Cinderella, Masks, Carnival Time ,Drama and the verb " to be "

Cinderella and Carnival Time ,

Characters and Masks ,  

Drama and the verb " to be ".

This year we have been trialling approaches to the teaching of grammar in KS2 and we have focused our attention  recently in how we can engage young children with the active learning of high frequency verbs in the present tense  

As it's nearly carnival time though I thought that the lesson frame and the  resources I created based on "masks " and Cinderella characters might be something that some of you may like to try with your UKS2 children to find out more about the high frequency verb "to be" .

The lesson frame provides you with the key language in French, German and Spanish - should you be unsure, like I was,  how to say the "ugly sisters" in the target language! 

The activities take the children from being able to ask and say who a character is in the first , second , third person singular and plural to developing personalities behind the masks for the characters and adding performance and drama !

The aims of the activities are: 

• To introduce and practise the names of the main characters in the pantomime Cinderella, using the parts of the verb “to be “ in the target languages of French /Spanish or German
• To ask questions and give target language responses  with the characters’ names
• To create personalities for the characters through the use of the voice, actions and performance 
• To extend the character descriptions to allow the children to give the characters' personalities and feelings
• To create a simple performance ( groups of 5 children) based on the idea of a “masked ball

 The children can use our Cinderella masks (download the zip file of the five characters here) masks to create their own face masks for the activities , like the one below ......or as part of their carnival focus they could work out for themselves how to create a mask and design their own masks for the characters in Cinderella.

Here's the activity sequence Cinderella PDF to download and follow.Please note that on the PDf the phrase "Who are they?" in Spanish should read “¿Quiénes son?”

The children will need to make dice with smaller versions of the characters for several of the games they will play.   

With some of the network schools we have focused upon creating full sentences using a high frequency verb and nouns to create a poem such as
"A wizard's potion" . You can listen to a non-specialist linguist and Y6 class teacher describe the sequence of lessons she put together to explore the resource and the lesson framework I provided her with. Click here to listen to her describe  the work her class has done around the wizard's potion on JLN Network News.I will be sharing this sequence of activities at a later date on the blog should you like to try this . Will tweet about this when I put it up on the blog on @JanetLloydnet

Shadow Puppet Show Story Retelling and Performance

Shadow Puppet Show Story Retelling and Performance

Example :Goldilocks and the Three Bears

Activities that can be adapted for a sequence of lessons linking primary language learning and drama  with familiar tales for :

Early stage learners

 : Simple utterances of single words and phrases 

Developing language learners 

: simple sentence story telling

Established and moving on learners

 : using more complex sentences

It’s mid way through the year in our network and the schools have established patterns of language learning with their different year groups and stages not ages of learners across KS2 and also in KS1

We love story telling and we encourage performance by the children of the stories as this allows them to practise simple language , build questions and answers and create an outcome that demands they apply primary language learning and drama skills and techniques.

Last year we decided to develop puppet stories with KS1 and then later with KS2. We created a series of resources and stories based on mini beasts and sea creatures , which we all loved using. The children worked as a class to access the language and then in differentiated ability groups they worked together to  develop their own class and also group puppet performances of the simple stories to share with other classes.

I try to ensure that the stories we develop in school contains key and learner appropriate  transactional language within it which is transferable to general age appropriate conversation e.g. last year one of our stories was based around children looking for people to play a game (Who wants  to play?  Can I play? I don’t want to play! Come and join in with us!).

We are now getting ready  for work this year with the children on

storytelling of traditional tales

.We will focus for example on Jack and the Beanstalk, the Enormous Turnip and Goldilocks and the Three Bears .

We may show,share and read stories with the children containing quite complex language but in the lessons around the story I think it's important that we break the language down to the basic story line, so that all the children can participate ultimately in a performance based target language retelling of the story. 

Below are a sequence of activities /lessons based around the story of “

Goldilocks and the Three Bears” and a shadow puppet story

On holiday last year in France , I purchased this wonderful book – no words just simple black and white pictures . “Boucle d’or et les trois ours!” (Rascal – PASTEL publications) ISBN 978-2-211-06423-1

It’s absolutely brilliant! 

Boucle d'or et les trois ours Rascal Pastel

We can use it in French , Spanish , German , Mandarin etc in our network.

It led me to the idea that  to develop quality learning of storytelling and sequencing using target language learning 

this year 

I would develop a series of lessons based on shadow puppets and  silhouettes.

At a CPD evening with my language teaching colleagues from JLN , Joanne, suggested that the idea of shadow puppets would fit very well with her school’s Science project on “light and dark” !

