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Topic “English Speaking”
use sequencing words in a range of contexts
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| The races movies Digital camera or camera phone to take a video clip 3 characters e.g. plastic worms First Next Last 'podium' drawn on a sheet of paper (optional) or medals (optional) First, next, last prompt sheet | 1. Set up a race course, and talk about beginning and end. 2. Have the child help you make the worms race, and film this. 3. Watch the film clip back and have the child describe the race and who came first, next, last. 4. Put the worms on the podium in the right places, or award each worm the right medal if you have them. | You can use any toys, or the children can race. It can also be played out and about by observing e.g. cars at traffic lights etc. |
| Movie stars Digital camera or camera phone to take a video clip Pictures of actions the child can do (optional) First next last prompt sheet | You could have them put the pictures of the actions into the order they did it and then describe the film clip. They may need to use the prompt sheet. This can be generalised to make clips of the child doing any sort of everyday sequence of actions, which the child can watch and describe using the target words: these could all be collected on a computer, or on a digital photo frame. | |
| Walk the walk A wind up toy (e.g. "Simon the Sheep") Pictures of things it might see or do on its walk A prompt card of first next last / beginning middle end | ||
| Making Sandwich A sandwich assembly play kit (e.g. from the Early Learning Centre). Or you could use real bread and fillings (make the sandwiches small so you can have a few goes) Pictures of the key parts (bread, cheese, tomato, lettuce, butter etc) First next last prompt sheet | You could vary this by making soup with different ingredients. You could 'feed' the sandwich to a toy or to an adult if you are working with a younger child. You could make real sandwiches! You could film this with a digital camera or camera phone so the child can show it to another person, or simply watch it back. |
predict infer and analyse from a picture and story
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Everyday situation with a picture and a story A picture of an everyday event, or social setting e.g. crossing the road, or going to the cinema. A story to go with the picture (no more than 5 or 6 sentences). Or See the resource sheets in 'Language for Thinking' (LfT) by Parsons and Branagan (Published by Speechmark). If using this publication, use Module 1 and the level C questions. This programme has questions for a range of ability levels. | 1. Choose a scenario picture. 2. Show the children the picture and read the story to them. 3. Focus on questions that require more working out and understanding of the context, e.g. 'What will happen if he...?' 'Why is it made of that?' 'If you were X, what would you say / do?' 'Why can't he?' (LfT level C questions). | Use some simpler questions to start with (LfT Level A and B if you are using this publication). If a child gives a short answer, prompt them to expand it. If the child finds these questions easy, move on to having them read the story rather than you telling it. Go back to using simpler questions and move up through question levels again. |
use past and future tense when telling stories
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Spot the story Sequencing cards (3 part sequences work best) 2 envelopes Prompt cards for past and future tense Blu tac (optional) | 1. Put all the first cards of every sequence into one envelope, and put the past tense prompt card on the front. 2. Put all the last cards of every sequence in the other envelope and put the future tense prompt card on the front. 3. Lay out all the middle cards from every sequence in different places - on the table, on the walls, on the floor - whatever is appropriate in your setting. 4. Explain to the children that one child will describe a card from one of the envelopes. The other children must work out which of the cards round the room is the next / previous card - they must 'spot the story'. 5. Have one child choose a card from one envelope. If it is a card that is first in a sequence, they must describe it using a past tense. The prompt card can be used to help them. If it is a final card in a sequence, the future tense must be used. (This is because the card the other children are finding is the middle card.) 6. See who can 'spot the story' first! | Praise children for using a past or future tense as appropriate. Use simple sequencing cards at first. Later you could use more complex ones, e.g. social sequences. |
| Chain story surprise (past and future) Paper Pen or pencil Cards with possible story characters on them (optional) | Some children will prefer to have a character given to them to write about. You will need a prompt card with 'did', 'has', 'had', 'was' and also a prompt card with 'will / going to' written out to remind the children to use the past and future tense. | |
| See also Further activities on www.commtap.org: |
use future tense when making plans and telling stories
