Entry Level 3

A resource suitable for Entry Level 3 Functional Maths, Functional English, ICT or ESOL

Since the demise of the Excellence Gateway (EG) on September 30 2023, there is no official Government backed website where the old Skills for Life core curricula are available. The EG has (partially) migrated to the Education & Training Foundation (ETF) at https://www.et-foundation.co.uk/ but there is no sign of these classic documents. 

Level
Entry Level 1
Entry Level 2
Entry Level 3
Level 1
Level 2
Maths
Adult numeracy curriculum
ESOL
General ESOL

Since the demise of the Excellence Gateway (EG) on September 30 2023, there is no official Government backed website where the old Skills for Life core curricula are available. The EG has (partially) migrated to the Education & Training Foundation (ETF) at https://www.et-foundation.co.uk/ but there is no sign of these classic documents. 

Level
Entry Level 1
Entry Level 2
Entry Level 3
Level 1
Level 2
English
Adult literacy curriculum
ESOL
General ESOL

Since the demise of the Excellence Gateway (EG) on September 30 2023 there is no official Government backed website where the old Skills for Life core curricula are available. The EG has (partially) migrated to the Education & Training Foundation (ETF) at https://www.et-foundation.co.uk/ but there is no sign of these classic documents. 

Level
Entry Level 1
Entry Level 2
Entry Level 3
Level 1
Level 2
ESOL
General ESOL
ESOL Listen and respond (Lr)
ESOL Speaking (S)
ESOL Reading (R)
ESOL Writing (W)
Adult ESOL Curriculum

Dealing with nouns ending in 'y' and adding 's' or 'ies'. How and when do we change nouns that end in y and are singular into the plural form? 

Encourages exploration with a helpful flowchart.  

Editor's notes

Ideal for Entry Level ESOL or Functional Skills English. Clear explanation followed by a task that can be done with or without the flow chart.

Level
Entry Level 2
Entry Level 3
English
FE E2.14 Form regular plurals
FE E3.14 Form irregular plurals
ESOL
ESOL Ww/E2.1c Develop strategies to aid spelling
ESOL Ww/E3.1b Apply knowledge of strategies to aid with spelling

A PowerPoint with an introduction to idioms, followed one idiom per slide. Covers 10 common idioms with images, an example and simple explanation.  Perfect for whole class learning, discussion and embedding knowledge for all levels, and especially for ESOL. 

In addition there are several game suggestions in the slide notes and a separate set of match cards. Use together or on their own. 

Editor's notes

Level
Entry Level 3
Level 1
Level 2
English
Functional English - speaking, listening & communicating
Functional English reading
General literacy / English
ESOL
General ESOL
ESOL Listen and respond (Lr)
ESOL Speaking (S)
ESOL Extract main points & ideas

An exploration of common prefixes: un, re, did, pre, mis and non. Visual, with a table, reading text, discussion prompts, spelling tips  and a word search. Additional activities and games are suggested oin the final page.  

Editor's note

Level
Entry Level 2
Entry Level 3
Level 1
English
FE E2.10 Use effective strategies to find words meanings & check spelling e.g. simple dictionary, spell-checker
FE E3.11 Use strategies to find meaning of words e.g. dictionary, context, word types
FE L1.13 Use reference materials & appropriate strategies for a range of purposes, inc. to find word meanings
FE L1.17 Read & understand a range of specialist words in context
FE L1.21 Spell words used most often in work, study and daily life, including specialist words
Prefixes, suffixes & plurals
ESOL
ESOL Rw/E2.3a Use context & range of phonic / graphic knowledge to decode words
ESOL Rw/E3.5a Use variety of reading strategies to read/understand unfamiliar words
ESOL Rw/L1.1a Use reference material to find the meaning of unfamiliar words
ESOL Rw/L1.2a Recognise & understand vocabulary associated with different types of text, using appropriate strategies to work out meaning

An exploration of the ie / ei conundrum. This set of resources provides a fun newspaper article, a simple flowchart, explanation and exercises.  It also has a set of playing/flash cards with suggestions on activities.

Editor's notes

Level
Entry Level 3
Level 1
Level 2
English
FE E3.17 Spell correctly words designated for Entry Level 3
FE L1.21 Spell words used most often in work, study and daily life, including specialist words
FE L2.22 Spell words used in work, study & daily life, including a range of specialist words
ESOL
ESOL Ww/E3.1a Apply spelling knowledge to a wide range of common & special-interest words
ESOL Ww/E3.1b Apply knowledge of strategies to aid with spelling
ESOL Ww/L1.1a Apply knowledge about vocabulary to aid accurate spelling
ESOL Ww/L1.1b Use strategies to aid accurate spelling
ESOL Ww/L2.1a Apply knowledge of vocabulary to aid accurate spelling
ESOL Ww/L2.1b Develop strategies to aid accurate spelling

Part of the Living in the UK series, this resource covers reading, writing and communication for Entry 1-3 learners. 