She decided she would use the lesson sequence guide below with her shadow puppets to tell the story via an overhead projector and a screen link! 

So here are my stages of learning based on

Goldilocks and the three bears

and shadow puppets .My eventual performance and creative outcomes can support  the following stages of language learning:

Activities can be adapted to suit  :

1.Early stage learners

: Simple utterances of single words and phrases (possibly with the teacher or a child from a later stage of learning e.g .Y5 or Y 6 children working with Y3 as narrator )

2.Developing language learners

: simple sentence story telling using nouns, verbs and adjectives

3.Established and moving on learners

: using more complex sentences with adjectives ,conjunctions and action verbs , adverbs and possibly prepositions.

Support and sequencing of activities for the different stages

The sequence of activities will be the same for all learners and their stages of language development. The support may be different – so you may need:

• a speaking frame or prompt bubbles with key words and phrases for the children displayed at the front of the class
• you may offer children in stages 2 and 3 access to the bilingual dictionaries

Sequence of activities

1.

The story line

.Discuss the story the children already know in English to re-familiarise the children with the story line . Introduce your shadow puppets for the four main characters in the target language .Can the children say the characters names in the target language to a partner and link the shadow puppet to a character in the story book that the class has been reading in the lesson. 

2.

Shadow Puppet Parade

. Practise greeting the puppets in the target language , asking the puppets their names and how they are feeling – based on the story and ask for volunteers to offer possible responses. Select several children to come out and hold the shadow puppets and respond to the questions from the class on behalf of the shadow puppets .Encourage the more advanced learners to use more extended feelings e.g. I am hungry / scared /angry / frightened  etc (We teach extended feelings from the start of Y5 )

Say a phrase exchange

Give children their own smaller versions of the puppets and in groups of four ask the children to play a game called “Say a phrase exchange” .The children say a phrase that matches their puppet and each child in the group of four has its turn to speak and share and then the puppets are exchanged so the children give their puppet to the child to their right and the activity begins again . The only rule is that the next child can not say what the immediately previous child might have said. Once the game is established encourage the children to add voices for their puppets .

3.

Play

“Who is it?”

In this activity practise introducing the characters in a full first person sentence or a full third person singular sentence e.g Hello I am Goldilocks or Hello it’’s Daddy Bear”  and allow the children to practise the question “Who is it?. They may want to use both utterances in their puppet shows.

Practise the key phrase  “Who is it?“ with the children and then ask them to echo your character’s voice as they repeat the question after you. Can they decide by the tone of your voice – who is asking the question (Dad, Mum. Baby Bear or Goldilocks?).They must respond with a greetings phrase e.g Hello I am ..... or Hello it is ....

4.

Call a character

. This means the children should after counting 1,2,3 call out the question “Who is it?” and you should call a character and the children should respond with the key phrase “Hello I am ......” plus a character and a  correct tone of  voice. This can be played as pairs and in groups to consolidate

5.

Memory tray

This activity is so that the children can practise the names of the key items : chair/ soup/ bed/ house / and the characters . It’s just a simple game we have all played where we try to remember the items on a tray/ a power point slide / a flip chart and the items are removed one by one or replaced and other items are removed . Once you have practised all the items ,remove an item whilst the children hide their eyes  and then they open their eyes.Can the children say what is missing?

6.

Memory tray mimes

. Ask the children to work with a partner and   think of mimes and movements that portray the items from the memory tray game . Suggest that the mimes should portray the object or its use and ask them to add a physical  movement that conveys the  sound of the word e.g. is it a quick word, a smooth sound word, a hard quick sounding word etc. (They do not actually say the word but they should mime and move like the word). Their mime should reflect the sound and the object .Can the pair work with another pair and can the second pair name the objects and then share their mimes.They can then play a game of memory mime tray , where each child performs all the mimes but misses out  an object – which one is it? With developing and moving on learners ask them to use a key question “What is it? “ and  “What’s missing ? and for the response to use a full sentence “It is ....” and The .... is missing”

7.

Venn diagram descriptions

. Recall the story in English and then retell in the target language for the children using your original story . Emphasise and practise with the children the utterances by Goldilocks about each object e.g...

Chair-  too hard / too soft / just right

Soup – too hot / too cold/ just right

Bed-     too big / too small / just right

Now lay out on the floor in an open space plastic hoops with labels from above (too hot etc). Ask children to decide where each object  for each bear could be put  according to what Goldilocks thinks of the object– for example sometimes the children may decide to put an object in the link between too big and too cold etc  or juts to put the object in the hoop with the label too hot. Let the class decide  .

