Contextual Resources

Various activities to practise travel and transport themes and ideas. Read about a journey to college, answer comprehension questions and exam style questions,  form questions, use adverbs of frequency and conjunctions, along with speaking, listening  and writing practice - all on the subject of a journey to college. 

Editor's notes

Engaging and relevant! Written for E3 ESOL but the reading text and several of the exercises (for example: conjunctions) also provide useful and relevant practice for E2-L1 Functional Skills English. 

A poem on the theme of neighbourhoods.  Can be used as a reading and pronunciation exercise or may be extended to include a discussion around housing, traffic, local communities or recycling.

Editor's notes

Super for many levels and situations - includes suggested questions and discussion prompts.

Cut and order word sort based on transport, money and grammar terms.  Tasks and extension tasks on the same sheet. Scissors needed for separating the cards. Works best with students working in pairs.

Editor's notes

Sometimes the simplest ideas are the best! With useful extension ideas. Laminate for repeated use. Also handy for Functional English alphabetical order work.

Covers all reformed Functional Skills  content descriptors relating to position and direction (from E1 to L1). Written with mixed-level classes in mind. Positional vocabulary; cardinal and intercardinal compass points; turns (e.g. quarter turns) and bearings are all covered in this set of graduated HS2 (high speed railway) themed problems. Problems are interspersed with context-free underpinning questions, examples and tips.

Entry level Functional Skills Maths on the theme of vehicles queuing up ready to board a ferry.
Covers many aspects of Functional Maths including: number, position & size, simple lists and charts, and time.

Editor’s note
Two versions available: E1-E2 and E2-E3.
With detailed Functional Maths mapping and teaching tips

A simplified version of a newspaper article. The reading is followed by comprehension questions, a meaning match, a word find, and a scanning for correct spelling exercise. Developed for an adult student with Asperger’s, as well as dyslexia, who needs lots of motivation and exercises easy enough for him to be able to be successful without too much help.

Adapted from a Level 1 resource What happens to Ice Falling from planes
from Dave Norgate (2010).

Your brother is looking for a new car. You notice a suitable car advertised in your local supermarket so you email your brother and tell him about the car.
Entry 2 Functional Skills practice writing exam – with suggested differentiation for E1 and E3.
Editor’s note
With Functional Skills mapping

The classic example of a tally is keeping track of how many cars of each colour go past in the street, but that is rather awkward to do in practice.

Use this presentation to save having to leave the comfort of the classroom! It is a PowerPoint slideshow of cars of various colours, to be projected onto the board. Tell learners to keep a tally of how many cars of each colour appear. Where a car has more than one colour, they should put it under the predominant colour.

E1 learners could focus on simply counting (for instance) all the red cars.

A high interest worksheet which uses the layout of engines to reinforce some basic mathematical concepts, and to encourage reading. Lots of discussion points.
The angle of the V – right angle or acute angle?
Counting in 2s – How may cylinders – 2 rows of 3, etc.

Editor’s note: interesting mix of skills covered from E2 to L1. Focus is on angles but there is also basic doubling and counting in twos so would work well in mixed ability groups.

A short reading adapted from an online news report. Exercises include comprehension questions, placing sentences in the correct order, matching words and phrases and a fill the gap exercise. Answer sheet included.

Editor’s note
Fully mapped to E2 Functional English (reading) with extra teaching tips.