Contents
Components of the Collections
Special Formats in the Collections
09X Call Number
Fiction with Aids, Tests, etc.
490/830 Indigenous Collection
500 Canadian Author Note
Reading Level Classification
500 Reading Level Notes
K-2, ELL to grade 5
Grades 3-5, ELL grades 5-10
Grade 6, ELL grade 10+
Multiple Levels
500 General Notes
6XX Subject Headings
Item Entry & Processing
*These collections are limited to works for adult readers (as of March, 2019).*
Components of the Collections
Place adult materials for upgrading of English language skills and recreational reading with reduced difficulty in the Easy Reading collection using Easy English as the call number prefix.
Note: Each bibliographic description of an Easy Reading title should contain the note "Suitable for the Easy Reading collection." The note should conclude with a specific reading level, e.g. Suitable for the Easy Reading collection; beginner [intermediate, advanced level or progressive, beginner-intermediate, intermediate-advanced levels].
The home location for copies of these titles is: EASYENGL.
Easy Reading fiction and non-fiction may use a controlled vocabulary and be written in simplified form. These works include high-interest/low vocabulary works intended to stimulate reluctant readers. Novellas in series like Quick reads (various British publishers), Rapid reads (Canada's Raven Books) and Open door (from Ireland’s New Island) have been specifically written to encourage reading; classify including the prefix Easy English. Indicate a reading level with a coloured literacy label (see below). Do not confuse with Juvenile Easy Readers. Some Teen controlled-vocabulary titles may be added to the Easy Reading collection.
This collection contains Easy English readers (such works are uncommon; class in 428.6 (remedial) or 428.64 (English as an additional language), e.g.
Place adult materials to support learning English as an additional language in the English Language Learning collection. Titles in this collection are not assigned a call number prefix, unless they are in a nonprint format (a prefix indicating format, e.g. CD... ).
Note: Each bibliographic description of an English Language Learning title should contain the note "Suitable for the English Language Learning collection." The note should conclude with a specific reading level, e.g. Suitable for the English Language Learning collection; beginner [intermediate, advanced level or progressive, beginner-intermediate, intermediate-advanced levels].
The home location for copies of these titles is: ESL.
This collection contains adult materials aimed at teachers of new literates as well as ELL students.
English language and multilingual picture dictionaries are placed in the English Language Learning collection at the progressive level.
Other related material as selected by the collections librarian may be in the English Language Learning collection.
For instructional material for learning English as another language, content may include non-English; do not use the language of the intended audience's "mother tongue" as a prefix before the call number), e.g.
CD 428.3441 (English for French speakers)
DVD 428.34934917 (English for Russian speakers)
Special Formats in the Collection
- Large print
- Workbooks (with blank sections)
- Classroom textbooks
- Teachers guide-student workbook pairs which should remain together in containers
- Videorecording/Sound recording/Book combinations
- Small storybooks; those ordered in sets are usually circulated individually e.g. High action treasure chest books
09X Call Number
$a Easy English SMI
$a Easy English 004 JON
$a DVD 428.34951 ENG
Most book, DVD and/or CD combinations are catalogued as books with accompanying AV materials.
For large print format titles, do not include Large Print in the call number prefix. Do include "large print" in the GMD, 250, quoted notes or series statements as appropriate.
Individual volumes of multi-volume titles should each be catalogued on monographic records (like travel guides) including the volume number in the 092, e.g.
For Cambridge IELTS 9 : authentic examination papers from Cambridge ESOL
Use 092 428.0076 CAM v.9
09X Fiction with Aids, Tests, etc.
Use Easy English 428.6 (or 428.64) for fiction that contains extensive vocabulary aids, comprehension tests, etc.
490/830 Indigenous Collection
For all titles deemed to have content featuring Indigenous culture and history, including print and non-print formats.
490/830 Indigenous Collection.
Itemcat1 = INDIGENOUS
500 Canadian Author Note
Do not add 500 note Canadian author to Easy English titles in the Easy Reading Collection.
Reading Level Classification
Existing publisher rating schemes may be helpful to inform the classification of Easy Reading and English Language Learning material.
500 Reading Level Notes
Include a 500 note to indicate reading level for all titles in the Easy Reading and the English Language Learning collections.
