“Monkey & Box Prepositions: Fun, Hands-On Activities for ELLs”

 This resource (Monkey & Box Prepositions — hands-on ESL/ELL activities and worksheets to teach prepositions of place with fun games, puzzles, writing and partner practice)  is included in the Zoo Animals for EFL. Click here:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Zoo-Animals-Flashcards-for- EFL-3611842

Learning prepositions of place is essential for your learners because it helps them develop key communication skills and a deeper understanding of how objects relate to each other in space. This **Monkey & Box Prepositions** resource uses fun hands-on activities, games, puzzles and worksheets to help elementary ELL students understand where things are (e.g., on, in, under, next to). 

Prepositions Flashcard Drill

Young learners will use the flashcards with prepositions pictures to describe where animals are. Prepositions help students form complete sentences and improve their fluency. They will write yes/no questions for each flashcard (e.g., "Is the monkey on the box?"). After writing, students can ask those questions to a partner, strengthening their ability to use prepositions in spoken language.

Students must observe the image carefully to form the puzzle sentence with the cards, improving their visual literacy and understanding of spatial relationships.  Students match the image to the correct puzzle sentence: “The monkey is in the box.”

Start the fun Copycat Drawing & Writing Activity (multi-sensory task (draw + write) . Students draw the image from a small card and write the corresponding sentence. This is multi-sensory learning (seeing, drawing, writing) to boost recall.

Die + Placement Game

Activities like placing objects in a specific location improve both language and spatial thinking. Students must connect the preposition word to positioning the monkey and the box in that correct location, after rolling the die included in the resource. Students then describe the sentence using the cutouts: “The monkey is in front of thebox!”

Beginners can focus on picture recognition; advanced learners can write full sentences .

Worksheets Prepositions

Worksheets give students multiple opportunities to practice prepositions in different contexts. Students can work at their own pace, allowing for differentiation based on ability levels. Just choose the correct one for your students.

The visual prepositions poster introduces students to key location words using simple, kid-friendly monkey illustrations. Each monkey demonstrates a different preposition—between, in, behind, in front of, on, under, and next to—making it easy for young learners to understand spatial relationships at a glance. It’s perfect for introducing the vocabulary, displaying in the classroom, or using as a quick reference during hands-on activities.

This Read and Color worksheet helps students practice prepositions of place using simple sentences and colored monkeys. Children read each sentence, identify the correct preposition (in front of, behind, on, next to, under), and color each monkey accordingly. It’s a fun way to reinforce reading comprehension.

Children read each sentence—such as behind the red box, between the yellow boxes, or in the pink box—and then match it to the correct picture.

Each picture shows the monkey in a different location, and learners fill in the missing preposition to answer “Where is the monkey?”

Worksheets provide a way for teachers to assess individual understanding.  By reading sentences and matching them to pictures, students improve comprehension.

Worksheets will keep students engaged while deepening their understanding of prepositions.

This labeling worksheet is a great way to reinforce body-part vocabulary while keeping the focus on the fun monkey theme. Students follow the arrows and label each part of the monkey’s body.

Matching mats help students recognize and decode words, improving their sight word recognition. Just print and cut.

Students will practice sentence structure in context, by saying where they landed on the board game.

If students write sentences in the flip book, they practice sentence formation and grammar. It’s a tactile activity, which helps kinesthetic learners absorb information better.

This resource has more to check, go to this blog post:

 https://eflelementaryresources.blogspot.com/2024/04/zoo-animals-move-flashcards.html

This resource is also available separately or in a bundle, here: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Prepositions-Bundle-Hands-On-ESL-Activities-for-Elementary-ELLs-13387265

 

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