Barebones Blog
What's New at abc English
March 2025: Teaching Fast Track Phonics is a new module available at abceng.org/ttm. The module includes video examples of instructional techniques, as well as research-based background information to help teachers understand the rationale for each strategy. You can find a fillable Course Notes document at the beginning of each module, as well as a Certificate of Completion at the end of each module. If you are a manager of teachers or volunteers, you can ask your teachers or volunteers to submit the completed Course Notes and Certificate of Completion as evidence of completing the training. The Teacher Training Modules are a free learning resource and can be used for teacher self-study, or as the basis for your own group training and discussion.
December 2024: Several new lessons have been added to Easy English Grammar, and you can expect to see more here in the next few weeks and months. Updated versions of the US Citizenship Test Reading & Writing Lessons have also been added. The rest of the Fast Track Phonics lessons have been completed. These lessons are designed to be used with students who are already literate in their home language, and explain English spelling and pronunciation at a "Fast Track" pace.
September 2024: New versions of some Fast Track Phonics lessons have been added. These lessons are designed to be used with students who are already literate in their home language, and explain English spelling and pronunciation at a "Fast Track" pace.
July 2024: New slideshow lessons have been added to the Easy English Grammar category, and some of the existing slideshows have been redesigned and improved. Look out for additional lessons to be added to this category in the coming months.
Other Resource Websites
LESLLA (Literacy Education and Second Language Learning for Adults), a professional organization for teachers and researchers
Literacy Minnesota, especially the Instructional Support Kits, Classroom Videos, and Pre-Beginning ESL Curriculum
English Unlocked, also from Literacy Minnesota
Cultural Orientation Resource Exchange, especially their U-Curve of Cultural Adjustment poster
CIWA (Calgary Immigrant Women's Association), especially their Health Literacy Resources
We Speak NYC videos, student favorites are Stay in School and Love and Money
BRYCS (Bridging Refugee Youth and Children's Services), especially the images and info in Raising Children in a New Country
Bow Valley Readers, printable and online stories for adult emergent readers, at Lexile Levels 100 to 600
Pathway to Literacy Indianapolis, free and open educational resources for adult English learners who are emergent readers
ATLAS - Beginning ESL Literacy Resources Page, a long list of resources specific to Beginning ESL Literacy
The Math Worksheet Site, printable worksheets to add numbers and numeracy practice to your teaching
Grants and Scholarships for Programs
Funding Opportunities from ProLiteracy
Books for Students
abc English Books
What's Next?
Sam and Pat
Future, Literacy Workbook
Survival English
At the River (and other books by Shelley Hale Lee)
Tools for Makers
Canva, especially to create student certificates
Virtual Speech Recorder, to easily record and save audio files online
Flaticon and The Noun Project, for free icons
Photos for Class and Creative Commons, for free photos
Articles and Presentations
(Slides & Video) Foundational Literacy Skills for Low-Beginning English Learners I created this presentation for the Wisconsin Technical College System in November 2024. This presentation gives an overview of Fast Track Phonics and explains the rationale for decontextualized practice of foundational literacy skills including phonemic awareness and phonics. You can see the video recording here and the slides here.
(Slides & Video) More Strategies for Teaching Low-Beginning English Learners I created this presentation for the Florida Literacy Coalition in June 2024. I share five answers to the question "How can teachers and programs serve all types of beginning ELL students, (including emergent readers)?" The presentation includes several video demonstrations of teacher/student interactions while teaching Foundational Literacy Skills. You can see the video recording here and the slides here.
(Slides & Video) Strategies for Teaching Low Beginning English Learners I created this presentation for Wisconsin Literacy's 2024 Winter Virtual Conference. Key points include identifying Different Types of Beginners, considering both the Language and Literacy needs of students, and the importance of Teaching with Routines. You can see the video recording here and the slides here.
(Slides & Video) Techniques for Teaching Foundational Literacy Skills I created this presentation for the 2023 LESLLA Symposium. You can read the full presentation by viewing the Speaker Notes (press S on your keyboard after opening the presentation). This presentation shares research-backed techniques for teaching Foundational Literacy Skills -- phonemic awareness, phonics, and fluency. The slides include academic references for further learning about each technique. Here is a video recording of the first half of this presentation.
(Article) Structured Literacy: A Framework for Teaching LESLLA This article outlines a Bridge Analogy to help teachers understand how to plan language and literacy instruction using a Structured Literacy approach. It is published in the 2022 LESLLA Proceedings, and is based on the presentation below.
