Level 1

Develop your own texts from shared experience

The Language Experience Approach (LEA) is a fundamental method for supporting reading and overall literacy development with beginning learners. Although originally developed in the context of early childhood reading, the approach readily works for teens and adults. A shared experience (i.e. something done together or shared from memory) becomes the focus for reading and a variety of support activities such as vocabulary, phonics and grammar. The video explains and demonstrates LEA in the context of an academic preparation program with teenagers who are also learning English to enter secondary school. The two resources below from Bow Valley College demonstrate how to use the approach with very beginning readers in digital spaces. 

Digital_Books_Presentation_with_book_template_attached.pdf

The slide presentation describes how to develop digital language experience stories with learners who are  beginning to read. A template that you can use is included.

Copyrighted

Level - Beginner

Digital_Books_Presentation_Example_Sick.pdf

This is a completed example of a digital language experience story that accompanies the slide presentation from Bow Valley College.

Copyrighted

Level - Beginner

Workbooks from the BC Open Collection

The BC (British Columbia) Open Collection has several resources that we have included through our collection. All of their resources are free, open and modifiable. They appear in a variety of formats. Although the collection is primarily for postsecondary education, several literacy and foundational learning resources are included. BC Reads: Adult Literacy Fundamental English is a series of reading instruction workbooks. When you open the preview, you will be able to view and download a PDF version. We have also included a link to access other formats such as Pressbooks, XHTML and sometimes Word. Newly added to the adult literacy readers is an audio and video (text plus audio) playlist. 

BC-Reads-Adult-Literacy-Fundamental-English-Reader-1-1585160337._print.pdf

The reader contains nine original stories about healing, discovery, survival, relationships, justice, and connections to the land explored through the lens of the plant world. 

The online version contains audio recordings. Access all formats here. Access the audio and video playlist here.

License - CC BY 4.0

Level - Beginner to Grade 1.5

BC-Reads-Adult-Literacy-Fundamental-English-Course-Pack-1-1660087510.pdf

The course pack that accompanies the reader contains word pattern and vocabulary exercises.

Access all formats here.

License - CC BY 4.0

Level - Beginner to Grade 1.5

BC-Reads-Adult-Literacy-Fundamental-English-Reader-2-1446148075.pdf

This reader, written specifically for adults, contains eight chapters about Langston Hughes' family history and personal life. It includes excerpts from many of Hughes' poems.

The online version contains audio recordings. Access all formats here. Access the audio and video playlist here.

License - CC BY 4.0

Level - Grades 1.5 to 3

BC-Reads-Adult-Literacy-Fundamental-English-Course-Pack-2-1538433207._print.pdf

The course pack that accompanies the reader contains word pattern and vocabulary exercises.

Access all formats here.

License - CC BY 4.0

Level - Grades 1.5 to 3

Story banks from the Minnesota Literacy Council and CrowdEd Learning

Although these reading passages were originally developed for ESL literacy learners, most can work as well with adults whose first or primary language is English.

pre-beginning_esl_story_bank.pdf

This is a comprehensive collection (121 pages) of reading passages,  instructional activities and teaching guidance developed for ESL literacy learners. Stories are grouped by themes to support newcomer settlement such as housing, transportation and health. Phonics are taught using rhyming word families.

No formal licensing applied. Developers state the resource can be shared and modified.

Level - Pre-beginner

CrowdEd Learning has re-presented and enhanced the stories and activities on Wakelet for online learning. Pre-Beginning Wakelet collections include 

beginning_esl_story_bank.pdf

This is a slightly more difficult collection of reading passages,  instructional activities and teaching guidance developed for ESL literacy learners (43 pages) with a focus on more challenging word families and vocabulary.

No formal licensing applied. Developers state the resource can be shared and modified.

Level - Beginner

CrowdEd Learning has re-presented and enhanced the stories and activities on Wakelet for online learning. Beginning Wakelet collections include 


* Color Vowel® resources with a CC license appear on the Phonics and spelling page. These resources can be used to help you use the Jamboard activities with students.

NWT-Literacy-Council-Five-Photostories-and-Activities.pdf

Photostories about life in the north

Five photo stories describe life and culture in Canada's north. Each story is accompanied by practice exercises and activities.

No copyright or CC licence. Permission granted to use without restrictions.

Level - Beginner to Grade 2

Reading Skills Stories

The Literacy Centre of Expertise "a hub for English literacy resources" has a variety of resources including some produced by the organization. 

Reading Skills Stories were developed for adult learners. There are three different sets of stories available on their site. All resources can be downloaded from the site.


Copyrighted. PDF files are available.

Level - Beginner

Online interactive modules

In addition to the above resources, The Literacy Centre of Expertise has also produced Five online interactive modules that can be accessed on their website. 

Copyrighted. Online modules. 

Level - Beginner

ESL literacy readers from Bow Valley College

40 ESL literacy readers can be accessed on the The School of Global Access at Bow Valley College website. Each reader is available as a PDF and online audio book. The PDF readers can be downloaded and printed. A clean and uncluttered learner page can be used to access the online versions with audio. An instructional guide with pre-reading and follow-up activities is also available. 

Copyrighted. PDF and online versions available.

Levels - A-G relate to Canadian ESL literacy benchmarks foundation to CLB 4.

Changing Lanes: English as a second language reading series

Seven beginning level readers were produced for ESL literacy learners by the Halifax Immigrant Learning Centre. The complete series is available on Copian, a national resource repository that was defunded in 2015 but made available by CDEACF, the Centre de documentation sur l'éducation des adultes et la condition féminine with support from RESDAC, Réseau pour le développement de l'alphabétisme et des compétences. 

Copyrighted. PDF version available.

Level - Beginner

Do you know of other OER that we can add to this page? Get in touch: info@alphaplus.ca