Teaching English on a Shoestring Budget
Part I: Four Levels of Beginner
Part II: The Shoestring List
By Glenda Reece
Glenda Reece
212 Westbrook Dr.
Raleigh, NC 27615
Copyright © 1999 – 2000 Glenda Reece - Use with permission only
Vocabulary:
Foods and Meals - basic / Parts of the body - simple
Days of week, months, seasons / Telling time
Number to 100 ordinals (1st, 2nd,) / Furniture, basic household goods
Members of the family / Address and phone number
Simple instructions / Basic clothing
Types of buildings; house areas / Money
Occupations - basic / Right and Left
Basic colors
Structures
Written alphabet / Questions with what and where.
Basic English word order with verb to be. / Adjectives before the noun (black dog, red sweater)
Personal pronouns as subjects (I, you, he, she, it, we, they) / Demonstratives (this, that, these, those)
Time place prepositions (in, under, after, on, around, before, over, at) / Common verbs in present tense (be, have, need, want, like, do, go)
Verb to do in present tense question form. I do. Do you? / Make sounds of consonants; short and long vowels
Articles (a, an , the)
Level Two
Vocabulary
Grocery shopping; ordering food / Telephone conversation; emergency & simple message
Transportation / Talking with doctor/ dentist; making appointments
Reading calendar; reading dates / Giving and understanding directions
Family relationships / Shopping for clothing (include what its made of)
Shopping for furniture & appliances / More parts of body
Household items (what it’s made of) / Farm animals
Structure
Begin irregular Verbs / Vowels, long, short and letter combinations
Contractions - I'll, I've, He'd / Simple past
Pronouns - object (me, him, her) Possessive (mine, hers), Indefinite (any, many, some) / Question words - who, what, where, when
Present tense questions and negatives / Imperative (Wash the car, open the door)
Present continuous (I am going) / Make sounds of blends (st, gr, )
Level Three
Vocabulary
Health, medicines / Cultural aspects of time, dates, holidays
More on maps and directions / Returning an item to the store
Driving signs and work on license / Housing (renting, buying)
Body systems / Banking
Structure
Alphabetizing / More irregular verbs
Pronunciation work on stress, intonation and voice quality / Comparatives (good, better, best, more, most)
Prepositions (since, before, during) / Adverbs which end in ly,, (often, always, sometimes, never.)
Verbs like, , must, have to / "I am going" future tense
Past tense of regular verbs / Three sounds of past tense regular verbs
Level Four
Vocabulary
Driver's license / Directions on labels, boxes, and cans
Newspaper ads / Automobile part, car care , repair words
Enrolling self or children in school / Writing absence excuses, notes
Income tax / Job applications; resumes
Filling out forms / Idioms commonly used
Structures
Future with will, shall, going to / Reflexive pronouns ( myself, yourself)
Teach transition words ( by the way, In the meantime, actually, etc.) / Idioms in verb phrases; two and three word verbs
Questions and negatives in all tenses taught so far: Present, Past, Imperative, Future
Lower Intermediate Level:
Teach present and past perfect, indirect speech, subjunctive, specialized vocabulary for careers, medicines, community agencies and services, citizenship and voting, etc. Do lots of review.
(This list was prepared for volunteer and professional teachers at Forest Hills Baptist Church, Raleigh, NC in 1981. It is not meant to be a final authority, but a guide. Glenda Reece, Nancy Hern, D. Froeber.)
Suggested items to collect and use:
• Name tag, pictures of restrooms, or bathrooms, picture or actual phone, etc. Look at the vocabulary and decide what you will need to take with you to teach it. Keep a supplementary box or section in your notebook for materials.
• Drawing of body to label parts of body
• Social Security card, driver's license, etc..
• Have any handouts you chose copied and ready for your class.
• Index cards with drills on them..
• Calendar, picture for parts of the body.
• Box, or can or something to demonstrate prepositions, in, on.
• Have any handouts you chose copied and ready for your class.
• Nouns written on cards, pictures or actual objects, window, door, etc.
• Clock that you can turn hands on... cardboard or drawing.
• Calendar
• A broken object, such as a cup, or watch, etc.
• Have any handouts you chose copied and ready for your class.
• Bandaids to teach It hurts.
• Colored cloth or paper to teach the primary colors..
• Family pictures. People who could be aunts, uncles, etc.
• Objects they know, window, pencil, etc. to put colors on.
• Same old clock to learn time. and calendar to review.
• Drill cards to teach statement, question, negative.
• Stick of gum or candy for a treat.
• Box of old clothes or pictures of clothing.
• Color items to review colors.
• Simon says: Touch your shirt, jeans, belt, etc.
• Have any handouts you chose copied and ready for your class.
• Something with a zipper and buttons.
• Boxes from the medicine cabinet. Aspirin, antacids, cough drops, Pepto Bismal, etc..
• Picture of the body for parts of the body.
• Simon says: Play it to touch where it hurts. (He's getting closer. up a little, down, etc.)
• Measuring things to teach dosages of medicines. teaspoon, tablespoon, dropper, etc.
• Picture of the body for parts of the body.
• Clock to teach mealtimes.
• Bring some money for the students to count and make change. Include bills and coins.
• Teach the areas of the supermarket. Make big signs for Produce, Dairy, Seafood, Frozen Foods, Meats, etc. Place the signs around the class. Then have students place items in each section. ( Milk and cheese in Dairy, Chicken in Meats, fruits and vegetables in produce.
• Set up a checkout in the classroom. Role play or TPR going through the checkout. (Paper or plastic?).
• Some actual items from the food you have at home. Fruits, carrots, or whatever. Pictures of fruits and vegetable. A plastic bag and a paper bag.
• Signs for areas of a supermarket..
• Names & locations of supermarkets in your area.
• Ketchup and salt packets, napkins, menus from fast food places. Some items that can be used in the role play, like a coke, paper cup and a straw. Think out the role play and have as many items handy as possible.
• Set up some kind of counter and eating area. Make the classroom a "restaurant." .
• Map of the restaurant locating order areas, bathrooms, condiment areas, seating areas, take out window, drive-thru.
• Think about McDonald's and a Sub shop. How do they differ?
• Stamps, envelopes. Old envelopes to practice addressing. New stamps, since the Post Office raised the price by one cent.
• Sample money order. Perhaps the real thing.
• Set up Post Office role play situations.
• Maps of your area. Perhaps a Florida map., and a local map. Have them locate the church, the supermarket. Have them pronounce the names of streets and areas correctly.
• Direction signs. North, south, east, west.
• Street signs and building signs to role play directions.
• Masking tape or chalk to draw streets, etc.
• Something to be a red light, and a stop sign.
1999 Copyright by Glenda Reece. Use by permission only. 3
1999 Copyright by Glenda Reece. Use by permission only. First Draft. 9