I am going to be teaching at New Times School.
Kindergarten.
Here are some quick photos I took last year of a New Times Kindergarten classroom.
Like honestly, could I be any luckier?
I get to do what I love with the most gorgeous tiny faces. And their hearts are hungry to learn!
So here's my ultimate question. How am I going to teach 50 young students who are learning English? We have a chalkboard. We have pencils. We have paper. We have spirit.
I've come up with a list of lesson ideas to show that you can effectively teach English language learners with limited supplies. All materials will be traveling with me.
1. Math Facts Tag
What you need: Popsicle sticks, pencil
Preparation: The first Popsicle stick will be the "starter stick." On the left side of the stick draw a star to indicate this is the beginning of the game. On the right side, write an unfinished math equation. For example, "2+2." On the next stick you will write the answer to this equation on the left side. For example, "4." On the right side, write a new equation. Each stick that follows must have the answer to the previous stick's equation on its left side. This creates a "train."
How it Works: Pass out Popsicle sticks to all the children. The student with the "starter stick" begins by reading out loud "Two plus two is....." and the student who has "4" on their stick will say... "Two plus two is four." Then they will read the new equation on the right side of their stick and the train continues until all the Popsicle sticks have been used and all the children have solved a math problem.
Bonus! This game can be played by sitting in your seats and reciting the train out loud. It could also be played outside by having children tag each other when their stick is called. This game can also be used to teach the ABCs. Have the starter stick read "A is for apple." The next student to speak should be holding the "B is banana stick."
Benefits: Reteaches math concepts, students practice their listening skills, students learn about sequence.
2. Pictionary with English vocabulary
What you need: Chalk, paper scraps
Preparation: On scraps of paper write grade-appropriate vocabulary words. This works best for K-2 graders learning English. Things to write on the scraps could be: dog, house, school, flag, pencil, garden, water, bedtime, moon, cow, airplane, car, light, book, etc. Fold up the pieces of paper and put them in a hat/bowl/jar/box/your hand.
How it works: Each child will get a chance to pull a piece of paper. They will read their word to themselves and share it with the teacher. Then they will draw the word on the chalkboard. Students will raise their hands to guess what word the student is drawing. When it has been discovered, the teacher writes the word on the right side of the board. Keep a running list of these vocab words so students can write them all down after the activity has ended.
Bonus! At the end of the game, if there are still pictures drawn all over the chalkboard, have students create a story using those words. For example, if there are pictures of a banana, a house, a monkey, and the sun---encourage students to raise their hand to tell you a story using the images.
Benefits: Reteaches English vocabulary, reading instruction, spelling & writing.
3. Alphabet/Number Race
What you need: Post-Its, pencil
Preparation: One each Post-It, write a large letter A-Z. If you have more than 26 students, begin write numbers on the Post-Its. For example, if you have 35 students, you will need A-Z and 1-9.
How It Works: Pass out the Post-Its to your students (don't pass the letters out in alphabet order, scramble them up!) You can either ask them to hold the Post-It in their hands for friends to see our maybe it will stick to the front of their T-shirts. Outside, have the students spread out. The student who got letter A will stand behind the teacher. All the other students will unscramble themselves, placing themselves in alphabetical order and numerical order. When they believe they are done, have them recite their letters down the line to check.
Bonus! Time the students to see how quickly they can complete the task. Try to improve that time each round. Offer a reward such as playing a game of tag or Duck, Duck, Goose afterwards before going back to the classroom.
Benefits: Sequence, team building, cooperation, listening/speaking skills, strengthens memory
4. Fraction Pizzas
* You may need to explain to students what a pizza is before continuing. :)
What you need: Colored construction paper, scissors, pencil
Preparation: Cut all the construction paper pieces into equally sized large circles. Cut the red pizzas into halves. Cut the green pizzas into quarters. Cut the blue pizzas into eighths. Write the fraction on each slice.
How It Works: Explain to the students its time to have a pizza party! The object of the game is for students to make whole pizzas. Each students gets a few of the cut slices. Make sure they get a variety of slices. They walk around the room with classmates and try to make one whole pizza. They will realize that 1/4 is half of 1/2, etc. Write the expressions of each whole piece on the board. For example: 1/2 + 1/4 + 2/8 = 1 whole
Bonus! As an extension let students create their own pizzas. With scraps of construction paper students can put mushrooms, peppers, cheese on their pizzas. This is a nice way to introduce different foods from around the world.
