Set out below are links to some of our favorite online resources for working with adult learners. If you have a resource that you’ve successfully used with your student, please let Nanette know by e-mailing her at alctutor1@gmail.com so that she can share it with your fellow tutors. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel!
FLORIDA LITERACY COALITION
The Florida Literacy Coalition website is a treasure trove of tutoring resources. Once you get into their site, click on the “Tutor Help Center” tab on the left. This will take you to a page that is organized by “Literacy/ABE,” “ESOL,” and “Learning Disabilities,” with Strategies, Lesson Plans, Teaching Tips, and Hand-outs for each topic. Another tab you will want to check out is “Literacy Resources.” Click on the Teacher/Tutor drop down and then scroll down to click on the subject for which you would like to find resources. Among other things, there is an excellent Guide to Staying Healthy that was designed with English language learners in mind.
ADULT BASIC EDUCATION FLORIDA
This site is great because it was developed with TABE levels in mind (which is information you will have about your student if you are working with an adult basic education learner.) Scroll down to the Learning Activities Resource Guides section and you will find sections on Reading and Math. Go to the activites section for your student’s level and you will find lots of ideas on ways to work with your students. The Language section has great ideas as well, with more of a focus on grammar.
BOGGLESWORLD
This site has lots of great ideas on working with any student. It includes crossword puzzles and word searches by theme (such as fruits or jobs) and a section dedicated to ideas for Adult ESL students.
ESL CAFE
Dave Sperling’s ESL cafe is a site for both students and tutors. For tutors, there is a section entitled “Ideas Cookbook” that has tons of lesson plans for the taking on topics ranging from business English to spelling to games. For students, there are sections on idioms, slang and more. Definitely a website to have in your arsenal!
MANY THINGS
Don’t be fooled by the fact that this website is characterized as a site for use by English language learners. The site has great resources for both ESOL and adult basic ed students, and some of the lessons include an audio component.
GRAMMAR GIRL
This fun, interactive website was recommended by one of our tutors. Definitely worth checking out.
TABE PROGRESS CHECKS (sponsored by the Florida Department of Education)
This is a great resource for tutors working with students who are working to improve their TABE (Test of Adult Basic Education) scores. It contains sample questions by topic (with an answer key).
