Let's get 'em talking about their day!
At this point in the curriculum, students are going to pivot from learning about all things school (Units 1-3). After these school units, students should feel much more comfortable and confident if they are in a full immersion school environment. Unit 4 moves students along to days, weather, and time. ***** Covid-19 Update: This middle and high school newcomer unit has been completely updated to work with the changing needs of the 2020 classroom. You can easily move through different styles of teaching, whether that be in the classroom, in a hybrid model, or in a totally online distance learning fashion. The digital resources are compatible with Google Classroom.
This unit takes 3.5 to 4 weeks to teach. I teach it in nine or ten 80 minute block periods. It reviews the simple present tense, using be-verbs in positive and negative sentences, creating questions using be-verbs, do & does, and has & have. It introduces how to read an analog clock, prepositions “at,” “on,” and “in,” the present progressive tense, and contractions using subject pronouns and be-verbs. The summative test includes vocabulary and grammar.
I used to not teach how to read an analog clock. I figured high schoolers knew how to do this. You are probably laughing at me because I was so wrong! Even if there aren’t analog clocks in your school building, people will still need to read them at the doctor’s office, auto shop, and all over town. I think it’s important for students to learn.
Also in this unit, we start learning prepositions. (Can I get an amen?) I love when students begin learning prepositions and this unit is PERFECT for it because students need to learn how to communicate times and days correctly in sentences. Prepositions will continue to be taught in most upcoming units until hopefully our students have a good handle on them.
Additionally in this unit, students will have a writing assignment where they need to write a paragraph. I love getting these first writing assignments because I’m always over the moon impressed. Are they perfect? NO! But many times they surpass my expectations. If your students have been reading in their free time and are in a total immersion environment, they have already picked up so much more than has been explicitly taught in your ESL class. This will be obvious once they begin using their creative juices to write for you. Please note that I only allow students to use Google Translate for individual words when creating their masterpieces.
This unit is loaded with speaking and listening games and activities as well. There are six different ones in all. Many are partner activities. One is “I Have, Who has.” There is also a game that can be played like slap jack.
In addition to this unit, my students have just about mastered short alphabetical sounds. I use Words Their Way to teach this. Students are also reading this library on their own. I have students write in a log each time they read, so I am aware of what they are comprehending. I do allow them to use Google Translate to write their logs. We are also continuing to read stories in Unit 1 of Edge Fundamentals. As stated in my previous unit’s blog, we read each story several times and work on the reading skill of visualization in this unit. Students draw pictures to demonstrate their reading comprehension as suggested in the textbook.
Please see my TPT store here to access this unit. I have listed the specific words and other phrases learned in this unit. Happy teaching! If you ever have feedback, please send it my way. I would love to hear from you.