OUTSIDE THE TEXTBOOK

a resource for

ESL and BL teachers and tutors

of adults

Putting a little more light on the subject;

a book to stay with tutors as their learners advance.

By

Cathryn Varney

Table of Contents

In the learning center, 1	I don’t speak English	2
	Singing in church	5
	There are many nice people in the class	8
	This is a table	10
	She’s not here	12
	Retired	16
	To Susan	18
Shopping, 21	Shopping jazz chant	22
	In the store	24
	Buying a snack	27
	Garage sale	33
	Trying it on	35
Using articles, 37	Any ice cream?	38
	What do you do?	40
Life skills, 45	Stupid, stupid person	46
	Car trouble	48
	Flat tire	50
	There’s nothing wrong with you	52
	I’m on the phone	55
Holidays, 57	Valentine notes	58
	Fourth of July	60
	Halloween	62
	Dashing through the snow	64
	Patriotic songs	67
Social skills, 69	Do you like coffee?	70
	Good expressions	72
	Hello, I’m looking for someone	74
	Take me out to the ballgame	76
	A Poem from the Past	79
Work, 81	I hate my job	82
	What time do you go to work	84
	Much ado about nothing	86
Home and leisure, 89	Mysteries	90
	Hi, Pablo	92
	Opinions	94
	Sleepyhead	96
	The fast-food restaurant	98
	Traveling	100
	Vacation	102
For tutors and teachers only, 105	Jazz chants	106
	Teaching pronunciation	108

Car trouble notes - an excerpt from the book.

This conversation covers a lot of vocabulary, some of which can be learned easily in context. There are instructions for using jumper cables because many tutors and teachers don’t know this vital skill and it gives the learner practice in reading directions. You can check comprehension with questions like “What do you do first? What do you do next?”. It is not always likely that the learner will belong to AAA or have insurance that offers roadside assistance. None of my learners ever did.

Bring a toy car or a picture of a car to this lesson. Bring a picture of a car battery or be prepared to go to the parking lot and look under the hood of a car.

I have included the sentence, “I don’t know what to do” because it is so useful in many different circumstances. I have found that many learners who would willingly ask someone else who speaks their language to repeat, speak up, and explain will hesitate to ask for the same help in English. I want the learner to know that it is OK to say that help is needed. The sentence “I’m stuck at home” is there because you may need the word “stuck” if your car is in mud or snow,too.

Cars are vital to American culture. I think we have more words for cars than Eskimos have words for snow. Cars and driving are interesting topics of conversation for most people.

Some learners would like to stop and help other people but they are reluctant to do so because of their limited English skills. This is the sort of thing that makes people feel alone or inadequate and it can be a serious problem for English language learners.

Many native speakers who don’t read well for pleasure are much better at reading for purpose. Not everybody is a fan of literature and that’s OK.

New words and phrases: won’t start, turn the key, funny noise, out of (something), cable, wires, scrub,battery, wiggle, tight, secure, jumper cables, clamp.

Expansion: This may be the time to teach the names of various tools: “May I borrow a hammer?, Do you have a wrench?, I need a Phillips-head screwdriver. Try using duct tape.” You decide with your learner! You may want to bring a small box of tools and talk about using them. You hit things with a hammer, you turn a screwdriver, what else do you do with tools? Watch for interest cues from your learner.

Car trouble

My car won’t start. I turn the key and it makes a funny noise.

I have to go to work. I have to go to school and the car won’t start.

I don’t know what to do.

Are you out of gas? Is the gas tank empty?

I know you! You don’t buy gas.

The gas tank is full. I have plenty of gas. That’s not the problem.

Open the hood and look at the battery. Are the cables connected?

Are the terminals clean? Scrub the battery with a brush.

The battery is clean. It looks OK. I can’t wiggle the cables; they’re tight and secure.

I need help. I’m stuck at home and my car won’t start. I don’t know what to do.

Can you help me, please?

Do you have jumper cables? Look in the trunk and see if you have them.

Look for two long wires, one red and one black. They have clamps on the ends.

Yes, I have jumper cables but I don’t know how to use them. Boo hoo!

How to use jumper cables: Turn off both motors. Do not let the clamps touch each other or anything except the correct terminals. Connect the positive terminal of one car’s battery to the positive terminal of the other with the black wire. Now connect the negative terminals with the red wire. Start the good car. Then start the problem car. Do not turn off the motor of the car that had the problem. Turn off the car that was good. Disconnect the cables and close the hoods of both cars. Keep the engine running until you get to a mechanic or fully charge the battery. Disclaimer: I’m not a mechanic. Follow these instructions at your own risk.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Cathryn Varney learned Japanese when she lived in Japan while she was in high school and majored in French and Spanish in college. She spent most of her life wondering why other people have talents for things like art and music while she was dealt “languages”. Learning languages was always easy. If you needed someone to parse a sentence, she could be the go-to person. She won spelling bees without studying. It seemed like a waste because the only time she ever really used those languages was in sales at work and watching foreign movies.

After her husband retired and they moved to New Mexico in 1998 she answered a tiny ad in a free local newspaper. The local literacy agency was asking for volunteers to teach basic literacy and English to adults. There would be free training. She figured she could do that; it was indoors, two hours a week, and no heavy lifting. Gradually she took on more students and then started teaching classes for ESL students who were waiting for tutors or who just wanted extra classes. She became a tutor trainer and got certified by The New Mexico Coalition for Literacy and Proliteracy. She was Tutor of the Year (2005) at Readwest, Inc. in Rio Rancho, NM and the New Mexico Coalition for Literacy Trainer of the Year (2007-2008). She found her calling.

By the way, she eventually learned some art and people buy her paintings which is proof that anybody can do anything with a lot of effort! Talent helps, but the lack of it should not be a barrier to you or your students.

Photo by Toni Beatty

For copies of this book, send $17.95 each (US) to

Cathryn Varney

4903 Dolores Hidalgo Dr. SE

Rio Rancho, NM 87124

USA

Postage is included in the price of the book.

All profits from the sale of this book are donated to

literacy programs in New Mexico

You may contact me at

roncathvarney@aol.com