Timely Topics: A Collection of Articles from Literacy Links

Family Literacy & Project-Based Learning Go Hand in Hand

by Audrey Abed

The following are activities that developed out of the learning process at the Kyle Family Learning and Career Center. The center is a collaboration of several agencies, which offers a comprehensive program of adult education and career services to the Kyle community. These agencies include Community Action of Hays, Caldwell and Blanco Counties; Head Start, Early Head Start and Even Start Programs; Hays Consolidated ISD; Lockheed Martin IMS; Ten County ACE Co-op; Rural Capital Area Workforce Development Board; and the Texas Workforce Commission. These partnerships work to support not only the students, but also the families of the students as well. As a result, family literacy is an important function of the collaboration of providers.

We discovered at the center that projects, which grow out of the needs and desires of students as opposed to those that are fully initiated by instructors, are the most successful in retaining interest and facilitating the learning process. The activities that are described below all have this one thing in common. These are not projects that were planned by the instructor, but rather began with theme-based instruction, such as eating out, family, and friendship. For example, the first project, Restaurante Mi Familia, was the culmination of a month long theme of food and eating out.

When I asked my class how many had the experience of eating out, not one person had been out to eat. They showed a real interest for understanding the whole culture of eating out and pricing on a menu. As a class, we went out to eat to practice ordering from a menu and to observe the environment of a restaurant. We began to role-play and develop our own restaurant and menu. The awards ceremony for our center was on the horizon and when I asked them what we should do to show what we had learned in class, the idea of a skit about eating out came naturally.

Students chose characters and a plot and began writing the skit. They practiced everyday and it wasn't until the last day that they decided to end the skit on a humorous note with the waitress and the customers outsmarting the obnoxious owner of the restaurant.

The skit was then performed in front of the community, including other adult learners, the students' children and spouses, and other stakeholders. These adult students got up in front of a room of people and performed in their newly acquired language. Now that's success. Not only were they able to demonstrate their English language proficiency, but also their children, probably for the first time, watched as their parent or grandparent used their new language publicly and made that room full of people laugh.

These activities were developed for adult learners, but we hope it had an impact on these learners' children and the community as a whole. Literacy is powerful when it is shared.

ESL Skit - Restaurante "Mi Familia"

Level of adult learners
This activity was developed for a multilevel ESL group of adult learners; however, ABE and GED students also joined the group.

Learning activity objectives
Adult ESL students will be able to communicate with others in English in a restaurant setting (e.g., to review a menu, order food, discuss poor service at a restaurant, negotiate with wait staff).

Adults will learn to write a skit and perform in front of an audience.

Description of the activity
Adult ESL and ABE learners developed a skit by first describing a plot and choosing characters. Students chose the character they would perform and then they all sat down and wrote what they would each say. One person acted as note taker and then another student recorded the notes on a computer.

After the skit was written, the students practiced their lines and fine-tuned the dialogue. Students who did not have an acting role were given roles such as narrator, noise maker, prop maker, etc. Students performed this skit for ABE/GED students as a dress rehearsal and then in front of their children and other community members at the KFLCC Recognition Dinner.

Adult learner outcomes
Adults learned the English language necessary to develop a skit.

Adults learned to write a skit, which included a plot, characters, dialogue, and props.

Adults had increased self-esteem about their ability to speak and act in English in front of a group of peers and their children.

Child learner outcomes
Children had an increased level of self-esteem as they witnessed their parents perform in English in front of a large group of community members.

Valentine Card Fundraiser

Level of adult learners
This activity was developed for a mixed-level group of adult learners including ESL, ABE and GED.

Learning activity objectives
Adult students will be able to design and create their own Valentine card.

Adult learners will be able to market the cards to the community and plan how the money will be spent.

Children will be able to fill in the cards to give to classmates.

Materials/Resources
Paper, pens, pencils, markers, vocabulary words in English for ESL students, computer word processing program, copy machine, pink paper, and ribbon.

Description of the activity
Adult learners created Valentine's Cards to be sold to the community as a fundraiser as well as for their children to give out to classmates. The money raised was used for a field trip to the San Antonio Zoo.

ESL students learned vocabulary in English regarding Valentine's Day. ABE/GED students learned to develop their creativity to make a card. Students utilized a computer word processing program to make their card. Each student designed one card and made copies of their card on pink paper. A packet of 25 cards was made into a bundle, tied together with ribbon, and sold for $2.00.

Adult learners marketed these cards to the community by making a flyer and posting it in the community as well as by telling neighbors and friends about the cards. Students worked with KFLCC and Even Start staff to organize the field trip to the zoo. Adults helped their children to fill out cards for their classmates.

Adult learner outcomes
Adults learned literacy skills, English language, how to design a card, word processing program, marketing skills, how to plan and organize a field trip, how to teach their children literacy skills.

Child learner outcomes
Children learned about literacy skills while learning how to send a card to a friend.

Valentine's cards reinforced activities in child care, such as the color pink, heart shape, friends.

Family Albums

Level of adult learners
This activity was developed for a mixed-level group of adult learners including ESL, ABE and GED.

Learning activity objectives
Adults and children will have increased self-esteem as they share their stories about their families with others.

Adult ESL students will use English vocabulary regarding the family and emotions.

Adult ABE/GED students will be able to write about their family.

Students will use a word processing program to write albums.

Children will learn about their families and observe their parents in a literacy activity.

Materials/Resources
Family pictures, copy machine, paper, word processing program, wrapping paper or other decorative paper, cardboard, scissors, markers, glue, glitter, yarn, and ribbon.

Description of the activity
This activity grew out of ESL units on emotions and family. Adults brought in pictures of their families and then wrote about the pictures. The copies of the pictures and their descriptions were put together into an album which adult students made out of cardboard and wrapping paper.

On November 1, 1995, National Family Literacy Day, the adult learners and their children gathered at the public library. The adults read their albums aloud to the whole group and then presented their books to their children. The family albums were exhibited at the Southwest Writers Special Collection at Southwest Texas State University in conjunction with a photo exhibit of Head Start families.

Adult learner outcomes
Adults had an increased level of self-esteem through presenting their life stories to the other families and their children and as a result of the albums being exhibited at the university.

Adults learned to value literacy as a means to record their family history and pass it on to their children.

Adult ESL students learned to describe their families utilizing English vocabulary about emotions and family.

Adult ABE/GED students learned to write about their family and life experiences.

Adults learned to use a word processing program.

Child learner outcomes
Children had an increased level of self-esteem as they witnessed their parents present their family albums to the rest of the group.

Children learned to value literacy as they see their parents make their own books and they read the family albums with their parents.

Children learned about their relatives.

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