There are two separate resources: one for E2-E3 and a simplified version for E1.  Each features an illustrated short reading text followed by:

  • comprehension questions
  • punctuation questions
  • various writing tasks
  • suggestions for short talks and Q&A sessions

Editor's notes

Level
Entry Level 1
Entry Level 2
Entry Level 3
English
FE E1.10 Understand a short piece of text on a simple subject
FE E2.8 Understand the main points in texts
FE E3.9 Identify, understand & extract main points & ideas in/from texts
FE E2.13 Use basic punctuation correctly (e.g. full stops, question, exclamation marks)
FE 1.16 Communicate information in words, phrases & simple sentences
FE E2.17 Communicate information using words & phrases appropriate to audience & purpose
FE E3.18 Communicate information, ideas & opinions clearly & in logical sequence e.g. chronologically, by task
FE E3.19 Write text of appropriate length & level of detail
FS Eng E1.6 Make clear statements, communicate feelings & opinions on straightforward topics
FS Eng E2.5 Clearly express straightforward information & communicate feelings / opinions
FE E3.3 Communicate information & opinions clearly on a range of topics
FE E2.2 Make requests & ask clear questions appropriately in different contexts
FE E3.2 Make requests & ask concise questions using appropriate language in different contexts
FS Eng E2.1 Identify & extract main information & detail from short explanations
FS Eng E3.1 Identify & extract relevant information & detail in straightforward explanations
ESOL
ESOL Rt/E1.1a Follow a short narrative on a familiar topic or experience
ESOL Rt/E2.1a Use a range of strategies to trace & understand main events
ESOL Wt/E1.1a Compose very simple text to communicate ideas or basic information
ESOL Wt/E2.1a Compose simple text, selecting appropriate format for the genre and purpose
ESOL Ws/E2.3a Use correct punctuation, e.g. capital letters, full stops, question marks
ESOL Sc/E1.4a Make simple statements of fact
ESOL Sc/E2.3c Give a short account
ESOL Sc/E3.4c Give an account/narrate events in the past
ESOL Sc/E2.2d Ask for factual information (present, past, future)
ESOL Sc/E3.3b Ask questions to obtain personal or factual information
Context
Leisure, Hobbies, Travel & Tourism
Family and relationships
Catering Food Nutrition

A brief brief overview of fractions: how to write and interpret them along with some history of how the 1/3 of a pound (lb) burger failed and a 3,500 year old fractions question!

Editor's notes  

Love the burger story and the touches of humour throughout. Engaging and bound to prompt discussion. :)

Level
Entry Level 3
Level 1
Maths
FM E2.10 Recognise simple fractions (halves, quarters, tenths) of whole numbers & shapes
FM E3.7 Read, write & understand thirds, quarters, fifths & tenths inc. equivalent forms
FM L1.8 Read, write, order & compare common fractions & mixed numbers
FM L1.9 Find fractions of whole number quantities or measurements
FM L1.16 Recognise & calculate equivalences between common fractions, percentages & decimals
Context
Catering Food Nutrition

Written with the 2025 spring equinox in mind (March 20 2025 at 0901) but I got struck down by a virus so it's a bit late! A set of Entry Level tasks - starting with E1-2 analogue clock/date/calendar type questions about the equinox and British summertime. Followed by a similar E2-E3 section. The final two sections (mostly E3) are about a garden centre and cover number, measures, money and rounding. Although the underpinning skills are all Entry Level some of the problem solving tasks are multi-step and would also be suitable for Level 1.

Level
Entry Level 1
Entry Level 2
Entry Level 3
Maths
FM Simple one step problem(s)
FM Straightforward problem(s) with more than 1 step
FM E1.1 Read, write, order, compare numbers to 20
FM E1.6 Read 12 hour digital & analogue clocks in hours
FM E2.7 Know the number of hours in a day and weeks in a year.
FM E2.12 Calculate money with pence up to £1 & in whole £s of multiple items, use correct symbols (£ or p)
FM E2.13 Read & record time in common date formats, & read time displayed on analogue clocks in hours, half hours & quarter hours, & understand hours from a 24-hour digital clock
FM E3.5 Approximate by rounding numbers less than 1000 to the nearest 10 or 100, use rounded answer to check results
FM E3.10 Calculate with money using decimal notation & express money correctly in writing in pounds and pence
FM E3.11 Round amounts of money to the nearest £1 or 10p
FM E3.12 Read, measure & record time using am & pm
FM E3.13 Read time from analogue & 24 hour digital clocks in hours & minutes
FM E3.2 Add & subtract 3-digit whole numbers
Context
Gardening & Horticulture
Science, Nature & Weather