(Slides) Teaching Structured Literacy + Assessment of Decoding Skills I created this presentation for the 2022 LESLLA Symposium. You can read the full presentation by viewing the Speaker Notes (press S on your keyboard after opening the presentation). I present a Bridge Analogy to explain how to teach LESLLA students with a Structured Literacy approach, and also discuss why assessment of decoding skills is important. (See also the related article above).
(Video) Training Webinar: Orientation to using abc English Teaching Resources This is a recording of a 60-minute training webinar that I presented to a group of teachers in February 2022. They have graciously given permission for me to share the recording with others. This training will help you understand how to get started using the new abc English Online Library resources and Phonics books.
(Slides & Video) The Science of Reading: A Workshop for Adult Literacy Educators I created this presentation for the Metro Toronto Movement for Literacy in November 2021. The goal of the presentation is to show examples of how I've applied research to practice in my work with adult literacy students. You'll see examples of strategies backed by reading science that I've used with some of my current adult literacy students. You can read the full presentation by viewing the Speaker Notes (press S on your keyboard after opening the presentation). You can also view a recording of this presentation through YouTube.
(Article) The Science of Reading: Implications for LESLLA I wrote this article to summarize key concepts from reading science, and discuss how they apply to the work of LESLLA (Literacy Education and Second Language Learning for Adults). It is published in the 2021 LESLLA Proceedings, and is based on the presentation below.
(Slides & Video) The Science of Reading I created this 24 minute presentation about the Science of Reading for the 2021 LESLLA Symposium. The presentation outlines the key concepts in the Science of Reading and the shifts in instruction that many K-12 programs are making in teaching reading in the last few years. I also share my thoughts on how this research applies to our work with adult emergent readers. (See also the related article above.)
Podcasts for Professional Learning
Podcasts about the Science of Reading I have found podcasts to be a helpful way to fit professional learning into my busy schedule. It's a convenient way to be introduced to the ideas of leading experts and the experiences of other literacy teachers, and I often find myself making notes to follow up on books or research articles mentioned in order to dive deeper. For those who are interested in similar learning, I've started to keep a collection of podcast episodes here. Although these podcast episodes generally focus on K-12 reading instruction, I have found a lot of value in considering how this knowledge can inform my work with adult emergent readers. (PS, I stopped adding to this list in Nov 2023. However, I continue to follow a few literacy podcasts regularly. Literacy Talks and The Science of Reading Podcast are especially worthwhile, as well as some of the recorded webinars at Donna Hejtmanek's YouTube Page.)
What's New at abc English
March 2025: Teaching Fast Track Phonics is a new module available at abceng.org/ttm. The module includes video examples of instructional techniques, as well as research-based background information to help teachers understand the rationale for each strategy. You can find a fillable Course Notes document at the beginning of each module, as well as a Certificate of Completion at the end of each module. If you are a manager of teachers or volunteers, you can ask your teachers or volunteers to submit the completed Course Notes and Certificate of Completion as evidence of completing the training. The Teacher Training Modules are a free learning resource and can be used for teacher self-study, or as the basis for your own group training and discussion.
December 2024: Several new lessons have been added to Easy English Grammar, and you can expect to see more here in the next few weeks and months. Updated versions of the US Citizenship Test Reading & Writing Lessons have also been added. The rest of the Fast Track Phonics lessons have been completed. These lessons are designed to be used with students who are already literate in their home language, and explain English spelling and pronunciation at a "Fast Track" pace.
September 2024: New versions of some Fast Track Phonics lessons have been added. These lessons are designed to be used with students who are already literate in their home language, and explain English spelling and pronunciation at a "Fast Track" pace.
July 2024: New slideshow lessons have been added to the Easy English Grammar category, and some of the existing slideshows have been redesigned and improved. Look out for additional lessons to be added to this category in the coming months.
Other Resource Websites
LESLLA (Literacy Education and Second Language Learning for Adults), a professional organization for teachers and researchers
Literacy Minnesota, especially the Instructional Support Kits, Classroom Videos, and Pre-Beginning ESL Curriculum
English Unlocked, also from Literacy Minnesota
Cultural Orientation Resource Exchange, especially their U-Curve of Cultural Adjustment poster
CIWA (Calgary Immigrant Women's Association), especially their Health Literacy Resources
We Speak NYC videos, student favorites are Stay in School and Love and Money
BRYCS (Bridging Refugee Youth and Children's Services), especially the images and info in Raising Children in a New Country
Bow Valley Readers, printable and online stories for adult emergent readers, at Lexile Levels 100 to 600
Pathway to Literacy Indianapolis, free and open educational resources for adult English learners who are emergent readers
ATLAS - Beginning ESL Literacy Resources Page, a long list of resources specific to Beginning ESL Literacy
The Math Worksheet Site, printable worksheets to add numbers and numeracy practice to your teaching
Grants and Scholarships for Programs
Funding Opportunities from ProLiteracy
Books for Students
abc English Books
What's Next?