Benefits: Fraction work, learning about Part/Whole relationships, collaboration, activity-based
5. Dice Games
Invest in multiple sets of dice or decks of cards and you will have infinite opportunities to play math games. You can teach all operations, patterns and probability.
6. Small Group Dry-Erase Boards
Invest in 5 or 6 dry erase boards and Expo markers. While another teacher is teaching a lesson to the class, pull groups of students outside to work with you in a small group setting. You can use the dry erase boards in lots of ways. To teach handwriting, sight words, math facts, cursive, number writing, etc. Have students work alone or in groups to solve math problems. Have them work together to write sentences and then use all the group's sentences to write a story together. Get creative. Children will LOVE the privilege of using the boards and absorb the lesson like a sponge.
7. I Spy a Sight Word
What you need: Index cards, tape, stick/ruler
Prepartion: On the index cards write sight words appropriate for the grade level. For example, here is a list of Kindergarten sight words: I, go, see, what, me, he, she, we, they, who, me, am, a, an, any, because, but, also. Examples of third grade sight words: around, before, beneath, afterwards, etc. Place the index cards all the over the room. Tape them to desks, the floor, the chalkboard, upper corners, window, cleaning, even a student or your own forehead!
How It Works: The teacher will say "I spy with my little eye......"me!" The students will silently point to the index card that reads "me." The teacher will then point to it with the stick and say, "Yes! You found ME. M - E spells me." And they will recite it together, "Me!" And you continue. The students will be excited to find the words in hidden places.
Bonus! Challenge them by using sight words for the next grade level.
Benefits: Reading sight words, memory, spelling, recitation, activity-based, listening skills
8. My Little Editors
What you need: chalk, paper, pencils
Preparation: On the board each morning write a short story. Write a story about your classmates, the school, a book they read the day before, etc. Grab their attention. BUT. Fill your story with incorrect spelling, grammar and punctuation.
How It Works: Students will rewrite the story at their seats correctly. They will fix the errors by being "editors."
Benefits: Grammar, punctuation, spelling, reading, writing skills
9. Writing in the Dirt Spelling Bee!
What you need: a stick or fingers!
Preparation: None
How it Works: Find a sandy patch of ground. Have students write vocab, spelling or sight words. Obviously, this can be done at the chalkboard or with paper/pencil but sometimes students need a change of scenery or like trying something new. Kids love to get dirty anyways.
Benefits: Spelling, memory, reinforce concepts, writing
10. What's For Lunch? Food chain Game
* This lesson is for 4th grade and up. It is used in science class to teach food webs, survival, predator/prey, competition, etc.
What you need: Index cards, pencil
Preparation: One the index write the names of organisms. Make sure you have a wide variety of carnivores, omnivores, herbivores and decomposers. For example, write "salmon," "mushroom," "ant," "lion."
How It Works: Students mingle around the room with their index cards. When the teacher yells "What's for lunch!" they pair up with someone closest to them. Then they must decide who is the predator and who is the prey in their encounter. The prey sits down because he was eaten or killed. The predator continues. All of the students standing at the end of the game should have deadly predators such as tiger, lion, alligator, polar bear, rhino, etc. because no one could kill them--they are at the top of the food chain.
Bonus! Talk about where the students think humans belong on the food chain. This is a debate, welcome all ideas. Talk about how a human can shoot a lion, for example, but is not stronger or fiercer than a lion. So are humans are the top of the food chain????
Benefits: reteach science vocabulary, introduce new concepts, explore food chain interactively
Other quick activity ideas:
Acrostic poems
Rhyming games
Flash cards
Dictionary work
Math Tic Tac Toe
Vocabulary Hang Man
Write a timeline
Synonym/Antonym games
5 Finger Retell (first, then, next, last, author's message)
Learn about both countries flag (colors, meaning) draw/color/paint them...make a garland for the room
Write a letter thanking the Principal
Draw fractions
Meausure things around the school
Math puzzles
Write word problems for a friend
Convert Ugandan shillings into US dollars
Face paint to make characters for a play, retelling a story read in class
Sing songs, write songs pertaining to a lesson
Talk about diversity
Learn about snow :)
Paint handprints on giant paper for classroom with students names inside them
Archaeological dig for artifacts/fossils
Venn Diagram of Uganda vs. America
Classroom Read Alouds
Counting our friends
Make carbon copies of random objects (example, prints of leaves) with paint or pencil rubbings
Convert Celsius to Farenheit
Metric system conversions
Meausure volume with water
Compare river water to bottled water
DANCE & SING
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