Upper Madison College

Effective Communication

Course Description: Effective Communication at Upper Madison College is designed to practice a students oral accuracy in order to improve their fluency in the later speaking classes. Effective Communication places an emphasis on pronunciation and intonation, including rhythm and stress, as well as vocabulary and English expressions (idioms), and oral grammar and syntax. There are currently three levels, which start at the foundational level and then move upwards as the student progresses through the course. By the advanced level, students will be working on improving the nuances of their speech, such as a greater attention to stress and intonation, and a higher level of vocabulary use. The duration of each level is 8 weeks in which students who complete the course with a mark of 70% or greater and have attended 80% of their classes will successfully continue onto the next level. New students are required to complete a placement test on their first day of school with the following prerequisites necessary for each level. Level 3 4 5 TOEIC SCORE 450 550 650

Advantages of Effective Communication: One of the primary advantages to the Effective Communication course at Upper Madison College is the foundational approach taken in the curriculum and by the instructors. Each level builds on the one previous (as can be seen by the program break-down below), and effectively combines three of the vital skills in English speaking: Pronunciation, vocabulary, and oral grammar. This class allows students to focus on using the knowledge taught in all their other classes such as grammar to produce quality language. Teachers provide necessary feedback to ensure that students are able to recognize and correct their mistakes. The activity, practice and task-based lessons help students to not only acquire knowledge but to use skills in a manner that is fun and exciting. With this approach students are better prepared to practically use the language outside of the classroom. Snapshot: Advantages of Effective Communication Focused lessons on the fundamental aspects of oral communication such as pronunciation and syntax. Plenty of teacher feedback. Activity, practice and task-based lessons that ensure exciting and active learning.

For the Teacher:

Upper Madison College

Effective Communication

Effective Communication is an oral communication class. It is an accuracy based class that should act as the foundation for students fluency classes in the afternoon periods. The goal is be able to do accuracy fluently. As such, little to no time should be spent on written communication. When possible, work that would normally be done through worksheets, should be done orally (whenever possible). Therefore, teachers are not to photocopy pages from the books for students. The material should be presented on the board, or through oral instructions. The textbooks should be used mostly as a resource rather than a core textbook. Activities should be student-centred and focused on interactive communication. 70% of the class should be based on student practice. Tests/Marking: Testing will be done orally. Evaluation will be based on whether the student is able to accurately communicate using the material covered. Tests should be schedules weekly on Fridays. The marking is broken down as follows: 1) 2) 3) 4) Tests/Assignments/Quizzes/Projects - 40% Classwork (skill level, activities done in-class) - 30% Homework (30 minutes everyday Monday to Thursday) - 20% Attendance - 10%

Note: Teachers are able to break-down the marking further depending on their own program planning, but the overall totals must remain the same. Students must receive a grade of 70% or greater to move on to the next level.

Upper Madison College

Effective Communication

Level 3 Course Description Level 3 Effective Communication combines pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar to lay the foundation for accurate English communication. Pronunciation starts with students learning the basic vowel and consonant sounds before starting on stress, rhythm, and intonation. Level 3 vocabulary deals with a variety of topics, at the foundational level, and deals with vocabulary in relation to parts of speech and phrase building, as well as people, daily life, and special topics. The grammar aspect of Level 3 Effective Communication is concerned with taking foundational grammar such as simple tenses and taking it from written communication to oral communication, with an emphasis on accuracy. Text-books: Focus on Pronunciation 1 Authors: Linda Lane Side by Side 1 and 2 Authors: Steven J. Molinsky and Bill Bliss Vocabulary in Use, Intermediate Authors: Stuart Redman and Ellen Shaw

Text-book Rationale: Focus on Pronunciation 1 gives easy to understand explanations to achieving the particular pronunciation point that is appropriate for a lower intermediate class. It contains a variety of exercises that are specifically focused on one particular sound and in pairs to ensure each point is sufficiently practiced. Side by Side 1 and 2, which is used to practice the syntactical and grammatical aspects of oral communication, provide simple and structured sample dialogues that can serve as an explicit foundation of accuracy for beginner students. Vocabulary in Use, Intermediate provides thematic contextualized vocabulary that students need to know for their everyday lives in Canada such as greetings, daily routines etc. Level 3 Course Break-Down

