For effective instruction:
- Develop a lesson plan each week.
- Ground your lessons in your learner’s real-life goals.
- Emphasize speaking and listening, plus include reading and writing in each lesson.
- Design your lessons to build on those from previous sessions.
- Review key topics and lessons from the previous week.
- Address what the learner should do for the following week.
- Take notes on what worked well, what needs improvement, and what challenges came to light.
- Encourage your learner to generate useful materials, such as sight word lists, picture cards, post-its, and experience stories that can be used for study and review.
- Revisit instructional videos frequently for direction and inspiration.
- Keep in touch with other tutors and trainers at Literacy DuPage to share ideas and ask questions.
Here are tools and resources to support your efforts as a Literacy DuPage tutor.
Lesson Packets
Video Lessons
Real Tutors, Real Learners is a set of videos created by Literacy DuPage. The videos may be viewed on the Literacy DuPage YouTube channel.
Tutor Media Kit
Your work with Literacy DuPage is generating positive change in the community. We created a Media Kit for you to share how important your commitment is – and how important adult literacy is – with your networks.
In spreading the word about the work you are doing with Literacy DuPage, we hope that members of your network will follow in your footsteps and also become tutors. Thank you for sharing your tutor pride with your neighbors, co-workers, family, and friends – don’t forget to tag us!
Resource Agencies
There are many community agencies and resources that provide a range of services that may be of value to Literacy DuPage learners.
To put your learner in touch with food pantries, domestic abuse assistance, medical resources, shelter options, and more, please refer to this list of resource agencies.
Libraries
Literacy DuPage partners with many libraries in DuPage County. They generously provide space for Literacy DuPage tutoring, English conversation groups, and in-service training workshops. Several have extensive collections of materials for adult learners of English, plus computer access for students. Contact your local library for more information.
Our Library Partners
*Designates a English conversation group partner library
- Addison Public Library*
- Bartlett Public Library District
- Bensenville Community Public Library
- Bloomingdale Public Library
- Carol Stream Public Library
- Clarendon Hills Public Library
- College of DuPage Library, Glen Ellyn
- Downers Grove Public Library
- Elmhurst Public Library
- Eola Road Branch Library, Aurora
- Fountaindale Public Library, Bolingbrook*
- Glen Ellyn Public Library
- Glenside Public Library District, Glendale Heights
- Helen Plum Library, Lombard
- Hinsdale Public Library
- Indian Prairie Public Library District, Darien*
- Itasca Community Library*
- Lisle Library District
- Naperville Public Library – 95th Street Library*
- Naperville Public Library – Naper Boulevard Library*
- Naperville Public Library – Nichols Library*
- Oak Brook Public Library
- Plainfield Public Library District
- Poplar Creek Public Library Sonya Crawshaw Branch, Hanover Park
- Roselle Public Library District*
- Villa Park Public Library
- Warrenville Public Library District
- West Chicago Public Library District*
- Westmont Public Library*
- Wheaton Public Library*
- Winfield Public Library
- Wood Dale Public Library District
- Woodridge Public Library*
Activity & Professional Development Websites
- Activities for ESL Students offers a wide variety of interactive quizzes, tests, exercises, and puzzles for ESL learners.
- Adult Education and Literacy Resource Collection is the LINCS (Literacy Information and Communication System of the National Institute for Literacy (NIFL)) site for ESL teachers and students with articles and links to numerous other useful ESL sites.
- The Alberta Teachers’ Association provides a list of free, multilingual picture dictionaries designed for beginning English language learners of all ages.
- Applying Research in Reading Instruction for Adults offers First Steps for Teachers, developed by the National Institute for Literacy for Basic Literacy learners.
- Bridging Refugee Youth & Children’s Services offers a booklet titled, Raising Children in a New Country: An Illustrated Handbook. This resource can help foreign-born parents adjust to the different laws, norms, and practices related to raising children in the United States.
- CATESOL ESL Games is a collection of online, educational, English learning, grammar, and vocabulary games.
- Center For Adult English Language Acquisition (CAELA) has a collection of articles based on research called digests on many diverse topics for ESL and BL tutors.
- Dave’s ESL Cafe is an excellent resource that includes many links, activities, teacher tips, and lesson plans. This is a great starting point for teachers.
- EL/Civics Online is an online professional development resource created through the Adult Learning Resource Center (ALRC) and the U.S. government.
- EnglishPage.com provides free English lessons and exercises. It also offers links to a variety of ESL reading and listening resources.
- GCFLearnFree.org provides step-by-step instructions on a variety of math skills and computer topics. This site requires a good amount of reading, yet it is a good resource for higher-level students and their tutors.
- Internet Essentials from Comcast offers low-cost Internet service, discounted computer equipment, and free digital literacy training to families with at least one child eligible to participate in the National School Lunch Program.
- Safe Kids Worldwide offers easy-to-read materials about an assortment of safety topics.
- Understanding What Reading Is All About is a PDF that provides teaching materials and lessons for Adult Basic Education Learners from the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL).