Lesson+Plan

My Favorite Place
An Educator's Reference Desk Lesson Plan


 * Submitted by:** Kari Watson
 * Email:** deoida402@yahoo.com
 * School/University/Affiliation:** University at Buffalo


 * Date:** October 20, 2001


 * Grade Level:** 3, 4
 * Subject(s):**
 * Foreign Language/English Second Language
 * Language Arts/Grammar
 * Duration:** 1 hour
 * Description:** ESL students with very limited English ability will use adjectives to describe their favorite place.
 * Goals:** Students will use English to provide and construct subject matter information in the written form.
 * Objectives:** Students will be able to write 5-7 adjectives and use them both orally and in written language to describe their favorite place.
 * Materials:**
 * magazine clippings that contain adjectives
 * pictures of various places (mountains, city, theme park, bedroom, etc.)
 * crayons
 * construction paper
 * scissors
 * rubber cement or glue
 * pencils
 * Procedure:**

[Students should have an active knowledge of approximately 10 adjectives and be able to sound words out phonetically in English. Before beginning the lesson, the teacher should go through old magazines and tear out pages that contain adjectives in bright, bold letters.]

//Activation of Prior Knowledge:// Review known adjectives by holding up pictures of places and saying, "In the (mountains/city/theme park/bedroom) it's "_____," allowing students to supply the adjectives (cold/noisy/fun/quiet).

//Lesson Focus:// Give each student a piece of construction paper and some crayons. Instruct students to draw a picture of their favorite place. While students are drawing, circulate around the room to make sure students are on task, offering assistance and encouragement.

After the drawings are completed, tell students that they will use words from magazines to describe the places that they just drew. Hand out 10 or so pages of magazine clippings to each student, along with scissors and rubber cement. Again, the teacher should circulate making sure the children are choosing appropriate and meaningful words. Have more magazine clippings on hand if students need additional words. Write the following sentence on the board: "My favorite place is ____________ ." Read the sentence out loud and then instruct the students to rewrite it at the bottom of their artwork, filling the blank in with their own adjectives. Once students are finished, they can share their artwork with their classmates and practice reading the adjectives. Model proper pronunciation as needed.

//Closure:// As a closing activity, focus on the classroom. Ask the students to suggest several adjectives that describe the classroom. Write students' responses on the board. After a list of about 5-8 adjectives has been accumulated, say and write the following sentence: "Our classroom is _______." Then call on several students to read the sentence, filling in the blank with an adjective. In closing, thank the students for sharing their artwork and ideas; let students know that you enjoyed listening to them describe their favorite place.
 * Assessment:** Observe and monitor students as they are working on their pictures and selecting adjectives. Did students select appropriate adjectives for their pictures? For the closing activity, did any students have difficulty selecting an adjective that described the classroom?