A Place to
Live
Patricia Allingham
Student Characteristics and
Level: High intermediate to advanced English language learners in
a 3 night, 2.5 hour evening program.
A. Instructional goals:
The students will be able to apply for housing and design a household
budget.
B. Competencies/Objectives:
Students will …
1. Read housing ads.
2. Identify and select appropriate housing.
3. Create a list of housing needs.
4. Interpret and fill out a leasing or rental agreement.
5. Identify utilities and arrange for installation.
6. Calculate and determine a budget.
7. Write a letter of complaint to a building superintendent.
C. Academic Skills:
-
Reading-to interpret
information on housing.
-
Writing-to fill out forms
related to housing.
-
Computing-to establish a
budget.
D. Rationale: Students
need basic knowledge for renting house or an apartment including
utilities, housing contracts and household budgets. As a life skill
this will help them to ask the right questions and be successful in
fulfilling their housing needs.
E. Content and Materials,
Sites, Games, Activity:
o
Crossroads 4 Unit 7 (New interchange
Unit 3 or Step Forward 4 pg153-157.
o
Classified ads from newspaper.
o
Websites with ads and practice housing
vocabulary:
www.eslteacherboard.com or
www.frbsf.org/publications/education/newsletter/summero6/lessonplan_jobskills.pdf
o
Game-board game where students ask questions about
utilities, location, pets, number of bedrooms etc.
F. Instructional Procedures:
-
Identify prior housing problems as a whole group.
-
Compare housing in the United States and in your
country.
-
Create a list of housing needs in a small group.
-
Discuss basic conditions for renting an apartment as
whole group generated from the small group discussion
-
Read the classified ads and select a house or
apartment that fits your needs.
-
Create a list of words or abbreviations not
understood from the ads.
-
Complete the game on renting an apartment.
-
Fill out a compare and contrast worksheet on
different apartment and their amenities.
-
Complete a lease agreement.
-
Role play about the sink being stopped up. One
person is the landlord and the other will be the tenant then students
will switch roles.
-
Each student is given a different earned salary
amount and must devise a budget.
-
Practice letter writing.
-
Ask a local housing authority to visit the class and
provide information about the Fair Housing Act.
G. Learning Assessments:
1.
Progress checks at the end of Unit 7 in
Crossroads 4
2.
Checklist for each student including individual
and small groups.
3.
Analyze each other’s budgets.
4.
Write a letter of complaint about a housing
problemand compare it with a partner.
5.
Describe the experience of role playing or a real
interaction with a landlord.
6.
Recommend additions or changes to this unit.
7.
Listening assessment from Crossroads 4 on
page 80 or CASAS Listening.
H. Small Groups:
Working in groups of three the students will create a list of housing
needs. One student will be the recorder and do the writing for the
group. Another student will check the vocabulary and pronunciation.
The third student will be the spokesperson to the whole class. Each
will initial their contribution. Mark the checklist and comment on
their assessment form.
I. Learning or Physically
Disabled: For a physically disabled person such as one with a
hearing problem placement in the classroom or in a group should be
available to accommodate the problem. Headphones should be supplied for
listening to cassettes. A volunteer could modify this lesson for
different learning abilities help the student if the need arises or the
student requests it.
For more strategies use the
following sites:
www.coloradoadulted.org/powerofone/howerofonw.htm
www.Idpride.net/Id.addinfo.htm
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