Give out paper versions of the Venn diagram and card cut outs of the objects (3 objects per items e.g. 3 chairs). Each child must select an object and working in groups of 4 can the children decide how to describe the objects . Early learners use simple descriptive utterances but developing and moving on learners say full sentence spoken descriptions of the items and place them on their Venn diagram . The group is in control of the descriptions and where they want to place the objects .  Ask each group at the end of the activity to share their  ideas with a second group and /or the class. They should say the utterances to describe the objects as if they were Goldilocks and demonstrate her reaction.

8.

Now the  children can create their own shadow puppet performance of the story .They will need shadow puppets. They should use all the language they have practised and must add emotions to the story by the use of their voices . 

They will need shadow puppets :

Objects such as the soup bowls to show the class or add to their stage set and scenery

They will also need story boards to support them to sequence their stories  with simple picture prompts. Here's an example of what some of the story board looks like .... (Children cud be give pictures to place into the sequence of the story in the order that they want to retell and perform it.

e.g 

Stepping Stones to Grammar : The Child's Voice

Stepping Stones to Grammar : The Child's Voice 

This week I have been busy in all sorts of ways discussing with colleagues KS2 and progression 
One thorny issue which has been cropping up is grammar at KS2. 

Within my network we have been trialling approaches to grammar and ways to engage the learner and support specialist and non-specialist teachers at KS2. Something we keep reminding ourselves about is ,that is primary language learning and that we are working with young children who want a structured and creative programme of learning that allows them as children to explore and grow in confidence as young language learners. They are not frightened by structure and grammar , they just need to have time to enjoy exploring it and playing with it like its code or a puzzle or a pattern!

I have been watching, observing and listening  to the children themselves! And I have come to the conclusion that we need to take small steps and let children stay on a stepping stone to explore before rushing them to the next level . We need to help them to stand up and feel confident on that stepping stone and then hold their hand as they make their way to the next stepping stone and we need to let them think about and connect grammar in a new language to structures they are already investigating in Literacy.

Here are three PDFs with their children's voice to guide us , laid out as in "stepping stones" starting from the child , explaining how they progress as language learners that are  not frightened but excited by new learning , how they become inquisitive and  interested in structure  and maybe intrepid explorers..... ready for secondary languages and the care and attention of linguists at KS3.

If we listen to the voice of the learner and we acknowledge their stages of development as young language learners then in my opinion we will progress with the children and not try to force  progression

The subtitle of the PDFs is simple" from a beginner to an interested and "want to know more young language learner" and that's what I hope I will create by planning for progression using the voice I can hear on these stepping stones . 


Stepping Stones Grammar Nouns Child Voice 

Stepping Stones Grammar Verbs Child Voice

Stepping Stones Grammar Adjectives Child Voice

3D Art and the Art of Verbs : Stage Three A whispering gallery

3D Art and the Art of Verbs : Stage Three , A whispering gallery 


3D Art , a technique to use at different stages of target language learning

Here we are considering 3D Art as a way to explore present verbs with primary age children  .
I may use the same technique to explore adjectives or a range of tenses with more advanced KS3  learners 

I have always loved to link language learning and drama and find the primary classroom a place where we can explore both these aspects and be really creative !
I love to use Art as stimulus for great drama and language explorations and find that I can bring Art from the target language country to life through simple activities .
I call this work "3D Art", taking a piece of Art and imagining and bringing the characters to life through performance and use of simple target language.

Simple rules 
Select Art that has conversation and interaction running throughout the storyline of the picture .
Make sure there are enough characters for a group of six children to be able to select characters that they want to investigate
Set the scene by investigating as a class possible phrases in the target language that characters could be saying 
Practise voices that the characters might have 
Add actions to the characters and ask the children to think of signature actions for the characters.
Divide your class into mixed ability groups of six children maximum and make sure in each group you have a strong linguist and strong performers 
As you progress through the stages described below increase the amount of reference sources the children can use , so they can access powerful verbs and adjectives etc.