Upper Madison College

Effective Communication

Vocabulary Topic Phrase Building Parts of Speech People; Daily Life Leisure and Entertainment; Special Topics Unit 14-27 28-37 43-48; 49-63 70-73; 98-100 Pace Weeks 1-2 Weeks 3-4 Weeks 5-6 Weeks 7-8

Grammar Pronunciation Unit 1-2 3-4 5-6 7-8 9-10 11-12 13-14 15-16 Page # 2-5; 6-11 12-17; 18-22 23-26; 27-33 34-36; 37-40 41-47; 48-53 54-57; 58-63 64-70; 71-77 78-81-82-88 Pace Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8 1 2 2 Book 1 Unit 3 9 11 10 12 15 16 17 1 9 4 12 7 8 2 3 13 5 6 8 10 Pages 17-24 79-86 99-106 87-96 107-112 141-148 149-156 157-164 2-8 76-84 26-34 76-84 55-66 67-76 10-16 18-24 116-126 36-44 46-54 66-74 86-94 Pace Week 1 Week 2

Week3

Week 4 Week 5 Week 6

Week 7

Week 8

Upper Madison College

Effective Communication

Level 3 Objectives: Pronunciation: Students will be able to correctly pronounce the basic English vowels Students will be able to correctly pronounce vowels followed by [r] Students will be able to correctly pronounce the basic English consonants Students will be able to correctly pronounce the word endings for plurals, present, and past tense Students will be able to correctly pronounce basic consonant groups Vocabulary: Students will be able to effectively build basic phrases using vocabulary in contexts such as opinions, greetings, farewells, apologies, excuses Students will be able to effectively build phrases using give, get, go, make, do, have, and take Students will be able to make phrases using problem areas of parts of speech such as prepositions, adverbs (frequency and degree), uncountable and countable nouns Students will be able to effectively use connecting and linking vocabulary in regards to time and linking; addition and contrast; similarities, differences, and conditions; reason, purpose, and result Students will be able to effectively use vocabulary in the following areas: People; Daily Life; and Leisure and Entertainment Students will be able to effectively use vocabulary in regards to signs, warnings and notices; vague language; and formal and informal English Grammar: Students will be able to use the present continuous and simple present accurately when speaking. Students will be able to differentiate between the usage of present continuous and simple present correctly according to context. Students will be able to use object pronouns instead of the proper nouns. Students will be able to use the simple past and past continuous tenses. Students will be able to use the future and the future continuous tenses. Students will be able to correctly pluralize words. Students will be able to differentiate between count and non-count nouns and use appropriately according to context. Students will be able to use the comparatives and superlatives.

Upper Madison College

Effective Communication

Level 4 Course Description In Effective Communication 4, the combination of pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar is escalated from the foundational level of Level 3 to offer students a higher level of accuracy based English communication. Pronunciation focuses more on the rhythm, intonation, and stress of English, along with more complex vowel sounds and consonant clusters. Vocabulary starts with word formation, but quickly moves on to connecting and linking vocabulary, as well as working with countable and uncountable nouns, as well as fixed expressions and phrasal verbs. Combined with a higher level of grammar, Level 4 of Effective Communication both develops the students level from Level 3 and makes the student ready for the more advanced level of accuracy demanded in Level 5. Text-books: Focus on Pronunciation 2 Authors: Linda Lane Side by Side 3 Authors: Steven J. Molinsky and Bill Bliss Vocabulary in Use, Upper Intermediate Authors: Michael McCarthy, Felicity ODell and Ellen Shaw

Text-book Rationale: Focus on Pronunciation 2 gives a detailed explanation of tongue placement that allows students to become more aware of the position of their mouth when speaking. In addition the focus of this book becomes more on differentiation between minimal pairs rather than individual sounds. The book begins a section on stress, rhythm and intonation. Side by Side 3, which is used to practice syntactical and grammatical aspects of oral communication, provide dialogues that allow students to practice their accuracy within a structured context. This provides much needed guidance which will lead to confidence. Vocabulary in Use, Upper Intermediate provides thematic contextualized vocabulary. Level 4 Course Break-Down:

Vocabulary Topic Word Formation Unit 10, 13, 14; 17, 19 Pace Weeks 1-2

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Effective Communication

Pronunciation Unit 7-9 10, 14, 19 22-24 25-27 28-30 31-33 34-35 Page # 30-34; 35-39; 4044 45-50; 67-70; 9195 106-109; 114118; 119-124 119-124; 126130; 131-134 135-141; 142146; 148-153 154-158; 159162; 163-168 169-173; 174-178 Pace Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8

