Free On-line Resources
Proliteracy Education Network
has a terrific collection of resources for citizenship teachers & tutors and students. At this site you will find:3 self-paced on-line professional development courses:
- The Interview
- The Civics Test
- The Literacy Test
(The courses are easy to navigate through, and include audio and visual presentations, interactive review sections, a course summary exam, and printable certificate of completion.)
2 podcasts:
- Citizenship: Engaging Multiple Modalities in the Citizenship Classroom
- Citizenship: Teaching Conversation Strategies in the Citizenship Classroom
(with short PDF handouts to accompany each podcast)
4 short fact sheets:
- Starting a Citizenship Class
- Becoming a U.S. Citizen Checklist
- Benefits of Becoming a U.S. Citizen
- Things to Consider BeforeYou Apply
2 reproducable lesson activities
interactive skills practice for the citizenship test (for students)
(Navigation tip: look for a green "go" or "link" at the bottom of each resource description. This gets you to the resource you've chosen.)
CitizenshipNews
, the website of textbook author Lynne Weintraub, offers regular new updates of interest to citizenship educators and advocates (e.g. naturalization policy/advocacy updates, new teaching resources, and other news related to citizenship).
CLINIC
has collected translations of the 100 civic questions into quite a few languages. The site also offers free downloads of two top-notch technical assistance manuals, Citizenship for Us, and Strategies for Naturalizing the Most Vulnerable Applicants.
UScitizenpod
has audio recordings of the 100 civics questions & answers (but be aware that for those questions that have multiple correct answers, the recording includes ALL of the possible responses, rather than highlighting one or two of the simplest responses-this can make for tedious listening.) The site also includes good sample interview recordings at various levels. But be aware that examples of some of the civics questions are based on the old test, not the new one, and dictation test examples you find here are not authentic-they are not based on the current USCIS vocabulary list). This site features a cute little ABC Slideshow and some other good resources.
Insight Media
offers a great dictation practice test (with audio) at their LibertyBook site (click on the “student” section, then select “dictation.”) The site also offers a multiple-choice quiz of the 100 civics questions (unfortunately, the civics practice test is text only). http://www.libertybook.net/
SaberHacer
has seven beautifully produced short videos about the citizenship process in both English and Spanish versions:-
US Citizenship Process
(Pasos para obtener la ciudadanía) -
Benefits of Citizenship
(Beneficios de la Ciudadanía) -
Citizenship classes
(Clases de Ciudadanía) -
Citizenship Interview and Ceremony
(Entrevista y ceremonia de juramento) -
Citizenship- Common Mistakes
(Ciudadanía-Errores communes) -
What You Need to Know About Voting
(Lo que necesitas saber sobre el voto) -
Citizenship & Immigration Scams
(Fraudes en Ciudadanía e Inmigración)
The Jones Library
offers a series of ten citizenship lesson guides for volunteer tutors to use as a planning and assessment resource, and as a lesson summary to give to students. This site also offers a plain language step-by-step guide to becoming a citizen, and information on requesting a fee waiver.
USCIS
provides a number of educational resources such as flashcards, audio, and translations for the 100 civics questions, a practice test, and two short videos: "A Promise of Freedom," and "Becoming a U.S. Citizen." The website also has a video about the citizenship interview, information on how to apply, and the official Guide to Naturalization.
The Minnesota Literacy Council
offers a free self-paced course for citizenship students. (Note: the course is designed for people who live in Minnesota. So you need to substitute information about your own state's capital, governor, representatives, and senators.)The Asian Pacific American Legal Center
offers a workbook download and on-line video about the naturalization process in English, Mandarin, Cantonese, Tagalog, Korean, Hindi, and Vietnamese here.
ALRC
offers several downloads for citizenship educators, including a “Citizenship Educator Orientation Packet,” and “Dictation Techniques for the New Test.”They also offer a series of tutorial presentations: “Understanding the USCIS Reading and Writing Tests,” &“Teaching the USCIS Reading and Writing Tests,” “Becoming a Citizenship Educator,” and “Helping Your Citizenship Students Study Outside of the Classroom.”
EL/Civics Online
offers a teacher training unit on the naturalization process, however, you must first register and complete the "prerequisite" ESL Foundation Course.
The US Government Printing Office
put together Ben's Guide to help children learn about the three branches of government. But it can also be useful for adults studying for the citizenship test. For starters, try the easy picture matching game, or the vocabulary puzzle.