BEGINNING ESL LITERACY COMPETENCY OUTLINE

CASAS Range: 180 and below

By the end of this level, learners will have worked on and attained competency in the following areas:

1. Communication

   1. Recite, read, and write the alphabet.

      1. Recite letters in order from memory

      2. Read and write in upper and lower case

   2. Ask and respond to simple greetings, introductions, and farewells.

      1. Hello

      2. Hello, my name is

      3. Hi

      4. Good-bye

      5. Bye

      6. Thank you

      7. Thanks

      8. Your welcome

      9. Nice to meet you

      10. How are you

      11. I am fine

      12. Shaking hands

      13. Making eye contact

   3. Provide basic personal information in response to oral questions and on simple forms.

      1. Read, write, and say first and last name

      2. Read, write, and say street address

      3. Read, write, and say city, state, and zip code

      4. Read, write, and say telephone number with area code

      5. Read, write, and say birth date

      6. Read, write, and say social security number

      7. Spell first and last name orally

      8. Answer personal information questions

         1. What is your name—My name is ---

         2. What is your first name—My first name is ---

         3. What is your last name—My last name is ---

         4. How old are you—I am --- years old; I am ---

         5. What is your birth date—My birth date is ---

         6. What is your address—My address is ---

         7. What city do you live in—My city is ----; I live in ---

         8. What is your social security number—My social security number is ---

         9. What is your telephone number—My telephone number is ---

         10. What is your zip code—My zip code is ---

         11. Where are you from—I am from ---

         12. What country are you from—I am from ---

      9. Complete a personal information form including a signature

   4. Recognize and use the words for basic family relationships.

      1. Husband, wife

      2. Sister, brother

      3. Son, daughter

      4. Mother, father

   5. Ask and answer simple questions about family.

      1. How many people are in your family—There are --- people in my family

      2. How many children do you have—I have --- children

      3. Are you married—Yes, I am; No, I am not

      4. Do you have any brothers or sisters—Yes, I do; No, I do not

      5. What are their names—Their names are ---

      6. Where do they live—They live in ---

      7. How old is he or she/are they—He or she is/They are --- years old

   6. Recognize basic concepts of caring about children.

      1. Know about compulsory schooling for children and where and how to enroll a child in school

      2. Recognize proper care of children (food, shelter, hygiene)

2. Consumer Economics

   1. Recognize different currencies and vocabulary associated with money.

      1. Cash, check, change, dollar, cents

      2. Recognize US money

         1. penny

         2. nickel

         3. dime

         4. quarter

         5. dollar bill

   2. Read monetary amounts and price tags.

      1. Understand that the decimal point means cents

      2. Read price tags on food and clothing

         1. How much does --- cost

         2. How much is it

         3. It costs ---

         4. It is ---

      3. Read the amount payable on a check or money order

      4. Locate and read the amount due on a utility bill

   3. Recognize basic food vocabulary.

      1. Recognize vocabulary for basic food items

         1. meat, chicken, fish, milk, cheese, rice, eggs, vegetables, fruit, bread, cereal, soup, salad, cake, apple, banana, orange, tomato, lettuce, carrot, potato, onion, hamburger, sandwich

      2. Meals—breakfast, lunch, dinner

      3. Food containers—box, bag, can, bottle

   4. Know basic food safety concepts.

      1. Concept of expiration dates and purchase by dates

      2. How to safely store and prepare food

   5. Recognize terms for basic clothing and sizes.

      1. Recognize vocabulary for basic clothing items

         1. jacket, shirt, sweater, pants, skirt, shoes, boots, dress, shorts, gloves, hat, coat