First you need your picture 
Here is one of my favourites : the Boating Party by Renoir 

The Boating Party Renoir

Stage Three : A Whispering Gallery 

1. Revisit the painting you  used in stage one and stage two and if you have the outcomes to hand i.e. the sugar paper paintings book ( stage one) and the virtual gallery of pictures of characters and their conversations from stage two , share these with the children.
2.Now working at their tables - in mixed ability groups, with children who work better with support working with either yourself or a partner , give the painting out a third time to the groups .
3. Give each child at the table a cut out of the face of the character you would like them to be .
4. They should glue the character to the centre of an A4 piece of paper and write first person singular statements in the target language about the character- based on prompts written by you on the flip chart . Some children may need a writing frame . Prompts will be name , age , where live , birthdays, feelings , likes, dislikes, what they are wearing , what they are doing. Differentiate the task by outcome - each child must come up with at least 5 statements for example
5.Bring three children to be in the "hot seat" and ask for volunteers to be the question panel . Give these children questions that they will ask the character at the front , using second person singular questions e.g what are you called? , what are you wearing ? etc  
6. After each child has been in the hot seat ask the class to help you to put their statements into a hot seat report on the flip chart . This means that working with you they will put the statements into the third person singular using he/she depending on whether the character was male or female.
7. Back at their tables can the groups create appropriate questions in the third person singular matching the information on the flip chart in the hot seat reports?
8. Ask for suggestions for third person questions to each third person response in the hot seat report .
9.Write these questions up at the bottom of the flip chart.
10 . for the next activities the children need to be in groups of 4 or 6 . They will become the characters in the painting again , taking poses, thinking of the characters voices and actions  , finding a partner to talk with but this time the partners will develop a third person singular conversation about one of the other characters in their painting.
11. The first step will be to locate their character ( using the face cut out that they have worked with earlier) .Each character introduces themselves in the first person using the notes they made earlier . Everyone else listens and makes notes about the character .
12. Now they work in pairs to create a whispering third person singular question and answer conversation based on the facts they have just noted down about one of the other characters e.g what is he / she called / where does he / she live etc
13. The groups must develop their conversations , then work on their characterisation and then hold whispering gallery third person singular conversations to share information about other characters in the painting.
14. These whispering gallery conversations are performed to the class in the picture frame area at the front of the classroom just as described  at the end of stage two 
15. Finally the children are set the task of creating and writing a newspaper style description of the character they have just described in their performance of  a whispering gallery third person question and answer conversation . 

3D Art and the Art of verbs : Stage Two

3D Art , a technique to use at different stages of target language learning

Here we are considering 3D Art as a way to explore present verbs with primary age children  .
I may use the same technique to explore adjectives or a range of tenses with more advanced KS3  learners 

I have always loved to link language learning and drama and find the primary classroom a place where we can explore both these aspects and be really creative !
I love to use Art as stimulus for great drama and language explorations and find that I can bring Art from the target language country to life through simple activities .
I call this work "3D Art", taking a piece of Art and imagining and bringing the characters to life through performance and use of simple target language.

Simple rules 
Select Art that has conversation and interaction running throughout the storyline of the picture .
Make sure there are enough characters for a group of six children to be able to select characters that they want to investigate
Set the scene by investigating as a class possible phrases in the target language that characters could be saying 
Practise voices that the characters might have 
Add actions to the characters and ask the children to think of signature actions for the characters.
Divide your class into mixed ability groups of six children maximum and make sure in each group you have a strong linguist and strong performers 
As you progress through the stages described below increase the amount of reference sources the children can use , so they can access powerful verbs and adjectives etc.

First you need your picture 
Here is one of my favourites : the Boating Party by Renoir 

The Boating Party Renoir

Stage Two : A Virtual Gallery- asking and answering questions

You will need three or maybe four lessons to complete this properly 

I like to revisit the same picture with the children as they progress in their language learning and confidence . They can see how much more they are capable of achieving and also we are building a soap opera based on the characters we are getting to know in the picture . 

