Leisure Time Task and Analysis

Sample 1: Leisure Time Activities
Level: Low-intermediate/Intermediate ESL (CCR Level B)

Task: Read this chart and answer these questions with your partner:
1. How many leisure activities are included on the chart?
2. What is the total time not spent watching television?
3. How much time could people spend interacting with others?
4. How much of the time can be spent outdoors?
5. How healthy are these practices? Why?

Step 1: Build background knowledge and pre-teach concepts (leisure vs work/chores)
• Present visuals with photos
• Picture sort/categorizing

Step 2: Work with the language forms and functions

• Pronunciation: Word stress matching

• Checking with non-verbal guessing task (partners)

• Speculating using language frames:
o I think people could…
o People can do alone or with others.

• Co-construct language for comparing and contrasting

o People spend (a little, much, considerably) more time than .

Step 3: Make a claim about how health issues related to leisure activities using evidence from the chart to
support their claims.

Step 4: Conduct class research on own groups’ leisure time activities.

Nuts and Bolts: Rigorous Classroom Activities that Promote English Learners' Success 1

Webinar 1: What do Rigorous Instructional Tasks Look Like?
Betsy Parrish; January 17, 2018

Sample 2: Writing a Report about Class Learning Strategies Level: High-
beginning/low-intermediate (CCR Level A/B)

Step 1: One-question Interview

1. How often do you talk to your neighbors in English?

Every Once a week Once a month Never Other______

I IIII I I II

Step 2: Analyze the data using this language:
· Many people in class….

· Some people….

· Half the class…

· Two-thirds of the class…

· More people than

· Almost everyone…..

Step 3: Create a graph and report to others

Attend Community Events

12 Every Week Every Month Never Other
10
8
6
4
2
0

Every Day

Step 4: Write a report about class results

Reporting Results using a Paragraph Frame that
Our class uses many techniques for practicing English. We

read(s) the news online in English _. people

. The data show that more than
.
. This shows that

Nuts and Bolts: Rigorous Classroom Activities that Promote English Learners' Success
Webinar 1: What do Rigorous Instructional Tasks Look Like?

January 17, 2018
Betsy Parrish; Hamline University; [email protected]

Sample I: Leisure Time Activities Task A Task Analysis Process

Level: Low-intermediate/Intermediate (CCR Level B)

What thinking skills What language functions, forms (grammar and
do ELs need to vocabulary) do learners need to complete this task

employ to complete successfully?

the task? Are we

If this is our ultimate target: moving beyond
levels 1 and 2 of

Webb’s DOK?

Reading CCR Anchor Standard 7: Level 1 Students read and comprehend the text and discuss

Integrate and evaluate content Identify it with others.
• Report
presented in diverse media and Here are just a few language functions:
Infer • Expressing and supporting opinions and drawing
formats, including visually and conclusions about how healthy leisure time
quantitatively, as well as in words. Level 2
practices are in the United States;
Speaking and Listening CCR Anchor • Classify • Comparing and contrasting activities (time spent
Standard 1: Prepare for and • Interpret
participate effectively in a range of • Compare alone or with others);
conversations and collaborations. Interpret • Speculating about how and where people take
Language CCR Anchor Standard 1: Level 3
• Draw conclusions part in activities.
Demonstrate command of the • Formulate Here are some language forms, too:
conventions of standard English • Comparatives and superlatives;
grammar and usage when speaking. opinions • Use of simple present tense to describe

• Cite evidence routines;

• Modals of possibility (e.g., people can/could
spend time outdoors____)

• Gerunds used as nouns to name the activities

(e.g., relaxing, thinking, socializing); and
• “Wh-question” forms (e.g., how much time…?).

Let’s use the ELPs to guide instruction. How are each of these addressed in the sample lesson?
ELP 1: Construct meaning from oral presentations and literary and informational text through level-appropriate

listening, reading, and viewing.

ELP 3: Speak and write about level-appropriate complex literary and informational texts and topics.
ELP 10: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English to communicate in level-appropriate
speech and writing.

What scaffolds were used to support language development?