      2. Read size tags including S, M, L, and XL

   6. Recognize vocabulary for different types of housing, rooms, and furnishings.

      1. Different types of housing

         1. house

         2. apartment

         3. mobile home

      2. Rooms

         1. living room

         2. kitchen

         3. bedroom

         4. bathroom

         5. garage

         6. dining room

      3. Furnishings

         1. couch

         2. chair

         3. table

         4. bed

         5. lamp

         6. stove

         7. refrigerator

         8. sink

         9. toilet

         10. shower

         11. TV

   7. Know basic cleaning and laundry concepts and vocabulary.

      1. Cleaning

         1. soap

         2. dust

         3. sweep

         4. mop

         5. broom

         6. vacuum

      2. Laundry

         1. soap

         2. dryer

         3. washing machine

   8. Know basic home safety and security concepts and vocabulary.

      1. Locking doors

      2. Shoveling away snow and ice

3. Community Resources

   1. Use a telephone

      1. Contact school or work to report an absence

         1. I can not come to school today

         2. I am sick

         3. I have to go to the doctor

         4. I need to take my child to the doctor

         5. I have to go to INS

         6. My car won’t start

      2. Recognize the telephone book

      3. Know how to answer the phone and express lack of understanding of caller

         1. Hello

         2. I do not speak English

         3. Wait, I will get someone

   2. Ask and answer simple oral questions about the weather.

      1. Know and use the vocabulary for different kinds of weather—hot, cold, cool, sunny, cloudy, rainy, snowing

      2. Ask and answer weather questions

         1. What’s the weather today

         2. Is it ---

         3. Yes, it is ---

         4. It is --- outside

   3. Read and tell time.

      1. Read analog and digital clocks

      2. Tell time to the quarter hour

         1. What time is it

         2. It is 10 o’clock

         3. It is 10 in the morning, It is 10 in the evening

         4. It is ten fifteen—it is ten thirty—it is ten forty-five

         5. It is quarter after; it is quarter til

      3. Know the concepts of “start time” and “end time” or “beginning” and “ending”

   4. Know the names of the days of the week, the months, and the seasons.

      1. Know the names of the days of the week, the months, and the seasons

      2. Know the number of the month

      3. Know the difference between weekday and weekend

      4. Know the concepts of yesterday, today, and tomorrow

   5. Read, write, and say the current date.

      1. Write dates

         1. mm/dd/yy

         2. mm/dd/yyyy

   6. Know how to buy stamps and mail a letter.

      1. Know where the post office is

      2. Know the cost of stamps

      3. Know how to address an envelope

         1. return address

         2. address

         3. zip code

         4. stamp location

   7. Know basic directional vocabulary and identify places on a map.

      1. Recognize the signs and symbols for: poison, emergency, no smoking, flammable, danger, caution, directional arrows, restroom, men, women, exit, bus signs, stop, yield, traffic lights, walk, don’t walk

      2. Use a map to locate Minnesota, the United States, the city

      3. Identify north, east, south, and west on a map

   8. Identify safe driving practices

      1. Seat belts, child safety restraints

      2. Speed limits

      3. Driver’s license

4. Health

   1. Know basic medical vocabulary.

      1. head, neck, face, eye, nose, mouth, ear, hair, arm, hand, fingers, stomach, heart, leg, foot, toes, shoulder, knees