1.Children need to be in groups of 4 or 6 as every child needs a partner for these activities . Mix up the groups maybe and change who is in the group .
2. Revisit the painting and ask the children to remember who they were last time and can they remember the character they created . If you made the sugar paper painting book then take a look through - you could share on the IWB so it's more visible etc
3. The children are going to develop conversations in pairs between two characters in the picture. They can recreate their characters and do not necessarily have to use the same personal information as last time
4. As last time the children need to take the pose of one of the characters , use props to support their characterisation and create their painting in their picture frame 
5. Now they need to look around their painting and see who it is the characters are most likely to hold a conversation with. I encourage the children to let the artist guide them - e.g. where is the character and in which direction is the character looking etc .
6.In pairs, the children are to create their conversations .They can use rough paper to make notes if they need to and they should use as many questions and answers as they can e.g at this second stage of learning our Y4 children can ask names, age , where someone lives , how they are feeling ,birthdays , likes , dislikes of food / animals/ colours 
7.The pairs must step back into the picture frame and find a way to walk toward each other , greet each other - all as if they are in the painting so they may have to walk around an imaginary table that they can see in the painting or get up from a chair etc .Working in partnership thinking of their own characters voice , actions and props , the pairs develop their conversations and work out how to support each other to remember the conversation in the appropriate order and act out their characterisations at the same time! This is not just question answer , question answer etc. It needs to be dramatic and dynamic!
8. Once the teacher feels the class is ready to perform , the teacher should organise the children in their seats and the first group should come forward to the front of the class. This is the "picture frame area" in your virtual gallery classroom now  . Even better, if on your IWB you can bring up the picture and a picture frame too ! With an imaginary computer mouse the teacher will hover over a person and that person in the painting must move to meet their partner and start up their conversation . The class listens and watches the animated conversation of the two characters. The teacher will do this three times if there are three partnerships in the painting.
9. Swap groups and repeat point "8" with a new group . 
10 . You may like to film the groups and then play it back on the IWB at a later date for the class- perhaps prior to the written activity connected to stage two 
10 . Give each partnership a piece of plain paper and ask them to either draw a still life  of the two characters in conversation or a cartoon of the two characters in conversation
11. The children should write out their conversation and attach this to the picture they have drawn of their characters . It will be a piece of work using first and second person singular present tense questions and answers.
12. Scan the pictures and record the children speaking their conversations and now you have your own virtual gallery - where you can look at a picture and hear the sound file bring characters from the picture to life!

3D Art and the Art of Verbs: stage one

3D Art , a technique to use at different stages of target language learning

Here we are considering 3D Art as a way to explore present verbs with primary age children  .

I may use the same technique to explore adjectives or a range of tenses with more advanced KS3  learners 

I have always loved to link language learning and drama and find the primary classroom a place where we can explore both these aspects and be really creative !

I love to use Art as stimulus for great drama and language explorations and find that I can bring Art from the target language country to life through simple activities .

I call this work

"3D Art"

, taking a piece of Art and imagining and bringing the characters to life through performance and use of simple target language.

Simple rules

Select Art that has conversation and interaction running throughout the storyline of the picture .

Make sure there are enough characters for a group of six children to be able to select characters that they want to investigate

Set the scene by investigating as a class possible phrases in the target language that characters could be saying 

Practise voices that the characters might have 

Add actions to the characters and ask the children to think of signature actions for the characters.

Divide your class into mixed ability groups of six children maximum and make sure in each group you have a strong linguist and strong performers 

As you progress through the stages described below increase the amount of reference sources the children can use , so they can access powerful verbs and adjectives etc.

First you need your picture 

Here is one of my favourites : the Boating Party by Renoir 

The Boating Party Renoir

Stage One - Bring the picture to life in the round!

You will need at least two lessons to complete this series of activities well

I use these  activities mid way/ toward the end of the first year of target language learning .The children are confidently recalling and  saying verbal phrases and personal information sentences about themselves which all contain verbs in the present tens

e

e.g I am called / I live in / I am ...years old / I feel happy , ok , not so good 

The activities 

1. Children work in their mixed ability groups of five or six
2. Children  find a space away from their tables or in the hall to work as a group 
3. Each group can access a A3 size colour picture of the painting
4. Each child picks a character they think looks interesting.
5. Each child needs to think of a name for their character . We will have already explored 3 target language male and 3 target language female names when practising saying names and looking at similarities and differences in names in our community and the target language community.
6. They must work out either individually or working with a talking partner how to say the name phrase , how to say where they live, how old they are and how they are feeling . (You can make this a differentiated outcome task by allowing children the flexibility to decide how much they feel confident to say in the target language - all the statements or just some of them).
7. Now they may like to find a prop e.g a hat / a cup / a glass / a toy pet etc and they must practise their poses so that they look just like they are in the painting itself . 
8. Each child needs to consider the voice of the character by looking at the pose of the character in the picture and their expression etc
9. Each child  in turn performs for a partner and then for their working group their characterisation of the character they have selected with the chosen actions they have given their character and the phrases in the target language
10. The children now get into pose and create their version of the painting physically .
11. Each character talks in turn from the left to the right of the picture .
12. Now it's time to show the class . The groups sit around the room and one by one the groups stand , get into position for their painting and freeze frame exactly like the painting
13. The teacher is the artist and flicks a better still a paint brush and the characters one by one come to life and perform in the target language .
14. The teacher flicks a hand / paint brush a  second time and this time the children freeze frame with their favourite action they have created for their character .
15. The next part of the activity is to bring the picture to life in the round . this means when the teacher flicks their hand or brush again she/he  points at a performer in the painting and they start to say their phrases and do their chosen favourite action over and over again until all the characters in the painting are speaking and moving ....we are now in the round and the teacher can pause characters or start characters up again!
16. Now it's time for feedback from the other groups - two likes and one thing that the group could improve on
17. Start the activity again with a second group
18. Finally give the groups an A4 copy of the picture  on an A3 piece of paper and ask them to draw speech bubbles from their characters and add some or all of the statements in the target language of their characters .
19. It makes a great sugar paper paintings book or a 3D Art display !

