surfsidepca.org

ESL or English as a Second Language, is a ministry with English Language
classes for people from any ethnic group who desire to learn the English
language. Classes and child care are provided each week from September to
April.

The Students do not have to know
any English when they sign up for the
classes, they are tested the first time
they come and are placed into a class
that is at an appropriate level of
learning for them. Very basic classes
are for non English speakers. These
begin with alphabet pronunciation,
word skills, writing skills and reading.

The more advanced you are the greater the learning skill and more emphasis
is placed on conversational English. The material is provided and students
do not have to purchase a textbook.

The Classes begin in the fall, around the start of the school year and follow
the school calendar. When the school has a break, the ESL ministry also has
a break. The classes end in late April. The classes are one and a half hours
in length and are held from 7:00pm -8:30pm every Thursday evening. During
the beginning of the 2007 school year we began with an average attendance
of 40-50 students and ended the year with an average of 15-18 students.
The 2008 school year students will pay a small fee to attend classes. This is
for two reasons: to make them more responsible and accountable to come to
class each week and to cover the small cost of reproducing materials or
purchasing new materials that are use by the teachers in the class.

This year 2008-2009 we are averaging around 15
people each week and most of them are very faithful
to come. We have also offered citizenship classes
this year and have a couple of people interested in
going through this training as well as learning
English. The participants come from Brazil, Mexico,
Guatemala, Vietnam and I believe we may have two
new students coming, one from China and one from
the Ukraine.

The Volunteers do not have to be able to speak a
foreign language to teach the classes and train

depending on the position
they have volunteered for;
Teachers and testers are
trained, while others support
volunteers like nursery
workers, children student
helpers and those who
provide publicity, etc do not
require training. Teachers
teach in a classroom setting.
Additional one-on-one
training can be done with
students at the teacher’s

discretion. The typical time involved each week for a volunteer teacher is
about 3 hours which includes time for preparation and teaching time.

For more information about classes or volunteer opportunities you may
contact Bill Day or Pat Corbett