      2. doctor, nurse, clinic, hospital, emergency

   2. Know how to express basic medical problems.

      1. My --- hurts

      2. My --- is broken

      3. My --- is cut

      4. I have a cough

      5. I have a fever

      6. I feel sick

      7. I have a headache

      8. I have a cold

      9. I have a stomachache

      10. Answer questions about a problem or illness

          1. Do you feel sick

          2. Where does it hurt

      11. Ask and answer “How are you” in every day and medical situations

          1. I am fine

          2. How are you

          3. I don’t feel good

          4. I am OK

   3. Know how to make a medical appointment.

      1. Use a phone to make a medical appointment

         1. I need to see a doctor

         2. I need an appointment

      2. Read the date and time on a medical appointment card

   4. Know how and why to call 911

      1. Orally give address

      2. Describe emergency

         1. There is a fire

         2. I need an ambulance

         3. I need the police

         4. Somebody is hurt

         5. Please hurry

      3. Express lack of understanding or lack of English skills

         1. I don’t speak English

         2. Please speak slower

   5. Recognize basic safety symbols.

      1. Poison

      2. Emergency

      3. No smoking

      4. Flammable

      5. Danger

      6. Caution

      7. Arrows

5. Employment

   1. Know some basic vocabulary about entry-level jobs and names of basic occupations. (examples)

      1. Dishwasher—dishes, water, hot, cold, scour, soap, clean

      2. Housekeeper—clean, vacuum, dust, make the bed, clean the bathroom, soap, polish, laundry

   2. Know how to fill out a simple job application.

      1. Name

      2. Address

      3. Phone

      4. Birth date

      5. Social Security number

   3. Use a phone to report an absence.

      1. I cannot come to work today.

      2. I am sick.

      3. My child is sick.

      4. I have to go to the doctor.

      5. I have to go to INS.

      6. I will be late for work today.

   4. Ask for directions and clarification.

      1. How do you ---

      2. I don’t understand

      3. Please show me

      4. Repeat that please

   5. Know basic workplace safety concepts, signs, and symbols.

      1. Flammable

      2. Danger

      3. Poison

      4. Caution

      5. No smoking

      6. Arrows

6. Government and Law

   1. Know simple government facts.

      1. Name of the US president

      2. Governor of Minnesota

      3. Colors of the US flag

   2. Recognize police as a source of assistance.

7. Computation

   1. Count, read, and write cardinal (through 100) and ordinal (through 20) numbers.

      1. Recite (count) to 100

      2. Count to 100 by 5’s

      3. Read and write cardinal numbers

      4. Read and write ordinal numbers 1^st through 10^th

      5. Write in words cardinal numbers 1 through 20

   2. Recognize and use the names for basic shapes.

      1. Circle

      2. Square

      3. Rectangle

      4. Triangle

   3. Recognize and interpret basic food measurement concepts.

      1. Cup

      2. Quart

      3. Gallon

      4. Pound

8. Learning to Learn (Reading)

   1. Recognize the colors of and use the names for basic colors.

      1. Red

      2. Green

      3. Yellow

      4. Blue

      5. Black

      6. White

      7. Pink

      8. Orange

      9. Brown

      10. Purple

   2. Recognize the English alphabet.

      1. Upper and lower case

   3. Recognize conventions of written text.

      1. Letters make words

      2. Words make sentences

      3. Page orientation

         1. left to right

         2. top to bottom

         3. front to back

      4. letters make sounds

   4. Read basic vocabulary.

      1. Common symbols and signs

         1. restroom

         2. traffic

         3. currency

         4. time

      2. Dolch sight words pre-primer

      3. Formatted text

         1. numbers

         2. times

         3. dates

         4. money

   5. Connect illustrations to text.

      1. Picture stories

      2. Sequencing picture stories

   6. Use appropriate reference tools.

      1. Picture dictionary

9. Grammar and Writing

   1. Copy written information.

      1. Letters

      2. Numbers

      3. Word

      4. Personal identification information onto a form

      5. Lists of familiar words

10. Listening

    1. Recognize and distinguish words and sounds.

       1. Vowels

       2. Consonants

       3. Final s

       4. Individual words in connect speech

       5. Rising intonation for questions

    2. Comprehend basic vocabulary.

       1. Point/touch to named object

       2. Simple words drawn from functional skills topics

    3. Recognize letters of the alphabet.

       1. Write letters when dictated

       2. Spell words when dictated

    4. Differentiate with grammatical structures.

       1. To be, to do

       2. Negatives

       3. Commands

       4. Questions vs. statements

    5. Comprehend conversations.

       1. Basic social exchanges

          1. personal information

          2. conversational questions, i.e. how are you

          3. short emergency warnings

             1. stop

             2. wait