Happy meals

Today I will be sharing with teachers how we go through stages of core language learning to enable children to independently and effectively use language in a transactional situation-hence the name "Happy Meals ".
We will be considering how we can develop a simple effective unit of learning over a sequence of 5 or 6 lessons.

So if you are with me for the CPD today - here are the stages and activities ...as I am certain to talk far too fast whilst we have a go at the activities in the CPD !

I will be sharing with the teachers the resources and stages of learning below to move the children over a sequence of lessons from  being able to , to being able to ask and answer a  question, to being able to ask and answer a series of questions , through to being able to prepare a simple independent conversation and being able to perform the language generally from memory in the order and style they decide to!

We are focussing in food and drink in a snack bar because this will be part of our cafe culture unit of work with Y6 after the dreaded May and exams have passed .

Stage One   (Say single words and phrases)

I am sure we can all think of  think of simple games and activities to introduce, practise and revisit single words and phrases we might want to teach 
Once the children have the words in their heads ,I love playing Alphabetical menus - the next person can't order an item if it's not the next item in the alphabet on the menu the class has created ! Can be quite challenging at times especially when several words begin with the same first letter  

Stage Two    (able to ask and answer a  question)

This is about us practising two key phrases a question - what would you like? and an answer "I would like...."
Try playing my Waiters in a Whizz game. Simply organise your class into an inner and outer circle. Inner circle ask a question and outer circle answer the question - waiters and customers . They have 30 seconds to complete a transaction and then the meal wheel turns - which means that the waiter moves onto the next person standing in the outer circle and asks a question of the next person . We change "shifts" after 5 questions and answers have taken place . Inner circle swaps places with the outer circle and the customers become the waiters and vice versa . Calling it Waiters in a whizz , refering to the inner circle as waiters and the outer circle as customers and then changing shifts - makes it all seem so real for Y6 !    

Stage Three   able to ask and answer a series of questions 

The intention here is that we will have used games such as Waiters in a whizz" to isolate and practise individual questions and answers .Each lesson we can play a waiters in a whizz game with a different question and answer and continue to build up our learners knowledge of single words and phrases.

To develop asking and answering questions I introduce activities using a slide sorter and picture prompt cards . The activity is called "Say what you See!" 
In my opinion it allows the activity to be inclusive as it gives children thinking time and time to focus on the question or response they must say , rather than worrying about what comes next .
Here are my resources and how I use them to deliver the activity .

Each child needs to make a slide sorter like the one below. The window they cut out from the card  needs   to be the size of the prompt card they wish to view through it  : 

Slide sorter template 

The children need to now fold the template in half and glue the bottom and tip edge so that it is a sealed flat tube through which we can pass our picture card prompts 

Now the children need their  picture card prompts- one for the waiter and one for the customer . I model and let the children practise with a specific waiter prompt card and customer prompt card before I ask the children to create their own prompt cards for a waiter and a customer . for some children this is a really useful way to take them through the stages of transactional role play -(as they need to consider :what happens first , what comes next , what's the next question etc ....   .)

Here's a waiter's picture prompt card example made by a child

Here's a customer response card to the same transactional role play

Now the children can complete the task - asking and answering questions , step by step , saying what they can see .

Stage Four (able to prepare a simple independent conversation )

This stage the children absolutely love . They will have seen the "Happy Meals" made by previous year groups and will have admired all the extras put in the happy meal boxes! 

One year we had a lilo made of red quilted material , another year we had a papiermache World Cup as the gift in the Happy Meal box!  

What happens at this stage is that the children practise the key language to be able to make choices - flavours, types of , foods from France , Germany , Spain , a healthy option recalling prior learning etc 

Practise for examples ice cream flavours ( we will introduce these in Y4 and revisit them on our "at the beach unit"  in Summer Y5 .

Now make memory games and challenges and picture prompt lists to remember - who can remember the whole shopping list .

Here are two starter shopping list examples - one for ice creams and one for drinks . The symbols and recognition of the symbols  are important when we get to the happy meal conversation.I would cut these into strips of three flavours of ice creams , represented by  the small symbols to the right of each ice cream cone .

and here is our drinks shopping list.....

