To help improve English as a Second Language (ESL) programs for adult learners, this curriculum guide provides informative materials for the teacher and 30 sections of lessons suitable for adaptation by the teacher. Teacher information includes materials on language teaching and learning, use of the guide, needs assessment, adapting lesson plans, getting started with beginners, special problems in ESL classes, assessment for placement, resources, and an excerpt on language functions. Each of the 30 sections is developed around a language function (asking, clarifying and correcting, identifying, reporting). In each section six units outline realistic situations in which the functions operate and which relate to each of the six different adult roles for which the learners need English (consumer, citizen, community member, worker, learner, family member). Each section contains a unit outline for one adult role, sample lesson for the unit (objectives, skills, process, and devices), five unit outlines (one for each of the other roles), and a summary of the situation with the accompanying language and cultural components. Representative unit titles are "It Was a 20" Colour T.V.,""I Had an Operation for Appendicitis in 1972,""So, Never on an Empty Stomach," and "Whose Crew Were You On?". (YLB)