Lead in New England

A Free ESL Curriculum on How to Prevent Lead Poisoning in the Home Created by Education Development Center, Inc.
Sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency

The American Academy of Pediatrics has identified lead poisoning as one of the most common toxicological hazards facing young children in the United States. Most homes built before 1978 have paint with lead, and children living in these homes are at risk for ingesting and/or absorbing lead from paint dust, tap water, and soil. Families for which English is a second language are vulnerable because so many of them live in older homes.

Yet, lead poisoning can be prevented--if tenants and homeowners know what danger signs to look for, and how to reduce or eliminate lead poisoning. That's why the Environmental Protection Agency commissioned the development of Health Beginnings: Lead Safe Families, an easy-to-use curriculum for adult ESL classes.

Free for ESL programs, the illustrated curriculum is available in beginner's and intermediate/advanced versions. Each unit poses a specific situation relating to lead hazards, and shows people how to protect their families. Vocabulary lists, workbook style questions, sentence completion exercises, and illustrated checklists are included in each of the following units:

• Going to the Doctor
• Identifying Symptoms of Illness
• Making Water Safe to Drink
• Preparing and Storing Food
• Avoiding Dangers in the Dirt
• Finding the Right Home
• Identifying Household Hazards*
• Making Your Home Safe*
• Renovating Your Home*

*Only available in intermediate/advanced version.

This versatile, field-tested curriculum is accompanied by a teacher's guide that includes a glossary translated into eight languages: Chinese, Haitian-Creole, Khmer, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Vietnamese. Health Beginnings units may be used sequentially, combined with other materials, or taught individually. Students can keep the units together in a notebook for home practice and share them with family members and neighbors.

Descriptions of Units

HEALTHY BEGINNINGS LEAD CURRICULUM • Healthy Beginnings Cover (1 p., 321 KB, about PDF) • Healthy Beginnings - Glossaries (95 pp., 3.87 MB, about PDF) • Healthy Beginnings - Teachers Guide (28 pp., 1.54 MB, about PDF)     BEGINNERS • Avoiding Dangers in the Dirt (8 pp., 409 KB, about PDF) • Finding the Right Home (8 pp., 391 KB, about PDF) • Going to the Doctor (12 pp., 492 KB, about PDF) • Identifying Symptoms (8 pp., 457 KB, about PDF) • Making Water Safe to Drink ( pp., 472 KB, about PDF) • Preparing and Storing Food (12 pp., 476 KB, about PDF)     INTERMEDIATE • Avoiding Dangers in the Dirt (8 pp., 458 KB, about PDF) • Finding the Right Home (8 pp., 445 KB, about PDF) • Going to the Doctor (12 pp., 557 KB, about PDF) • Identifying Symptoms (8 pp., 513 KB, about PDF) • Identifying Household Hazards (433 pp., 2 KB, about PDF) • Making Water Safe to Drink (8 pp., 545 KB, about PDF) • Making Your Home Safe (16 pp., 793 KB, about PDF) • Preparing and Storing Food (12 pp., 527 KB, about PDF) • Renovating Your Home (8 pp., 469 KB, about PDF)