Each child gets a drinks and ice cream flavour shopping list and must work through a simple transactional questions and answers activity with a partner to acquire each of the items . Their partner ticks off the items as they ask accurately for them.How many did they manage to ask for accurately and how many do they need to practise again?

 Here's an example ice creams and drinks shopping list:

It's almost time to create our Happy Meals 

First let's check our knowledge of a French /German /Spanish menu and maybe do some food tasting with Y6 . Can we add any new items we taste to the snack food bar menu  e.g un croque monsieur  / Quark / patatas bravas etc?

Here's our basic French snack bar menu to which the children can add sketches of new foods we have tried in your food tasting. 

The task the children are now set is to create their own Happy Meal with both foods from the country that they have tasted , plus snack bar foods and two or three healthy options from prior learning in Y5 , when we went shopping to markets for fruit and  vegetables etc 

Here's the Happy Meal template which they need to cut out . Generally I blow this up to A3 size but here is an A4 version just for the camera !

Now let the children create their boxes and add their items

And now it's time for them to take their boxes and working in pairs create conversations with a partner where the items in each Happy Meal determine the conversation . Do they need to use a slide sorter Say what you see to help them ? Do they want to add additional conversation that they will have used throughout their language learning e.g how someone is feeling / what fruits they like etc

Stage Five  (a performance from memory )

The Class Snack Bar Happy Meal Winner Competition!

Each pair should decide which of their two conversations and which of their two happy meals is their best chance to enter the class competition and perhaps to become the Class Snack Bar Happy Meal Winner!

They must take and load photos of their selected Happy Meal on to the school VLE and share as slides on the IWB if possible .(They can just physically show and tell of course!)

They must practise their conversation and make it into an entertaining spoken performance from memory . (Prompts can be the items in the happy meal box)

Each partnership must then deliver their performance to the class and the class should vote on delivery , entertainment value , pronunciation , and the quality of the Happy Meal .

Every time I have delivered this sequence of lessons I have really enjoyed the children's work and the outcomes ! Happy Meals  and performances whizz by in my mind as I write this !!

Open and reveal four corners puzzles

This is the simplest of games to play with all language learners! 
Everybody likes a guessing game and here we are linking games , fun and grammar!
It could be created on the IWB quite easily too but part of the fun is when the children make their own.

Tomorrow I will share this with Primary PGCE ITTs at Manchester University.

It's a very simple way of revisiting key language the learners already know , recalling and revisiting  families of nouns  and developing a new learning focus from this .In this case we are revisiting animal nouns and listening for indefinite articles.

All it is , is a picture like this of any object . Here I am focusing on animals.....

1. .Now you fold in the corners of the paper that the mouse picture has been printed on . You would have a range of animal pictures that you were using ,all printed out and all folded in on themselves with familiar language recall prompts  written on each corner-one on each folded in corner -  like this .......

to perhaps revisit numbers like this .....:

or perhaps to revisit colours like this ......

or perhaps key sounds and phonemes in the target language animal nouns like this....:

2. One by one you invite children to name a corner of the folded picture - a number / a colour / a sound and if they say this correctly you can unfold the corner ..... how long does it take for the learners to recall and say the correct animal . They can make a guess after each corner is unfolded and a bit of the picture becomes clear .My mouse picture is hidden behind symbols for the question "how are you feeling?" and three simple responses . The children   would have to say what they see before that specific corner can be unfolded  .

3. Now it's time to consider the focus of our learning . In this instance we would be trying to listen in French for the indefinite article and for when we say "C'est un ....." and when we say "C'est une .....". 

Once all the animals are revealed we can add our written indefinite labels which help us to  categorise the animals into masculine and feminine indefinite article animals ! The "un " and the "une " family . 

4.Each child in the class can then make two or three open and reveal corner puzzles of their own- why not encourage the more able to investigate new names of animals by using reference material such as a bi-lingual dictionary . They must in this instance select objects that they can recognise as masculine or feminine in gender and therefore help their friends to explore when we say "un" and when we say "une "! 

5. Made into a working wall - with the open and reveal puzzles made by the class with labels made by the children, we have a point of reference for our work on nouns and the indefinite article .

The aim of the activity is to make the learning fun , to revisit familiar language  and to build on known language and make progress in our understanding of the target language !