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| News time 'frame' Sheet with boxes labelled "...will...", "...am..." and "...have / did...":
Pen or pencil | 1. Use this at news time, or explain to the child that you are all going to take turns to talk about what you are going to do, or have done. 2. Put the sheet with the boxes labelled "....will...., "....am...." and "....have/did...." in front of the child and help the child to read the words. 3. The child can choose to talk about e.g. last weekend, or next weekend, or something in school. Talk about if it has happened already or is going to happen and which box it would fit under. 4. The child can report their news; help them to use the accurate tense. | In some cases it will feel more natural to use "going to" than "will" (for example, "The boy is going to eat the apple" rather than "The boy will eat the apple"), you should always use (and encourage) the form which feels the most natural. The child could write what they have written under each heading, or draw a picture. |
| Diary Diary - either published or a blank workbook. Pen or pencil Sheet with boxes labelled "...will...", "...am..." and "...have / did...":
| This is an ongoing activity to be used with an individual child or a group of children (each child would have their own diary). In some cases it will feel more natural to use "going to" than "will" (for example, "The boy is going to eat the apple" rather than "The boy will eat the apple"), you should always use (and encourage) the form which feels the most natural. | |
| Complete the manuscript A short story, with the ending missing (either cut off, or photocopy the story but blank out the ending) Paper Pen or pencil | This activity is best if it is not a story the child is familiar with. You may need to use a prompt sheet to remind the children to use the future tense: Sheet with boxes labelled "...will...", "...am..." and "...have / did...":
In some cases it will feel more natural to use "going to" than "will" (for example, "The boy is going to eat the apple" rather than "The boy will eat the apple"), you should always use (and encourage) the form which feels the most natural. You can have the group make up two or three different endings for the same story and make a 'choose your ending' book. | |
| Sequencing Cards A set of sequencing cards (either a published set, or you can make your own by photocopying a sequence of pictures of any event). | Use sequences appropriate to the age of the child. Any sequence with a twist at the end will be enjoyed by the children! You may need to use a prompt sheet to remind the children to use the future tense: Sheet with boxes labelled "...will...", "...am..." and "...have / did...":
In some cases it will feel more natural to use "going to" than "will" (for example, "The boy is going to eat the apple" rather than "The boy will eat the apple"), you should always use (and encourage) the form which feels the most natural | |
| Chain story surprise Paper Pen or pencil Cards with possible story characters on them (optional) | Some children will prefer to have a character given to them to write about. You may need a prompt card with 'will / going to' written out to remind the children to use the future tense. |
to use because in sentences
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Story cards Flashcards with the target word written on each one (because). Short sequences of 2 or 3 cards which make up a short story. | Tell the children that this activity is to practise using longer sentences. Introduce 'because' on the flashcards and explain that it helps us to make longer sentences. Sequence the cards into the right order as a group. Place the flashcard near the pictures. Have the children think of a sentence (two if necessary) about the pictures, which uses 'because'. Write down each sentence. | This activity can easily be adapted to use class topic work and stories. You may need to use a sentence frame to support the children to make sentences at first. A sentence frame for this activity can be in three parts, for example:
The children can change the parts in the first and last boxes to make new sentences. |
| Book Summaries As the activity above, but use a short book the children are familiar with. Flashcards with the target word written on each one (because). | It is better if the book has a lot of pictures to help the children follow the story. You could use just one page of a book, or one short section, if the book is longer than a few pages. You may need to use a sentence frame to support the children to make sentences at first. | |
| Photo Captions Photos from magazines or photos of the children engaged in activities Flashcards with the target word written on each one (because). | You may need to use a sentence frame to support the children to make sentences at first. | |
| Talk for a minute Flashcards with the target word written on each one (because). Pictures of actions or events Timer (if you don't have one, use a watch with a second hand) | You may need to use a sentence frame to support the children to make sentences at first. You can vary the time, to make it either longer or shorter. |
To indicate own needs.
