Corinne Svardtfeldt enjoys helping others. As the Castlegar settlement worker and English instructor, Corinne feels lucky to meet newcomers and to help them feel at home in their new community.
Corinne was a teacher on Vancouver Island before she moved to Castlegar with her young family. To help settle there, she went to CBAL’s family literacy programs with her three children. Because she had a background in teaching, she asked if there were any jobs at CBAL. Soon, she began facilitating adult and family literacy programs. She worked with seniors and families with young children for the next six years!
About three years ago, Corinne became the CBAL settlement worker. Then she returned to school, training to be an English as a second language (ESL) teacher. Now, she is the settlement worker and teaches all of CBAL Castlegar’s English classes.
There are many opportunities for newcomers in Castlegar. At Conversation Club, participants often tell others about their home countries. This helps them understand one other and their diverse backgrounds. “Very few of our learners are from the same country, so it’s great to learn from one another,” says Corinne. One memorable moment at Conversation Club was when the group was discussing gestures. “For some people, shrugging was new. Raising your shoulders and holding your hands out to say ‘I don’t know’ was another lesson in language.”
At ESL Family Time, there are many activities to share as a family. For Family Literacy Week 2017, families made instruments, learned new songs and rhymes and plan to create a songbook of the songs they have learned! There is also childcare, so parents can have adult time to practice vocabulary and learn new ways to support their children’s learning.
Corinne says the best part of her job is the people. She knows that settling in a new country and learning English can be frustrating and tiring. “People can be really hard on themselves,” says Corinne. “I tell them that what they’re doing is really great.”
Corinne especially likes to see families transition through programs. “Newcomers might start by taking English classes and get help registering their children for school. Then, they might take programs that help them support their children’s learning or help their older kids at work.” Corinne enjoys seeing new Canadians who never drove in their home country get their B.C. driver’s licenses. She says, “I love to see what began as learning English end in really being settled here.”
If you would like to volunteer to help a newcomer, contact your CBAL community literacy coordinator!
Katie Andruschuk
Community Literacy Coordinator
Columbia Basin alliance for Literacy - Windermere Valley
Corinne was a teacher on Vancouver Island before she moved to Castlegar with her young family. To help settle there, she went to CBAL’s family literacy programs with her three children. Because she had a background in teaching, she asked if there were any jobs at CBAL. Soon, she began facilitating adult and family literacy programs. She worked with seniors and families with young children for the next six years!
About three years ago, Corinne became the CBAL settlement worker. Then she returned to school, training to be an English as a second language (ESL) teacher. Now, she is the settlement worker and teaches all of CBAL Castlegar’s English classes.
There are many opportunities for newcomers in Castlegar. At Conversation Club, participants often tell others about their home countries. This helps them understand one other and their diverse backgrounds. “Very few of our learners are from the same country, so it’s great to learn from one another,” says Corinne. One memorable moment at Conversation Club was when the group was discussing gestures. “For some people, shrugging was new. Raising your shoulders and holding your hands out to say ‘I don’t know’ was another lesson in language.”
At ESL Family Time, there are many activities to share as a family. For Family Literacy Week 2017, families made instruments, learned new songs and rhymes and plan to create a songbook of the songs they have learned! There is also childcare, so parents can have adult time to practice vocabulary and learn new ways to support their children’s learning.
Corinne says the best part of her job is the people. She knows that settling in a new country and learning English can be frustrating and tiring. “People can be really hard on themselves,” says Corinne. “I tell them that what they’re doing is really great.”
Corinne especially likes to see families transition through programs. “Newcomers might start by taking English classes and get help registering their children for school. Then, they might take programs that help them support their children’s learning or help their older kids at work.” Corinne enjoys seeing new Canadians who never drove in their home country get their B.C. driver’s licenses. She says, “I love to see what began as learning English end in really being settled here.”
If you would like to volunteer to help a newcomer, contact your CBAL community literacy coordinator!
Katie Andruschuk
Community Literacy Coordinator
Columbia Basin alliance for Literacy - Windermere Valley
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