Learn everyday vocabulary by shopping for a meal.
This group of EAL learners ranged from phase 1 LAL to stage 4 (referencing the Manitoba Grades 9 to 12 Curriculum Framework for English as an Additional Language (EAL) and Literacy, Academics, and Language (LAL) Programming). They were ages 14 to 19 and had been in Canada anywhere from one month to one year.
Using the guiding question “How do I navigate the grocery store, budgets, and sales to purchase the necessary ingredients for a meal?,” Mr. W. began the unit to build key terminology required to go to grocery store and shop confidently. Learners reviewed the names for a variety of foods they were interested in. Then, together, they learned about frequently used words to categorize these foods (dairy, deli, health, and beauty, etc.) and practised putting items in appropriate categories. Many conversations were led following a variety of prompts related to grocery shopping, food, and learner lives. Learners built off each other’s understanding, communicating with peers who spoke a variety of different languages, including their dominant language.
After previewing this vocabulary and becoming comfortable with it, they created common dialogues that learners might encounter if looking for items at the local grocery store or working as a clerk in a store. They went through common expressions for requests, expressing gratitude, and so on, and discussed the importance of cadence and inflection when speaking in a public setting.
Learners were grouped in language-level groups to plan a shareable meal with the class. Then, learners were given scavenger hunt instructions for the grocery store and a budget of $15 for each group.
he class previewed the scavenger hunt they would be doing at the store and explored the tasks together. Learners would be asking questions of staff at the grocery store, and looking for deals, favourite items, specific quantities of items, specific names, and common foods. Learners listened to each other, compromised on strategy, and decided how they would best tackle the scavenger hunt.
Then, the class navigated the grocery store’s online shopping platform together before learners worked in groups to practise budgeting, calculating taxes, and determining what they could afford to buy for their class. They worked as a class to determine what foods would best meet the common goal of a shared meal to stretch their money as far as they could.
Each group was made of heterogeneous members who did not have the same dominant language. They worked together to make a plan for the scavenger hunt and the grocery shopping to be as efficient as possible. Together, the class walked to their local grocery store. Each group completed their scavenger hunt and then shopped for their groceries, supporting each other to complete their roles when they faced difficulty. The learners interacted with staff when they could not find particular items, and at the end of the shopping experience, the learners thanked the staff for their assistance in their project.
When the class returned, each learner shared individually the aspect of the excursion they felt most proud of and an area they wanted to stretch.
The next day, the learners arranged to cook their meals in the foods lab and prepared meals for each other. As part of the meal, each group explained to the others what they were sharing and the vocabulary related to the meal.
If no opportunity for meal preparation exists, the same learning experience could be created using photographs to document grocery choices as a virtual grocery shopping trip.
Manitoba Education. Senior Years: Manitoba Grades 9 to 12 Curriculum Framework for English as an Additional Language (EAL) and Literacy, Academics, and Language (LAL) Programming, Version 1.0. 2021.
Manitoba Education and Early Childhood Learning. Senior Years English as an Additional Language Literacy Courses: EAL Literacy Pilot. 2003.
