Helpful Links
Here you’ll find websites that pertain to VRABE’s continuing education and training programs.
Credit Diploma
- GCF Global Learning - Free career and computer application tutorials
- Great American Speeches - Listen to the actual speeches given by great Americans
English as a Second Language
- Dave’s ESL Cafe - Explore idioms, grammar, student discussion forums, classroom activities
- ESL Listening Activities - An online resource for listening quizzes, interviews, and other practice resources
- Randall’s ESL Cyber Listening Lab - A collection of listening activities organized by levels
- Topics - An online magazine for learners of English
- Practitioner’s Toolkit - A free resource sponsored by a grant from the Office of Vocational and Adult Education; downloadable materials for adult education and family literacy instructors
- ESL Quick Guide for the Classroom - A comprehensive list of ESL related Internet sites compiled by Northwest LINCS
- ESL Lesson Plans and Resources - A collection of resources for teachers
- Activities for ESL Students from a4esl.org - Online exercises, puzzles, word games to help you learn English vocabulary and grammar
- Change Agent - Explore topics through student writing, news articles, opinion pieces, classroom activities, poems, graphics, and cartoons
- Duolingo - Practice your language skills through games and activities in 23 languages; on the web or as a smartphone app
- Google Translate - Translate words, phrases, and web pages between English and over 100 other languages
- Jeopardy Labs - Allows you to create a customized jeopardy template with a simple editor. The games you make can be played online from anywhere in the world. You can also browse jeopardy templates created by other people.
- Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day - A collection of websites for ESL students at a variety of levels, (reading, songs, grammar, games, health, science)
- Learn American English - Improve English grammar and vocabulary skills for beginning through advanced students
- Manythings.org Pronunciation Page - Pronunciation practice
- Newsela - Read news articles at 5 different language learning levels (e.g., arts, culture, US history, science, math, famous speeches)
- Rachel’s English Pronunciation Page - Pronunciation practice
- Starfall for Beginning ESL Students - Reading activities for beginning ESL students
- The Adult ESL Training Video Project - Twelve training videos on “Teaching ESL to Adults: Classroom Approaches in Action”
- Traditional American Songs - Listen to, read, and sing along to traditional American songs on YouTube
- U.S.A. Learns - Practice English speaking, listening, vocabulary, pronunciation, reading, spelling, writing and grammar
- Ventures and College and Career Readiness Standards - Click on correlations on left side of page. Scroll down to CCRS for your Ventures level
- Voice Nation - The following links will provide you with valuable information on teaching ESL to both children and adults. Some links feature fun games and activities while others focus on teaching tips.
- Voice of America News for ESl Students - Learn English through audio and written articles about world news, business, science, U.S. life, popular culture, etc.
- We Are New York video series - Video and print resources to learn phrases and words for realistic situations (e.g., going to the doctor, talking with a child’s teacher). Download the magazines and video scripts in English, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Russian and Spanish
Family Learning Program
- Parenting: Babies and Toddlers - Articles and forums related to child rearing
- Wonderopolis - Nurtures the sense of wonder inside everyone and explores questions using activities and games (e.g., “Why are flamingos pink?”, “How hot is the sun?”, “What games do children play in other countries?”)
GED
- GED Live Math Videos - GED® math video tutorials that are correlated to the Steck-Vaughn Complete Test Preparation for the 2014 GED®. Click on one of the blue boxes on the left (labeled Steck-Vaughn) and that will bring you to a Word document that has links to the math skills in the Steck-Vaughn book. Only those math skills that are difficult to teach and learn have video links listed on the Word document.
- GED® Test on Computer Tutorial - Tutorial on how to take the GED® test
- GED® Testing Service - Description of current testing program
- Khanacademy - Over 3900 videos (mostly 10 minutes long) covering K—12 math, biology, chemistry, physics, finance and history
- Learn Zillion - Teacher-crafted resources for grades 2-12, made directly from the standards
Citizenship
- Civics and Citizenship Resources - Resource for adult ESL teachers integrating civics and citizenship preparation
- Ben’s Guide - Simple overview about U.S. government (e.g., branches of the government, how laws are made, historical documents)
- Center for Civic Education - A resource for instructors
- Civics Online - Resource site for both students and instructors
- Library of Congress - Teaching resources on American history, government, politics, and law
- National Archives - For teacher lesson planning
- National Museum of American History - A resource for instructors
- U.S. Political Parties and Other Civics Sites - EL-Civics, history, and government
- USCIS—Citizenship Resource Center - A one-stop resource for locating citizenship preparation materials and activities
- USCIS—How to Prepare for Citizenship Test - Materials to help you prepare for citizenship test
Career
- CareerOneStop - Find career, training and job resources
- O*Net Resource Center - Information about careers including an interactive databank for exploring and searching occupations
- National Geographic Business Writing Worksheets -leveled worksheets aimed to prepare students for the job market
Staff
- CT State Dept of Ed - Educational resource for the state. Click on “adult education”
- GCF Global Learning - Technology tutorials and videos—computer (basic and advanced skills), internet, email, cloud, social media
- NCSALL - National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy Website features online edition of Focus on Basics
- Capitol Region Education Council - Educational portal for the region
- CASA Quick Search Online - QuickSearch Online is an easy-to-use database of 2,300+ instructional material titles coded to skill levels, CASAS Competencies, and skill areas. It provides an essential link between assessment and instruction in the CASAS system.
- CASAS Competencies - CASAS standards for math, reading, listening, writing and speaking
- College and Readiness Standards
- Edgeunity links for Students and Staff logons
- LINCS Professional Learning Platform for Adult Educators - LINCS is a professional learning platform for adult educators funded by the U.S. Department of Education. Find professional development opportunities, participate in discussions with your peers in the community, access resources
- Orientation Files 2023
- Teaching with Zoom
Community Resources
- 211 Infoline - Search online or dial 2-1-1 for 24/7 information about local services (e.g.food, housing, child care, elder care, crisis intervention, energy assistance, etc.
- Community Resource Guide - A listing of resources for the greater Vernon community
- Hockanum Valley Community Council, Inc.
Career Pathways/College Transitions
- Best Scholarship Search Platforms of 2017 - A guide to review the best scholarship search platforms and instruct students on how to use them effectively to find as many opportunities as possible.
- Do you know how to plan for college? - This website will help you with career planning, college selection and the application process. We will also suggest ways to find money to pay for college, and direct you to resources to help you prepare for college-level work. We have divided this website into five individual topics, or “units,” listed at left. Click on one of the units for more information on that topic. Each unit also includes worksheets for you to print and fill out. You don’t have to go through the units in any particular order, but it’s probably best if you start with Career Planning and then make your way through Applying to College, Financial Planning, and Academic Skills, finishing up with Resources.
- Online College in CT - Explore the growing number of online graduate, undergraduate, and certificate programs that exist in the state.
- Online Colleges - Provides students the resources they need to succeed in an online college