• Present visuals with photos

• Picture sort/categorizing

• Pronunciation: Word stress matching

• Checking with non-verbal guessing task (partners)

• Speculating using language frames (I think people could/People can do alone or with others.

• Co-construct language for comparing and contrasting (People spend (a little, much, considerably) more time
than )

REPORTING:
Task Analysis Sample 2 Writing a Report about Class Learning Strategies (Writing an informative/explanatory text)
Level: High-beginning/low-intermediate (CCR Level A/B)

What thinking skills do ELs What language functions, forms
need to employ to complete (grammar and vocabulary) do learners
the tasks in this lesson? Are need to complete the tasks successfully?
we moving beyond level 1 and
If this is our ultimate target: 2 of Webb’s DOK?

Speaking and Listening CCR Level 1 Language functions:
Anchor Standard 2: Integrate • Identify • Analyzing (the data)
and evaluate information • Report • Asking informational questions
presented in diverse media and •
formats, including visually, Level 2 (surveying)
quantitatively, and orally. • Classify •
• Interpret •
Writing CCR Anchor Standard 2: •
Write informative/explanatory Language Forms?
texts to examine and convey • • Simple present tense to describe
complex ideas and information
clearly and accurately through Level 3 routines or to report information
the effective selection, • Interpret • Adverbs of frequency
organization, and analysis of • •
content. •
•

What scaffolds are used (or could you add) to support language development and to promote success
with writing a report?

• One-question interview to generate data
• Language frames and paragraph frames

•

•

The English Language Proficiency Standards for Adult Education

References
American Institutes of Research. (2016). English Language Proficiency Standards for Adult Education.
https://lincs.ed.gov/publications/pdf/elp-standards-adult-ed.pdf
Johnson, K. & Parrish, B. (2010). Aligning instructional practices to meet the academic needs of adult ESL students.
TESOL Quarterly 44(3), 618-628.
Parrish, B. (2015). LINCS ESL Pro: Meeting the Language Needs of Today’s English Language Learner. [Issue Brief, Online
Module]. Washington, D.C., American Institutes for Research and OCTAE https://lincs.ed.gov/programs/eslpro/meeting-
the-language-needs-of-todays-english-language-learner
Pimentel, S. (2013). College and Career Readiness Standards for Adult Education, MPR Associates, Inc. Prepared for U.S.
Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education.
http://lincs.ed.gov/publications/pdf/CCRStandardsAdultEd.pdf
Rutherford-Quach, S., Hsieh, H., Zerkel, L., Skarin, R. & Wiles, S. (2015). ELPA 21 Module Two: Task Analysis. Stanford
University.
Zwiers, J. & Crawford, M. (2011) Academic Conversations. Portland. MN: Stenhouse.
Recommended Websites
Academic Language and Literacy (http://www.jeffzwiers.org) is a site for helping educators accelerate ELLs’
development of academic language, literacy, and content understandings in all classrooms. There are tools and tasks
appropriate for adult ESL and Basic Skills classrooms.

LINCS ESL Pro Resource Collection (https://lincs.ed.gov/programs/eslpro)
This site offers evidence-based resources to enhance the impact of adult English Language Learner (ELL)
instruction nationwide and in your community. Each topic-driven suite of resources includes an issue brief,
online learning module, and a companion learning resource for educators. Suite 1 Meeting the Language Needs
of Today’s Adult English Language Learner; Suite 2 Integrating Digital Literacy into English Language Instruction;
Suite 3 Preparing English Learners for Work and Career Pathways

New American Horizons Foundation (http://www.newamericanhorizons.org) aims to enhance the development
of teachers through a series of training videos, Teaching ESL to Adults: Classroom Approaches in Action. Videos
in the series demonstrate the application of many of the strategies highlighted in this brief.

Understanding Language: Language, Literacy, and Learning in the Content Areas (http://ell.stanford.edu) from
Stanford University provides resources, including articles, sample units, online modules, and more to support
the education of ELLs in the content areas. While targeted at K–12 educators, many of the resources can help
advance the rigor of instruction for adult ELLs and ABE Basic Skills as well.