Connecting and 20, 22, 23, 25; Linking; 35 Relationships Countable and 29, 30, 97, 98; Uncountable 57, 58, 60 Nouns; Words and Gender; Abbreviations and Acronyms; Notional Concepts Fixed 76-77; 85; 86, Expressions; 90; 67-69 Phrasal Verbs; Feelings and Actions

Weeks 3-4

Weeks 5-6

Weeks 7-8

36-37 179-183; 184-189

Grammar Unit 1-2 4 6 5 8 7 3 9-10 Pages 2-10; 12-22 36-46 62-72 48-60 88-102 74-86 24-34 104-118; 120132 Pace Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8

Level 4 Course Objectives: Pronunciation:

Students will be able to correctly pronounce higher level vowel sounds and be able to differentiate vowel sounds such as boat bat bought; book food Students will be able to correctly pronounce the th sounds such as in thanks and that and be able to differentiate between them Students will be able to correctly pronounce consonant clusters such as yet and jet; as well as beginning and final consonant clusters Students will be able to correctly recognise and pronounce the reduction of H words such as hat

Upper Madison College

Effective Communication

Students will be able to correctly lengthen and shorten vowels according to stress Students will be to correctly recognise and pronounce the correct stress in suffixes and numbers, and noun-verb pairs Students will be able to recognise content and function words and use the correct stress Students will be able to recognise and pronounce reduced words Students will be able to correctly pronounce contractions and reduced verbs Students will successfully learn the rhythm patters of prepositions and particles Students will be able to correctly use falling intonation and use appropriate intonation for expressing feelings and attitudes Vocabulary: Students will be able to build more advanced vocabulary such as roots, compounds, homonyms, and onomatopoeic words Students will be able to use vocabulary associated with connecting and linking, such as time, condition, cause, reason, purpose and result Students will learn how to make uncountable nouns countable Students will be able to use collective nouns correctly Students will be comfortable using vocabulary in everyday situations such as in relationships, as well as notional concepts such as time, number, quantity, degree, and intensity Students will be able to correctly express their feelings concerning beliefs and opinions, likes, dislikes and desires, and pleasant and unpleasant feelings Students will be able to correctly recognise and use similes and binomials Students will become comfortable using phrasal verbs such as expressions with do, make, come, go, etc. Students will become familiar with, and comfortable using, vocabulary associated with gender and words, as well as acronyms and abbreviations Grammar: Students will be able to differentiate between the usage of past continuous and simple past correctly according to context. Students will be able to differentiate the usage of present perfect, simple present and simple past correctly according to context. Students will be able to use gerunds and infinitives. Students will be able to use phrasal verbs. Students will be able to use the future.

Upper Madison College

Effective Communication

Level 5 Course Description Level 5 Effective Communication builds upon levels 3 and 4 and takes students oral accuracy in English to a higher level. Pronunciation has an increased emphasis on stress, intonation, and rhythm, which are crucial to being able to speak English more naturally and essential for students to go from an intermediate English speaker to an advanced English speaker. Combined with vocabulary that deals with collocations (in a variety of situations), and other complex English expressions, as well as an advanced form of grammar, Level 5 of Effective Communication pushes students to the next level in their English communication and paves the way for improved fluency in addition to improved accuracy. Text-books: Focus on Pronunciation 3 Authors: Linda Lane Side by Side 4 Authors: Steven J. Molinsky and Bill Bliss English Collocations in Use, Advanced Authors: Felicity ODell and Michael McCarthy

Text-book Rationale: Focus on Pronunciation 3 gives detailed explanations of pronunciation in relation to other similar sounds. It also contains an extensive section on syllables, stress, rhythm and intonation. Side by Side 4, which is used to practice syntactical and grammatical aspects of oral communication, provides dialogues that allow students to practice their accuracy within a structured context. This provides much needed guidance which will lead to confidence. English Collocations in Use guides students to now think about how words collocate with one another rather than just thinking of individual words independently.

