LCFS Adult Education

One of the topics that is one of the most interesting and useful for adult ESL students is health and health care. For the month of March, we will be focusing on this topic.

The following is a list of competencies that we hope students will be able to achieve during the month.

Low Beginners

1. Know the most basic parts of the body (eyes, hair, back, leg, hand, etc.)
2. Be able to talk about common health problems or symptoms (headache, backache, sore throat) using the form, "I have a __________."
3. Being given a bottle or package of something that could be bought at a drugs store, be able to tell what the product is for by looking at the label. Labels can include over-the-counter medicines (pain relievers, children's cold medicine, cough drops, laxatives, etc.), first aid supplies (bandaids, elastic bandages, antiseptic) personal care items (shampoo, deoderant, toothpaste, dental floss).
4. Talk about dates and times of appointments.
5. Call 911 and say their address.
6. Tell what language they speak and request an interpreter (for example if they are in a hospital emergency room).

High Beginners -review the topics listed above for low beginners, but go into greater detail, in the following ways:

1. Know parts of the body including less commonly used words (eyebrow, tongue, elbow, thumb, wrist, waist, skin, etc.) Also include some basic internal organs (heart, lungs, bones, brain, blood, stomach, etc.)
2. Talk about health conditions (high blood pressure, cancer, diabetes, AIDS, etc.)
3. Read the labels on OTC medicines to determine the correct uses, and dosages given age/weight. Be able to read warning labels.
4. Call a doctor, navigating voice mail, to set up an appointment. Follow directions at a doctors office.
5. Call 911 and give information about the nature of the crisis and answer questions.

In addition, they should be able to do the following:

1. Give advice about health and problems using "You should / shouldn't . . "
2. Follow simple first aid instructions.

Intermediate Group - review some of the topics covered by High Beginners but go into more detail in the following ways.

1. Talk about internal organs and systems.
2. Talk about health concerns, also including mental health issues.
3. Be able to follow instructions for prescription medicines.
4. Understand about different types of health insurance (HMO, PPO), including terminology (deductible, premium, Primary Care Physician [PCP]). The following link is for your knowledge as a teacher, not meant as a handout: Defininitions of Health Insurance Terms
5. Give/ take a health history either as an interview or filling out forms.

Advanced Group - Here the goal is for students to have the language they need to take health care decisions into their own hands. At this level, they may also have friends who are asking them for help as interpreters when they go to the doctor's office.

1. Talk about internal organs and systems.
2. Read a simple article about prevention and treatment of illnesses.
3. Find information on-line about prescription drugs.
4. Read their health insurance policy and/or be able to call their health insurance company to ask questions about treatment.
5. Give / take a health history either as an interview or filling out forms.
6. Have general comprehension when listening to a clip from a radio health report (see me for details).
7. Follow instructions that might be given as part of a First Aid / CPR training.

End of month activity - At the end of the month we may want to do a special activity for our learners (probably excluding our low beginners). We have sometimes had a guest speaker. If anyone knows a physician or other health care professional who may be able to come in, that would be great.