Learning About American Schools

Objectives:

Duration:

    4 hours

Materials:

Activities:

1. Teacher asks learners to compare American schools and American students with the schools and students in their home country. Teacher writes responses on the board and allows for discussion. Following the discussion, teacher announces that learners will be studying how American schools are organized and where to find important information about the schools their children attend. Learners also will learn how to compare things like schools, school divisions and student grades. 

2. Teacher distributes School Vocabulary sheet and defines lesson vocabulary; learners practice pronunciation.   

3. Teacher charts on the board the different educational levels with appropriate ages assigned to each (daycare, preschool, elementary school, middle school, high school, community college, vocational school and university). Included in the discussion is a common difference between American schools and foreign schools: the lack of "tracking" into apprenticeships or university work, and the open access to community colleges at any age as an alternative to admittance to a four-year university, or for vocational training. Home and private schooling are mentioned as rights held by parents.

4. Teacher explains legal requirements of beginning and quitting school, and meeting the requirements for graduation vs. taking the GED.  

5. Teacher charts the organizational structure of American public schools, from the superintendent to the classroom teacher, including relationships of school board and local PTAs/PTOs to the school divisions. 

6. Teacher distributes What About Out Our Local Schools? scavenger hunt sheets; learners investigate the local school division where their child attends school. Teacher allows time for clarification of questions as needed before learners access the Internet. Learners record answers and discuss. Homework assignment is to discuss the scavenger hunt information with their child, visit their child's school Web site for information about his/her school, and record at least three additional things they did not know about their child's school or school division. 

7. Teacher introduces comparatives by writing on the board the sentences, " Patrick Henry High School is a big school," "Patrick Henry High School is a bigger school than William Byrd High School," and "Patrick Henry High School is the biggest school in the Roanoke Valley." Teacher asks learners to volunteer other adjectives (small, old, new, etc.). Teacher waits for learners to offer adjectives that are exceptions to the rule (good, bad, far), adjectives that end in "y" or adjectives with more than one syllable in order to address the rules pertaining to each (teacher explains the use of these adjectives anyway, in the absence of an opportunity).

8. Teacher assigns pgs. 383-385 in Basic English Grammar; learners complete Exercise 8 as mixed-ability pairs and review answers as a class. Learners work individually to complete exercises 9 and 10; teacher collects and records scores.

9. Class completes Exercise 11. With Exercise 11 as a model, learners create three problems of their own using lesson vocabulary and write each on a 4 x 6 index card. When learners finish, teacher directs them to pass their cards to the second person to their left. Learners state the answer to one card, rotating through the class until everyone voices one answer; learners follow same procedure with cards two and three until finished.

10. Teacher assigns pgs. 398-400 in Basic English Grammar to mixed-ability pairs. Teacher extends experiences with comparative adjectives to superlative adjectives using the examples on p. 398. Pairs complete Exercise 29, p. 399 and review answers as a class. Learners work individually to complete Exercise 30, pgs. 399-400; teacher collects and records scores.    

Assessment:

Teacher monitors verbal and written responses, records scores on exercises.