Adult Literacy, Functional English, and GCSE Resources

A list of simple sentences, some of which are common sayings. They all contain a word which has more than one meaning. The list can be used to improve vocabulary, and also to show students the importance of context in understanding the meaning of a word. Could be used as a warm-up for a reading lesson.

I’m using this activity to give learners a writing frame for a piece of creative writing. I want them to really think about purpose of text when they are creating it, so they have to pick the format, style and tone of their work and plan it out.

Three sets of dominoes to use in warm-up and for letter and word recognition activities. The first set, for pre-Entry ESOL and Literacy learners with very low levels of letter and word recognition, matches lower case to capital letter versions, the second set is a set of “doubles”, which can be used alongside the first. The third set, for pre-Entry / Entry 1 ESOL learners, matches a category to an example. Each set has 17 dominoes, so 4 each for a group of 4 learners, plus one to start.

A classic anonymous poem that has the correct spelling but the wrong words.

Read the poem aloud to your students before they have sight of it. Then give them page 1 of the work sheet.

This study considers the emerging issue of consciousness in pedagogy both theoretically and practically. It examines why this issue is of fundamental significance for teaching and learning. Basic assumptions are clarified and the psychological and philosophical fundamentals of consciousness theory explored.

Looking at Newspapers is a wonderful example of creative differentiated teaching across all levels (E1-L2). A detailed lesson description, resources and introductory PPT are included. The lesson uses Kipling’s “What and Why and When, And How and Where and Who” to help students analyse newspaper reports and interview other students, or their teacher, to create their own reports.

Lists 30 pairs of common homophones (not to all be used at once!) with plenty of ideas on using them in spelling, sentence and discussion work.

A 16 piece triangular jigsaw puzzle where common homophones must be matched to the correct sentence. Use as an ice breaker or plenary activity – great for pairs or small groups. Guaranteed to create promote discussion as learners solve puzzle (best laminated). As usual with Tarsia puzzles, you can choose to print a standard or large puzzle (select Output – large, i.e. 3 pieces per A4 sheet).

A wonderful 2.5 hr differentiated lesson plan complete with resources. These include matching games, fill-in diary sheets, cloze exercises / writing frames and more!
A related PPT has been writtn to accompany this lesson. See below.

Crossword with 29 words and clues – increase awareness of word borrowing / origins (and improve spelling). Includes words of Old English, Spanish, Italian, Greek, French, Czech, Latin and American origin. Makes a good warm up activity.

You must download the free Eclipse software before you can use the ecw (Eclipse crossword) file below. See our Good Software – Eclipse Crossword entry for more information.