Sam and Pat
Future, Literacy Workbook
Survival English
At the River (and other books by Shelley Hale Lee)
Tools for Makers
Canva, especially to create student certificates
Virtual Speech Recorder, to easily record and save audio files online
Flaticon and The Noun Project, for free icons
Photos for Class and Creative Commons, for free photos
Articles and Presentations
(Slides & Video) Foundational Literacy Skills for Low-Beginning English Learners I created this presentation for the Wisconsin Technical College System in November 2024. This presentation gives an overview of Fast Track Phonics and explains the rationale for decontextualized practice of foundational literacy skills including phonemic awareness and phonics. You can see the video recording here and the slides here.
(Slides & Video) More Strategies for Teaching Low-Beginning English Learners I created this presentation for the Florida Literacy Coalition in June 2024. I share five answers to the question "How can teachers and programs serve all types of beginning ELL students, (including emergent readers)?" The presentation includes several video demonstrations of teacher/student interactions while teaching Foundational Literacy Skills. You can see the video recording here and the slides here.
(Slides & Video) Strategies for Teaching Low Beginning English Learners I created this presentation for Wisconsin Literacy's 2024 Winter Virtual Conference. Key points include identifying Different Types of Beginners, considering both the Language and Literacy needs of students, and the importance of Teaching with Routines. You can see the video recording here and the slides here.
(Slides & Video) Techniques for Teaching Foundational Literacy Skills I created this presentation for the 2023 LESLLA Symposium. You can read the full presentation by viewing the Speaker Notes (press S on your keyboard after opening the presentation). This presentation shares research-backed techniques for teaching Foundational Literacy Skills -- phonemic awareness, phonics, and fluency. The slides include academic references for further learning about each technique. Here is a video recording of the first half of this presentation.
(Article) Structured Literacy: A Framework for Teaching LESLLA This article outlines a Bridge Analogy to help teachers understand how to plan language and literacy instruction using a Structured Literacy approach. It is published in the 2022 LESLLA Proceedings, and is based on the presentation below.
(Slides) Teaching Structured Literacy + Assessment of Decoding Skills I created this presentation for the 2022 LESLLA Symposium. You can read the full presentation by viewing the Speaker Notes (press S on your keyboard after opening the presentation). I present a Bridge Analogy to explain how to teach LESLLA students with a Structured Literacy approach, and also discuss why assessment of decoding skills is important. (See also the related article above).
(Video) Training Webinar: Orientation to using abc English Teaching Resources This is a recording of a 60-minute training webinar that I presented to a group of teachers in February 2022. They have graciously given permission for me to share the recording with others. This training will help you understand how to get started using the new abc English Online Library resources and Phonics books.
(Slides & Video) The Science of Reading: A Workshop for Adult Literacy Educators I created this presentation for the Metro Toronto Movement for Literacy in November 2021. The goal of the presentation is to show examples of how I've applied research to practice in my work with adult literacy students. You'll see examples of strategies backed by reading science that I've used with some of my current adult literacy students. You can read the full presentation by viewing the Speaker Notes (press S on your keyboard after opening the presentation). You can also view a recording of this presentation through YouTube.
(Article) The Science of Reading: Implications for LESLLA I wrote this article to summarize key concepts from reading science, and discuss how they apply to the work of LESLLA (Literacy Education and Second Language Learning for Adults). It is published in the 2021 LESLLA Proceedings, and is based on the presentation below.
(Slides & Video) The Science of Reading I created this 24 minute presentation about the Science of Reading for the 2021 LESLLA Symposium. The presentation outlines the key concepts in the Science of Reading and the shifts in instruction that many K-12 programs are making in teaching reading in the last few years. I also share my thoughts on how this research applies to our work with adult emergent readers. (See also the related article above.)
Podcasts for Professional Learning
Podcasts about the Science of Reading I have found podcasts to be a helpful way to fit professional learning into my busy schedule. It's a convenient way to be introduced to the ideas of leading experts and the experiences of other literacy teachers, and I often find myself making notes to follow up on books or research articles mentioned in order to dive deeper. For those who are interested in similar learning, I've started to keep a collection of podcast episodes here. Although these podcast episodes generally focus on K-12 reading instruction, I have found a lot of value in considering how this knowledge can inform my work with adult emergent readers. (PS, I stopped adding to this list in Nov 2023. However, I continue to follow a few literacy podcasts regularly. Literacy Talks and The Science of Reading Podcast are especially worthwhile, as well as some of the recorded webinars at Donna Hejtmanek's YouTube Page.)