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Help card Laminated 'I need you to help me' card | Use the card during classroom tasks. Introduce it as something that reminds us to ask for help when we need it. Make it a 'reward' to have the card for an activity. Tell the child who has the card for that activity, that they can ask anyone for help by showing them the card. Give them a target to use it at least once. Praise the child for using the card. | |
| Sabotaged class activities | Some children are shy of 'correcting' adults, so make sure they know it is ok to tell you can't do the activity. You may find it useful to 'prime' the children and tell them that you might give them an impossible instruction to check if they are listening. You may need to provide the children with a model sentence to use when they let you know that they cannot carry out your instruction. | |
| Shopping Game
| There are commercial games which are similar to this, many of them lotto games. Have the children work in pairs,, so that they must ask each other to collect the pieces they need. |
Predict what might happen next in a social story
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Think of the ending Sequencing cards (focus on social situations) Card with large question-mark on it. | 1. Explain to the children that you are going to see the beginning of a story or something that happened, and that they need to think about what the ending could be. 2. Show them the first 2 or 3 cards in the sequence (this depends on how many cards are in the sequence). 3. Show the question mark at the end and discuss what might happen next. 4. Help the children to think about different scenarios: you could write these down or draw them. 5. Finally look at the final cards in the sequence to see what the author decided on. | |
| Talking about situations Large picture showing a situation: for example a developing argument; a child standing alone whilst other children are playing in a playground. Sets of prompt pictures showing possible outcomes from the situation - for example: child seeks to join in play and is accepted/is rejected, child goes off on his own etc. | ||
| Flip Book A4 ring-binder folder (if you have one with 4 rings this is better, but 2 rings will do.) A5 paper / A4 cut in half Pictures of an event, A5 size |
To find out information about someone by asking questions
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Interview - Prompt questions - Record sheet | 1. Have the children think about questions we can ask each other to find about each other. 2. Have the children interview each other, using the prompt questions. 3. Have them report back to the group on the child they interviewed. | |
| News This is appropriate on a Monday, or after a holiday. Paper Pen | You could have each person choose someone who is not in the group (either an adult or another child) to ask. | |
| Who thinks that? Blank flashcards Pens Paper Questions prompt sheet | Suggested questions for flashcard answers: -What do you like to watch on TV -What is your favourite food? -What is your favourite toy? -What do you like to do when you play with your friends? -What do you like to eat for breakfast? -Where would you like to go at the weekend? -Who lives at your house? -How do you get to school? etc! | |
| How are you feeling today? Feelings / emotions chart (chart containing a range of emotions). Question prompts |
Activities to develop the use of irregular plurals
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Introduction | 1. Explain to your child that you are going to talk about plurals - this is where there it more than one item. 2. Explain that for lots of items, we add an 's' on the end of the word to indicate more than one, e.g. 'one cat, two cats'. 3. Explain that some words use a different ending. Look through the picture cards together and talk about hte different words.
| To work on regular plurals first - click here for activities (add link) |
| Matching Pairs | ||
| Lotto | To make this game harder, you could say a sentence with your target word in. |
Building story telling/narrative skills using visual aids
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Story Lines - Washing line - Pegs - Selection of pictures | 1. Peg a picture on the line and ask your child to look at it - you could ask you child to choose a picture from a selection. 2. The adult says "It's story time and we are going to make up a story with the pictures" The adult starts the story by using the word on the picture. 3. Encourage your child to take the next turn by choosing a new picture and thinking how they can add to the story that has already been started. 4. Keep going until all the pictures have been used, or the story comes to a natural end. | This activity can be carried out with a small group of children You may need to recap the story at each turn, or give options if your child is finding it challenging to know what they can add. You could use a familiar story and use pictures from the book pegged to the line - you could encourage your child to retell the story with the pictures.
|
| Story Dice | This activity can be carried out with a small group of children You may need to recap the story at each turn, or give options if your child is finding it challenging to know what they can add. |
tell a simple story using a starter phrase or framework
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| On the way to school game "On my way home from school" resource: activity available to download free from www.speechteach.co.uk (see: www.speechteach.co.uk Download selected pictures and assemble the board in your chosen way. A start square and a finish square are recommended - try not to make the game board bigger than an A3 size sheet. Laminate for future use. | 1. Players each have a token and roll dice or use a spinner to move places on the board; 2. When a player lands on a picture of an animal they must say the starter phrase "On the way to school I saw..." and then add the name of that animal; 3. The activity can be extended by asking players to add to their story. Additional information could include adjectives (describing words - e.g. "big"), conjunctions (joining words - e.g. "and", "because") and verbs (action words, e.g. "run", "drop"). For example, "On my way to school today I saw a tiny mouse." | This game is ideal to work on in a small group with players of varying skill levels. Model the starter phrase and provide an example of what is expected. Players can be working at different levels whilst playing the same game e.g. one can be working at a naming level, whilst another can be working on adding an adjective to the sentence. To keep the game fun and interesting, children may be encouraged to make up a silly version of events. E.g. "On the way to school I saw a rabbit riding a bicycle". |
make predictions in simple stories and situations
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Sequencing pictures Sets of sequencing pictures; Question mark card (optional). | 1. Put the pictures in order so that you can easily show them to the child one at a time; 2. Show the child the first picture in the sequence; 3. Ask them to tell you what's happening in the picture; 4. Then ask them to imagine what might happen next. To show this visually, put a card with a large question mark on it to the right of the picture; 5. When the child has suggested a sensible thing that might happen next, show them the next card in the sequence; 6. If there are differences between what the card shows and the child's suggestion, discuss why this might be; 7. Repeat for all the cards in the sequence. | When working with sequencing pictures, always work from left to right, and top to bottom, as this mirrors the direction we use when writing English. Choose your set of pictures carefully - you need sets that show a specific event happening (such as a car driving over a broken bottle and getting a flat tyre) rather than a sequence that develops over an extended time span (e.g. a child growing up, or the changes that happen to a tree during the different seasons). |
| Story books Story books |
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