
Akeelah and the Bee	Questions – Akeelah and the Bee
No Reservations	Questions – No Reservations
My Octopus Teacher	Questions – My Octopus Teacher
Real Woman Have Curves	Questions – Real Women Have Curves
Mona Lisa Smile	Questions – Mona Lisa Smile
Jane	Questions – Jane
Man on Wire	Questions – Man on Wire
RBG	Questions – RBG
March of the Penguins March of the Penguins	Questions – March of the Penguins
Dreamgirls	Questions – Dreamgirls
Hidden Figures		Review: Hidden Figures Discussion: Hidden Figures Hidden Figures summary

 

 

Thematic Supplementary Materials

 

Health and disability

Mini-unit on disability and Crip Camp:

Pre-film activities	Film	Post-film discussion
What disabilities do we know? – make a list together as a class Disability research (preview vocab word “accommodation” before starting) Watch trailer together	Crip Camp (full movie) Watch, pausing periodically to discuss/check comprehension	After the film, whole group discussion: For disabled people, how have things changed? What still needs to change? What did you learn from the movie? Did anything surprise you? Group review/discussion activity

 

Other health-related materials/activities:

Topic	Activity/material
Absences	Excused versus Unexcused Absences – brainstorm examples of each together Unexcused Absences – group activity, simple word problems The Flores Family Goes to El Salvador at Christmas – group activity, reading and discussion (adapted from English for New Bostonians material) Absent From School – reading comprehension and vocabulary, lower level (adapted from From Home to School) Email writing, excused absence
Cold versus flu	Cold versus flu – reading
Periods/menstruation	Period. End of Sentence. – mostly in non-English languages, with English subtitles Period. – a short film about getting your period for the first time
Allergies	Allergies 101 reading / comprehension questions
Medical history	Medical form practice
Chronic diseases	Asthma overview (NYC focused) with comprehension questions Asthma Risks (NYC focused) with comprehension questions Diabetes with comprehension questions Healthy Lifestyle discussion questions
Emotions and mental health	Emotions vocabulary – brainstorm words together Stress management and relaxation discussion questions Your Body is Trying to Tell You Something – reading about physical effects of stress / comprehension and discussion questions 5 – 4 – 3 – 2 – 1 Grounding Technique Mental Health and Your Child or Teen: What to Watch for and How to Help reading

 

Housing

Mini-unit on housing inequality and Decade of Fire:

Pre-film activities	Film	Post-film discussion
Housing “codes” – look at two photos of Bronx neighborhoods. Describe what you see. What time period do you think each photo is from? How do you know? What is different in each photo? Why? History of Red-Lining reading Watch trailer together	Decade of Fire (full movie) Watch first half, pausing periodically to discuss/check comprehension	Comprehension/discussion questions – focused on second half

 

Other housing-related materials/activities:

Apartment photos – to use to practice describing homes, discussing housing preferences, asking questions about housing (to a landlord or realtor), to practice writing a housing ad

Simple apartment ads – to practice reading housing ads, asking questions about housing

Apartment ads pulled from craigslist – to practice reading ‘real’ housing ads (with irregular spelling, translanguaging, etc.), asking questions about housing, discussing language use

“Dream homes” – a collection of beautiful homes, to use for discussion/fantasy/dreaming, discussing housing preferences