Up and Away - National Council for Curriculum and Assessment

190
Names and countries
Class organisation
Whole class.
Theme
Myself.
Aims
Practise saying names.
Ascertain initial impression of
pupils’ word recognition and
reading skills.
Materials needed
Photocopy the sheet of blank
flash cards on page 191 two
times.
Preparation
Write pupils’ names on one
sheet of cards and their
countries on the other. Include
your own details. Cut out the
cards.
Notes
Pupils may not know the
English names of their
countries. Be prepared to spend
some extra time on the
pronunciation of the countries
at this stage of the class*.
This is an excellent activity for
the first class.
In the matching activity ask
pupils to try and read the
names and countries of their
classmates. This helps you assess
their reading skills.
Remind the pupils to say ‘My
name is ________’ and ‘I am
from ________’ before turning
over the cards, as this is the
language focus of the class.
Stage 1 – Speaking
Focus Time
40 minutes.
Type of activity
Chain activity.
Matching activity.
Approach
1. Spread out the first-name flash cards on a table, say, “My
name is ______” and remove the flash card with your name
on it. Invite pupils to do the same.
2. Start a chain around the class, ‘My name is ______. What is
your name?’ As each pupil gives his/her name, he/she takes
the flash card from the table. Repeat two or three times.
3. *Repeat the above process with the country flash cards,
practising the language ‘I am from ______. Where are you
from?’
4. Shuffle the two sets of cards and spread them out. The
chain is now, ‘My name is ______. I am from ________’ with
the pupils taking their cards as they say the sentences.
5. Indicate different pupils, saying their names. If you can’t
remember, ask, “What is your name?” Invite pupils to do
the same. Repeat this process with countries.
Matching activity
1. Spread out the first-name cards in one area of the table and
the country cards in another. Both sets are face down.
2. Say, “My name is ______” and choose a card from the
appropriate group on the table. If the card doesn’t have
your name on it, return it to the same place face down. The
turn passes to the next pupil. If the card has your name, say
“I am from ______” and try to find ‘your’ country card in the
other group. The winner is the first person to find their
matching information.
Extension
Pupils find this an enjoyable activity and, for language beginners,
it is an ideal way to practise sentence structures such as:
‘His name is ________. He is from ________’.
‘My sister’s name is ________. She is from ________’.
‘I am from ________. I speak ________’. (language)
‘My name is ________. I like ________’. (food, sport, seasons,
clothes, etc.)