K-2, ELL to grade 5
K-2 for Easy Reading
500 $a Suitable for the Easy Reading collection; beginner level. = Blue literacy spine label
E.g. Getting to work on time / by Linda Kita-Bradley (Grass Roots Press; 48 pages, largely illustrated, one 4-5 word sentence on each page)
Gulliver in Lilliput / Jonathan Swift ; retold by Maria Jose Lobo... (Macmillan readers; 1, Starter level)
The diet / Jean Garvey (Gatehouse; 11 pages; a short story in poem form)
For English Language Learning to grade 5
500 $a Suitable for the English Language Learning collection; beginner level. = Blue literacy spine label
E.g. Be my guest : English for the hotel industry. Studen book (Cambridge professional English)
Learn English as a second language. Prepositions, questions and time
Diana, a hairdresser, learns to read (Osu Library Fund; 32 pages)
English is stupid, students are not : the difference between writing and speaking
Fast track phonics for young adults and adults
Picture this! : learning English through pictures
Read 100 : 100-word reading passages for fact, fiction and fun at the 800 word-level
Sample: (the basics including introduction to the alphabet, controlled vocabulary of one and two syllable words, generous use of white space, illustrations, chiefly simple sentences)
Peter’s uncle is a farmer. Every spring, Peter’s father drives his family to the farm to stay there for a week. Every day, Peter gets up very early because he loves working on the farm. His first job is to help his uncle with the cows.
Once there was a young Inca boy. He had no family except for an old llama. Each day the boy and his llama walked many miles, looking for a home. Each night they curled up together and slept. But one starry evening, the old llama died. The boy buried his friend next to an icy stream. Then he sat under a tree and cried. What would he do? He had no family and no home.
Do you know how blueberries grow? They grow on bushes. Each blueberry is small and round. Many blueberries can grow on one bush. At first, the blueberries are green. The green berries are not ready to eat yet. They need a lot of sun and rain to help them become fat and sweet. When the berries turn blue, they are ripe and ready to be picked.
Sentence construction: Beginning level works usually contain only simple (and some compound) sentences with the emphasis on vocabulary.
A simple sentence, also called an independent clause, contains a subject and a verb, and it expresses a complete thought.
A. Some students like to study in the mornings.
B. Juan and Arturo play football every afternoon.
C. Alicia goes to the library and studies every day.
Grades 3 - 5, ELL grades 5 - 10
Grades 3 - 5 for Easy Reading
500 $a Suitable for the Easy Reading collection; intermediate level. = Green literacy spine label
E.g. Anne of Green Gables / L.M. Montgomery ; retold by Anne Collins (Penguin readers. Level 2)
Dracula / Bram Stoker ; retold by Diane Mowat (Oxford bookworms library... Stage 2)
The Everest story / Tim Vicary (Oxford bookworms library... Stage 3)
Alberta highlights / Linda Hall... (Pine Candle; 63 pages)
Living common-law (Legal Resource Centre; 61 pages)
For English Language Learning grades 5 - 10
500 $a Suitable for the English Language Learning collection; intermediate level. = Green literacy spine label
E.g. Common mistakes at IELTS intermediate -- and how to avoid them
Classroom teacher's ESL survival kit. Volume 2
Step forward into Canada : language for everyday life
Sample: (includes chapter books, more complex punctuation, more complex sentence structures, expanded vocabulary)
“Run!” the man thought. “I can’t stop now.” Over the man’s head the night sky was black and cold, and in front of him were the trees five hundred metres away. He looked behind him. He could see the lights. There were five or six men. He could hear their feet on the ground. He ran faster. His legs were tired and he wanted to stop, Then he heard a new noise. “They’ve got dogs” he thought. “I can’t run faster.” But he did. The trees were a hundred metres away … fifty … twenty. Then he was there and the trees opened their dark arms to him but he ran on. “Don’t stop now” he thought.
It all started at the beginning of fifth grade. At first, Carmen wasn’t really sure what was happening. In class, she had to squint to see the blackboard clearly. She had to do the same thing when she read street signs, or when she watched a movie. As the fuzziness got worse, she became more and more worried. It was important for her to see the notes and homework assignments the teacher put on the board.
The Mayan Indians lived in Mexico for thousands of years before the Spanish arrived in the 1500s. The Maya were an intelligent, culturally rich people whose achievements were many. They had farms, beautiful palaces, and cities with many buildings. The Mayan people knew a lot about nature and the world around them. This knowledge helped them to live a better life than most people of that time, because they could use it to make their lives more comfortable and rewarding. Knowledge about tools and farming, for instance, made their work easier and more productive.
Sentence construction: Intermediate level works regularly use simple and compound sentences (with some complex sentences).
A compound sentence contains two independent clauses joined by a coordinator. The coordinators are as follows: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.
