Link to the resources of this unit that talks about pets:
The resource is also available here: https://www.bilingualmarketplace.com/products/pet-theme-for-elementary-ell?variant=37285641584804
Use the pet flashcards to appeal to the visual learners. Create
activities to capture children´s attention. Present the
new vocabulary words and practice them using games. The students that finish
first can sit together and ask each other the words. You might want to send
these home to some responsible parents to play as a way to practice animal-themed vocabulary.
Hand in a flashcard to each student. Ask questions.
Teacher: Do you have a pet ?
Student: Yes, I have a bird.
Teacher: What color is your bird?
Student: It is blue and green.
Make a mind map. Draw a big circle in the middle of the board
and write the word PETS inside the circle. Have the students name all the pets they know and write them.
Then hand in the flashcards to individual students and have them place the
flashcard next to each animal.
Students can create their own mind map on their notebooks using
drawn animals or cutouts from magazines. It can also be a bigger project using
a poster board in small groups. Children then can introduce their pets to the
class.
You can graph many things. Here some ideas: What do animal do
want to have ?/ Do you have a pet ? / Do you like cats? / Do you like dogs ?
Pet body parts. Review body parts using the flashcards one at a time a writing the name of each part. I had to research each pet. Children can also do the same using cutouts from magazine.(LABELING)
Then I created a chart. Place all the flashcards on the board and write the body parts that you would to contrast.
Ask questions to complete the chart.
Teacher: What animal has wings ?
Students: a bird.
Teacher: Do hamster have wings ? Can they fly ?
Students: No, they don´t. They can´t fly.
Teacher: Which animals have tails ?
Students: rabbit, bird, dog, cat, fish, turtle, hamster, lizard.
Teacher: Does a fish have claws ?
Students: No, it doesn't.
And some hands-on worksheets.
I suggest that each group of two
or three get a pet and allow them to think and read all the body parts. The
label sheet has all the animal body words and they have to choose which words
are the ones that suit each animal, for example, only birds have wings and cats
have fur but not the bird. They will have to analyze the vocabulary and pick
the right body parts and label their pet. Then have them present their pet to
the class.
Now, let's introduce how to indicate position by using prepositions of place. Put the animal locations on the board. Ask the students where
the pets live. Give individual students
the animal cutouts to place in the corresponding location. Then have them talk
about their pet location.
Student: My bird is on the tree. ( I also included a bird cage.)
Write the prepositions.
I came up with this resource that can be a book or flashcards to emphasize prepositions.
Pets and adjectives. Review the describing function of the adjective word. Students will talk about the pysical appearance of the animals.
Place the fat cat on the board.
Teacher: What is this ?
Students: a cat ( Teacher writes the word CAT)
Teacher: What color is the cat ?
Students: orange ( Teacher writes the word orange)
Teacher: Is he happy or sad ?
Students: happy ( Teacher writes the word happy)
Teacher: Is he fat or thin ? (Use your hands to show fat and
thin)
Students: fat. ( Teacher writes the word fat)
Teacher: It is an orange cat. (Students repeat as you point to the words in the board).
Continue with: It is a happy cat, It is a fat cat.
Use more animal cutouts to practice adjectives on the board. You
can also give out a pet to each student and have them create their mind map and
sentences to present to the class.
As I suggested on my last blog post about adjectives (http://eflelementaryresources.blogspot.com/2015/10/adjectives-for-elementary-ell.html) ,sort the pet using adjectives words.
I also made this craft stick sorting on that blog post, and added up with more pets.
Made some bones ! I printed onto colored paper so it´s easier to sort the color word, the pets and the action verbs.
Grab one from each pile and place them on the board. Have the
students make up a sentence. Then hand in three bones to each student so they
can make a sentence on their own.
Brainstorm with students the way the pets move. Place the cards as they mention the animal action verbs. Next, have students make a list on their notebooks of 9 pet action verbs writing the noun and the action verb, as seen on the cards on the board. This the complete list for you.Take the cards away and put them in a bag. Play Bingo ! Place the cards again on the board as you announce them.
With the flashcards and the cutouts make a chart on the board. Have students come up and complete it using the resources or writing the word. They can even make one on their notebooks.
I had these clip art and came up with the Guess Who? Game. You might have seen in the stores. It is usually played with two players but you can add some more. The game is actually played with 24 cards. You can adapt the game according to your group. I made big cards for the board and small ones for the groups.
I suggest you play on the board first with the whole class. Place all the cards on the board and a number on each one.
Students: Number 18.
Continue with more examples.
Then, pick a card and don´t tell the class. They have to ask questions in order to know
which card you picked.
Students: Is it a cat ?
Teacher: NO!
Students: Is the animal green ?
Teacher: YES !
Students: Is the animal big or small ?
Teacher: It is small.
Students: Who has the animal, a boy or a girl ?
Teacher: a boy.
Students: It is number 31 !
Teacher: YES !
After you have modeled with the class, have them play in groups with fewer cards. They can write a number grid or give instructions on how you would like to play.
Plurals. I created an S wand for the birthday
theme and now I can use it again. Place the plural card on the board.
Teacher: What are they ?
Students: They are cats.Teacher writes the word cat and places the S wand to make it plural. Tell the students that you add the S to make it plural. Next, continue with the other cards. Finally place fish and mouse. Tell them about these irregular plural which are made different.
There are more cards to work on.
Pets and Colors.
Use the small flashcards to ask the questions.
For Spelling, I made the letters the size of a 5x5 cm puncher so you don´t have to cut. I recycled some old toilet paper tubes and glue some colored paper that I had left over. Instead of having lots of toilet paper tube I placed 3 letters on each tube so you just have to turn the tube to put the letter. If you want the file, please ask me ( ei98srl@gmail.com)
Found these Scrabble kind of clip art and made a scrabble printable. Each child should get one and make their own board and see how many points the students make, there should be a winner. I suggest you explain the rules before asking them to make the board on their notebooks or construction paper.