Getting started with rocket mobiles

So you have just started teaching and learning a language in your school. It's likely that you have practised numbers , colours , a greeting , saying a name phrase.
Every year this rocket launch works a treat!
It allows children to read the key phrases and for you to use this as an AfL tool at this stage of the first year of language learning- has some of the core language stuck? Can the children recall the core language and how easily can they read the core language .
All you need is a rocket template and a name phrase on the rocket that the children should use to name their rocket before they launch it!
Using simple shapes with a written colour and a number between 1-10 inside the shapes. Ask the children to cut out , re-order  the shapes numerically as they wish. For example  this example has two rocket booster engines - one made up of even numbers and one made up of odd numbers between 1-10. 
They must then find a way to make the shapes and the rocket into a mobile so that they can  hang their mobile with other mobiles in the classroom to make the statement that they have launched their language learning!

Science and target language skeletons

Cross curricular learning allows us to achieve creative outcomes that the children can enjoy and share. After half term we will be introducing Year 4 to parts of the body, introduced as you might expect through songs and games . We find this is really effective learning when it's linked t the class science project on the human body. 
We like to develop simple writing skills in Y4 and continue to use writing techniques we might have introduced and used  Y3 e.g air writing / finger writing / whiteboard try  and wipe activities . With the body try asking the children to create a "word head " in the air - simply ask them to create the shape of a head in a space in the air writing the word for head in the target language in the shape of a head etc. It's fun and non threatening and focuses the children on how to spell the word correctly .Add eyes and nose and mouth to the air drawing too! Make it a tiny head , a monster head and features , a robot head and then move on to the children creating their own word bodies to display as part of their Science project.  

Here is one child's example of a skeleton word body 

Later in the year , the year 4 children will be learning about simple ailments that they want to tell the teacher about e.g a grazed or cut knee , earache, tummy ache .
In UKS2 in Year 5 we revisit and extend this language so that the children are able to explain a variety of illnesses and symptoms to a doctor .
Children like being set challenges to create an outcome that they think best suits the task - so I ask  children to create me an ailment object guide .This is a skeleton n the style of .... ( a robot / an alien/ etc) . The children  have to use simple materials to create a physical depiction of a poorly body . 
Here are some of their creations!
Makes for yet another great display that can link to "Keeping fit and healthy"

    

Who lives here?

Who lives here?  - talk prompts
In the schools I work with , some schools that have been teaching languages for five years or so have reached a point where they want to encourage the learners  UKS2 to revisit , extend and develop their use of the target language To support them with this,I have begun to trial talk prompts and to encourage the children to think creatively in the language, using the language they have already practised.
For example below there are some photographs of doorways .These are used a a photo stimulus to encourage children to "think outside of the box" and create the characters that could live behind the doors and entrances to houses Who lives here?What do they look like?Do they have any pets? What do they enjoy doing?  
Children work in pairs to develop characters and lifestyles and then share their ideas with a second pair - each pair taking it in turns to ask the questions and respond to the questions .
Feedback can then be a whole class sharing of ideas with the teacher prompting class talk by asking several pairs what their response is to a specific question 
The talk prompts and the spoken language they use can then be developed in to simple creative writing in either the first or third person singular.

chapeau and carnival time

It's half term very soon for us but some of our schools are getting ready for their carnival celebrations when they return after their holiday . We have always loved the French story book " Chapeau" and read it with children in French, German and Spanish - we had to add subtitles on card of course!

It's all about who you could be if you had a specific hat! Makes a splendid opportunity to try out hats with the class and decide who we want to be. A famous person? A type of person? Give a person a personality and a personal identity?

In French share this on-line 

si j'avais un chapeau comme ca

 turn the page book from the children of l'ecole Leo de la Grange in Saintes France .Will inspire you to create your own I am sure!

Then take the fancy dress theme and create a class hat on the flip chart .Revisit some basic language you have practised . Ask a child to pick a colour of crayon to draw the outline of the hate. Ask other children to draw shapes on the hat . Ask children to decide the colour of the shape. Add a sequence of numbers  and ask the children to decide which numbers. Ask a child think of an animal to draw on the hat and add an animal picture or design. What colour do the children want the animal to be.

Why not let the children take over and ask the questions !

A theme of "Carnival and fancy dress" seems as good a moment as any to listen to a silly rhyme in the target language about hats .Here it is in French with a silly voice on You Tube. It's basically the French version of "my hat it has three corners ".....

And here it is in German...

We will be making lift the flap books with our hats and professions , practising this rhyme "mon chapeau a quatre bosses..." / "mein Hut der hat drei Ecken",missing out key words and speeding up each time we sing it!

Here are some photos I took in France of several fantastic hat shops which always lead to discussion of which hats we might like to buy and wear and what the tools are in the shop window that you would have used in times gone by to make a hat! Hope you find these useful.