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Effective Communication

Level 5 Course Break-Down Pronunciation Page # Unit 4, 20, 17-20; 97-100; 21, 22 101-104; 105-109 27-29 129-134; 135139; 140-144 30-32 33, 36, 37 38-41 145-149; 150154; 155-160 Pace Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8 Vocabulary Unit Topic Learning about 2, 3, 6, 7 Collocations; Varieties of Collocations Varieties of 8, 9, 10, 11 Collocations cont. Work and 12, 13, 16, 17, Study 18 Leisure and 19, 20, 22, 28, Lifestyle 35 People 40, 42, 45, 43 Basic Concepts 46, 48, 50, 51 Functions 52, 53, 55, 56 Pace Week 1

Week 2

161-165; 176180; 181-185 186-190; 191195; 196-200 43-45 210-214; 215219; 220-224 46-47 225-229; 230-233 48-49 234-237; 238-242

Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8

Functions cont. 57, 58, 59, 60 Grammar Unit 10; 4 1; 2 3 2; 10 8 5 6 7; 9 Pages 132-137; 46-58 2-16; 18-30 32-44 18-30; 138-143 100-114 60-72 74-84 86-98; 116-130 Pace Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8

Upper Madison College

Effective Communication

Level 5 Course Objectives: Pronunciation: Students will be able to correctly pronounce alternating vowels Students will be able to correctly pronounce consonant clusters using [l] and [r] Students will be able to correctly pronounce the final [l], such as in contractions will Students will be able to recognise and correctly pronounce various syllable and stress patterns within words Students will be able to correctly recognise and pronounce stressed and unstressed word rhythm patterns Students will be able to correctly pronounce contracted prepositional phrases using the correct rhythm pattern, such as hafta, gonna, wanna, etc. Students will be able to correctly apply appropriate intonation in a variety of contexts such as rising and falling with questions and statements Students will be able to apply the correct intonation pattern to tag questions Students will be able to apply the correct intonation to nonfinal and expressive expressions Vocabulary: Students will be able to recognise strong, weak, and fixed collocations Students will be able to recognise and use metaphors in collocations Students will be able to use collocations in the following variations: intensifying and softening adverbs; make verbs and verbs that mean make; communicating; and with phrasal verbs Students will be comfortable using collocations to do with working life, new employment, thoughts and ideas, customer service, student life, and in writing essays, reports, and assignments Students will be able to comfortably use collocations on a variety of leisure and lifestyle topics such as social life, current affairs, etc. Students will be able to use collocations under the topic of people, such as friendship, appearance and personality, etc. Students will be able to recognise and use basic concept collocations such as making things easier, difficulty, time and space, quantity and size etc. Students will be able to recognise and use basic function collocations such as stopping and starting, cause and effect, comparing and contrasting, social English, discussing issues and negative and positive situations and feelings

Upper Madison College

Effective Communication

Grammar: Students will be able to use various different tenses accurately and according to context. Students will be able to use perfect modals. Students will be able to embed questions correctly into sentences. Students will be able to form sentences in the conditional. Students will be able to use reported speech. Sample Lesson Plan (For Level 3) Time 5 mins Activity 1. Warm-up: Taboo -Divide class into 2 teams. Have students pick one person on the team to be the speaker. Ask speaker to come to the front of the room and describe the word on the cards. Give the student 2 minutes. Have both teams go at the same time. The group with the most guessed cards win. 2. Homework Check: (15 minutes) - Everyday the students are required to watch another episode of Hannah Montana and write down words they do not understand. - Using the popcorn style of summarizing. Get one student to start summarizing the episode and randomly call another student to continue to the summary. So on and so forth. - Check by asking them to discuss in partners the words they did not understand and then ask students to give one word they didnt understand so that the teacher can perhaps help them understand. 3. Pronunciation: Demonstrate the position of the tongue and mouth position for the words. - Exercise 3: In pairs have students take one set of 2 words and number them. (ie. 1. meat and 2. mitt). One student will make a number sequence (ie. 112212) and say the word corresponding to that sequence while the other student will try to figure out the sequence. 4. Grammar and Syntax: - Put up the model on the board and then only put up the question. Dont give hints like in the textbook. (Do not give handouts.) Have students Textbook Reference

10 mins

15 mins

Focus on Pronunciation 1 pg 6-8

15 mins

Side by Side 1 pg 108-109 and pg 110-111

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Effective Communication

15 mins

practice in partners until they are fluent. 5. Vocabulary - Bingo: Have students make a bingo card using the vocabulary words. Only say the definition of the words and not the actually words.

Vocabulary in Use. Intermediate pg 112