A. I tried to speak Spanish but my friend wanted to practice speaking English.
B. Alejandro played football and his sister Maria went shopping.
C. Alejandro played football so he could impress the girls on the sidelines.
Grade 6, ELL grade 10+
Grade 6+ for Easy Reading
500 $a Suitable for the Easy Reading collection; advanced level. = Red literacy spine label
E.g. Bleak House / Charles Dickens ; retold by Margaret Tarner (Macmillan guided readers. Upper level)
The age of innocence / Edith Wharton ; retold by Clare West (Oxford bookworms library. Stage 5)
East 43rd Street / Alan Battersby (Cambridge English readers. Level 5)
Frozen tears / Don Sawyer (Novels for adult learners)
For English Language Learning grades 10+
500 $a Suitable for the English Language Learning collection; advanced level. = Red literacy spine label
E.g. 400 must-have words for the TOEFL test
Anatomy and physiology for English language learners
Sample: (greatly expanded vocabulary, compound-complex sentences)
Justin was always prepared. His motto was "Never throw anything out, you never know when it might come in handy." His bedroom was so full of flat bicycle tires, bent tennis rackets, deflated basketballs, and games with missing pieces that you could barely get in the door. His parents pleaded with him to clean out his room. When Justin was away from home, he always carried his blue backpack. He liked to think of it as a smaller version of his bedroom—a place to store the many objects that he collected. It was so worn and stretched that it hardly resembled a backpack anymore. It was full of the kind of things that seemed unimportant, but when used with a little imagination, might come in handy.
Humans have struggled against weeds since the beginnings of agriculture. Marring our gardens is among the milder effects of weeds – any plants that thrive where they are unwanted. They destroy wildlife habitats and impede farming. Their spread eliminates grazing areas and accounts for one-third of all crop loss. They compete for sunlight, nutrients, and water with useful plants. They may also hamper harvesting.
Like branding steers or embalming the dead, teaching was a profession I had never seriously considered. I was clearly unqualified, yet I accepted the job without hesitation, as it would allow me to wear a tie and go by the name of Mr. Sedaris. My father went by the same name, and though he lived a thousand miles away, I like to imagine someone getting the two of us confused. “Wait a minute,” this someone might say, “are you talking about Mr. Sedaris the retired man living in North Carolina, or Mr. Sedaris the distinguished academic?” The position was offered at the last minute, when the scheduled professor found a better-paying job delivering pizza. I was given two weeks to prepare, a period I spent searching for a briefcase and standing before a full-length mirror, repeating the words “Hello, class, my name is Mr. Sedaris.”
Sentence construction: Advanced level works include all types of sentences. Note compound-complex sentences can also be constructed, e.g. As I walked home from the corner store, I noticed many noisy birds, which seemed strange to me, and I was glad I'd left my car safely in the garage.
A complex sentence has an independent clause joined by one or more dependent clauses. A complex sentence always has a subordinator such as because, since, after, although, or when or a relative pronoun such as that, who, or which.
A. When Andrew handed in his homework, he forgot to give the teacher the last page.
B. The teacher returned to her classroom after she had escorted the child who had the nosebleed to the nurse's office.
C. Her students had been studying because they have a test tomorrow.
D. After they finished studying, Juan and Maria went to the movies.
Multiple Levels
500 $a Suitable for the Easy Reading collection; progressive levels. = Black literacy spine label
500 $a Suitable for the English Language Learning collection; beginner-intermediate levels = Black literacy spine label
E.g. Building culturally responsive classrooms : a guide for K-6 teachers
English as a second language : a directory of ESL programs and services...
The Longman picture dictionary : for learners of English as a second language
Reading don't fix no Chevys : literacy in the lives of young men
Oxford English for careers. Nursing. Student's book
I'm not in my homeland anymore : voices of students in a new land
Easy English for all : basic through advanced (ESL-ELL for college)
McGraw-Hill's essential ESL grammar : a handbook for intermediate and advanced ESL students
Domine lo básico, inglés. Intermedio/avanzado = Mastering the basics of English for Spanish speakers. Intermediate/advanced
500 General Notes
To facilitate keyword searching of books with CDs designed for read-along use from the Easy Reading collection, add the 500 note:
500 $a Read-along book with CD.
6XX Subject Headings
See Subject headings, Used for English Language Learning & Easy Reading.
Item Entry & Processing
Home location: ESL (World Language Collection - English Language Learning) or EASYENGL (World Language Collection - Easy Reading)
Item Cat 1: ESL or EASYENGL (if Easy English appears in the call number)
Item Cat 2: ADULT
K-2, ELL to grade 5
500 $a Suitable for the Easy Reading [or the English Language Learning] collection; beginner level = Blue literacy spine label
Use Blue literacy spine label
Grades 3 - 5, ELL grades 5 - 10
500 $a Suitable for the Easy Reading [or the English Language Learning] collection; intermediate level = Green literacy spine label
Use Green literacy spine label
Grade 6, ELL grade 10+
500 $a Suitable for the Easy Reading [or the English Language Learning] collection; advanced level = Red literacy spine label
Use Red literacy spine label
Multiple Levels
500 $a Suitable for the Easy Reading [or the English Language Learning] collection; progressive levels = Black literacy spine label
500 $a Suitable for the Easy Reading [or the English Language Learning] collection; beginner-intermediate levels = Black literacy spine label
Use Black literacy spine label
Last revised Feb. 5, 2024