Welcome to EAR
English classes for immigrants in Rochester
Namaste! ¡Buenos días! Ni hau ma? Is English your second language? Let us help you learn English.
We teach English to immigrants and refugees in the Rochester area. Students of all ages and from all countries are welcome. Whether you are new to America or have been here several years, you are welcome. All classes are free.
By improving your English speaking, reading, writing, and literacy, you can communicate better with your children's teachers, get a better job, make important phone calls, enjoy U.S. culture, understand the news, and make your life in America better.
Maplewood Library ESL Program
Classes meet every Saturday morning from 10 a.m. - 12 noon at the
Maplewood Library
1111 Dewey Ave., Rochester, NY 14613
Phone: 585-428-8220
MAP
A typical class has 8-15 students and is led by 2-3 experienced teachers. Some students come regularly each week. Others attend a few times and are helped with other resources to move forward.
All classes are free of charge. New students are welcome and do not need to register in advance. Classes focus on speaking English in daily life. Although the class is oriented toward moving adults quickly into mainstream America, supervised children and motivated teenagers with beginning language skills are welcome and do well in class.
The traditional Sanskrit greeting, Namaste, includes putting the hands together as a sign of respect and welcome. It is one of many greetings in the many languages spoken by our students. We welcome new students and we welcome you!
Learn English
Our trained teachers work in small class settings to increase comprehension, vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar, the alphabet, and communication skills. We teach by focusing on daily activities, such as
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Classes focus on providing an opportunity for students to improve literacy through topics like weather, shopping, handling money, American culture, international foods and customs, games, singing, current news, holidays, economics, and voting. Each week students are encouraged to speak in English in both the class and in small groups. Looking at maps and the globe to see where students live now and where they came from is a popular activity. Pronunciation, spoken grammar, writing, and reading are addressed in the class and are also individualized. Students are offered guidance for other community resources, as well as some counseling about educational opportunities and places to get an individual tutor.
Join us at our Maplewood Library class every Saturday morning at 10 a.m. or contact us for more information.
Volunteer
We welcome new volunteers, teachers, and tutors. Our volunteer teachers have college or advanced degrees from accredited schools, and a strong commitment to furthering the experience of immigrants to the United States. Creativity, a variety of backgrounds or interests, enthusiasm, open-mindedness, knowledge of community or area resources, or new ideas are examples of welcome attributes in our volunteers. New teachers train in a small classroom setting with experienced teachers and tutors, helping teach English to speakers of other languages.
A sample of opportunities for committed volunteers includes teaching experience in a classroom setting, being a weekly resource and inspiration for recent refugees and immigrants, 1-to-1 tutoring, and more.
All new teaching volunteers must be able to attend several of our classes as a prerequisite to continuing. We expect volunteers to be able to commit to at least six months, or better a year of service. We may have a few summer opportunities with shorter commitments during the summer of 2013. Long-standing volunteers qualify to become official associates of our program, which includes participating in planning for the future.
Every week our teachers are delighted to learn from the students. We sing, laugh, play Monopoly, share cultures, and talk about everything from holidays--such as Valentine's Day, Thanksgiving, or holidays specific to our students--to natural or social disasters such as earthquakes, floods, or economic hardships and how to move forward with personal goals and life in America.
Observers and practicum students. If you would like to attend a class as an observer or participate in class in order to satisfy a course requirement, please contact us in advance. We try to accommodate occasional observers or practicum students when it will benefit our students. We welcome your inquiries! Please keep in mind that our students do not usually benefit from an ever-revolving roster of observers, so opportunities may be limited.
We are proud of the dedicated contributions of our teachers to the local community. Join us, and change someone's life for the better!
Area Resources
We are often asked for a list of ESL or ESOL resources available in the Rochester, NY area. Here is a short list of community and area resources, including credit-granting college-type courses, free classes and tutors, religious- and nationality-based services. There are surely more, but these are the ones we hear about most often. Please feel free to contact us if you offer an educational English language resource we do not list here.
College-type courses
Monroe Community College (MCC)
http://www.monroecc.edu
ESOL: http://www.monroecc.edu/depts/esol/index.htm
NY State Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES)
Focus on young folks in grades K-12, typically under age 18.
http://www.monroe.edu
ESOL: http://www.monroe.edu/SupportServices.cfm?subpage=192
Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT)
http://www.rit.edu
ESL and English Language Center: http://www.rit.edu/studentaffairs/elc/home.php
University of Rochester (UR)
http://www.rochester.edu
ESL: http://writing.rochester.edu/ESOL/index.html
Free classes
ESOL Associates of Rochester, NY (EAR)
All levels, Saturday mornings, Maplewood Library
Keeler Park residents, Thursday mornings
ESOL: http://www.livingonweekends.com/EAR.html
Literacy Volunteers of Rochester
1-to-1 tutors, sometimes long waiting list
http://www.literacyrochester.org
http://www.literacyrochester.org/esol_student.php
Rochester Refugee Assistance Program, Office of Community Education
Helps refugees, immigrants, and more. Lots of resources.
http://www.rochesterrefugeenetwork.org/rrrn/en/rcsd
Office of Adult and Career Education Services (OACES), Rochester School District
Adult career training, General Educational Development (GED, high school equivalency)
http://www.oaces.net/index.html
Family Learning Center
30 Hart St #218
Rochester, NY 14605-1122
Phone: 585-262-8000
Religious or nationality-based services
Mary's Place
1-to-1 tutoring
http://www.marysplaceoutreach.org/mpo/
Mercy Bridges
1-to-1 tutoring
http://www.mercybridges.org
Catholic Family Center
Refugee resettlement, language translation services, and more
http://www.cfcrochester.org
http://www.cfcrochester.org/pg/language-services
Burma Refugee Mission
Based at the Lake Avenue Baptist Church
http://www.lakeavebaptist.org/
About Us
ESOL Associates of Rochester is an independent not-for-profit organization supported and directed by its members. The roots of the association date to 2005, when some members met and expressed a desire to reach out to the community with free English as a Second Language resources that go beyond one-on-one contacts or tutoring, without regard to religion, nationality, or background. The simple goal of wanting to communicate in English has blossomed.
The Maplewood Library ESL program has met every Saturday since June 2008. Over 400 students, including refugees and immigrants from Burma, Nepal, Bhutan, Burundi, Somalia, Sudan, the Congo, Cuba, Colombia, Peru, Russia, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, Syria, China, Korea, Vietnam, and Laos have attended. Students of all nationalities, religions, cultures, ages, genders, and educational background are welcome.
ESOL is an acronym for English for Speakers of Other Languages. It also stands for English as a Second Original Language or simply English as a Second Language--sometimes abbreviated as ESL.
ESOL Associates of Rochester and the Maplewood Library ESL program are proud to be part of the Rochester Literacy Movement.
Contact Us
Contact us today at lauren@livingonweekends.com.