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DIDACTIC UNIT FOR 6TH LEVEL OF PRIMARY EDUCATION. PALE 2009. CPR CORIA.

Nuria Matías Paíno

Mercedes Olivenza Medina

Salomé Torres García

Inmaculada Saralegui Valero

María José Martín Serrano

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DIDACTIC UNIT: WE TRAVEL TO IRELAND

PUPILS: A group of 20 pupils in the second year of the third cycle of Primary Education.

TIMING: 7 lessons which are flexible depending on our pupils’ interest and motivation.

KEY COMPETENCES:

All these objectives will work on the following basic skills:

• Linguistic and communicative competence • Mathematical competence • Knowledge and interaction with the world around us • ICT skills • Social and civic competence • Cultural and artistic competence • Learning to learn competence

DIDACTIC OBJECTIVES:

The didactic objectives of this unit are:

• Situate Ireland in the map. • Revise and enlarge vocabulary related to the city and means of transport. • Learn how to give and follow instructions to find a specific place. • Produce a brief, simple written text about a city or a vehicle. • Listen to a song for both specific and general meaning. • Learn cultural aspects and traditions from another country. • Get to know Irish culture through new technologies.

CONTENTS:

1. Concepts a. Vocabulary: Vocabulary related to the city and it location in the map, also

means of transport. b. Grammar: - Ask for directions and give instructions: How can I go to…?

turn left/ right, straight ahead. - The use of the verb TO BE, GO, TAKE. - The use of the prepositions by and on.

c. Pronunciation. Different sounds in the song.

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2. Procedures: Listening to texts, a song. Completing exercises in pairs. Doing movements to reinforce meaning. Doing a mural in groups. Reading texts about a city. Using the computer to search information about different topics.

3. Attitudes: Appreciating the capacity to use the foreign language to communicate with others. Recognizing the importance of accuracy over fluency. Participating and cooperating in pair and whole class work using social interaction formulae. Respecting the rules of classroom activities and games.

MATERIALS

Classroom materials. Maps of Europe and the United Kingdom with Ireland. Vocabulary flashcards (means of transport, main building in the city, flags). Worksheets of grammar activities. Photocopies for extension and reinforcement activities. Internet connection. Digital board.

ACTIVITIES

Session 1: WHERE IS IRELAND?

This session will be carried out in the computer room.

a) Cardinal points are introduced to talk about location. In order to reinforce cardinal points the teacher could use a familiar map, the one of Spain, for instance, to ask pupils where Extremadura is placed.

b) Using the whiteboard the teacher has a map of Europe to help pupils to find The British Islands.

c) Using the map in the blog (http://www.rumboadublin.blogspot.com), the teacher explains important concepts as island, as well as the difference between United Kingdom and England, teaching that Ireland is a completely separate country.

d) Pupils search through the Internet to find the flags of the British Islands.

e) As a final activity students receive a map of these islands to situate its capitals on it

and draw the flags next to the countries.

Session 2: HOW DO WE TRAVEL TO DUBLIN?

a) For this session the teacher uses a map of Europe and vocabulary flashcards with pictures of the mains of transport he/she wants his/ her pupils to learn.

i) Firstly pupils will name those means that they can remember from previous years and then the teacher introduces the new ones.

ii) Secondly the teacher presents the written form and pupils in turn try to match the names with the pictures.

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b) After that the teacher says a sentence to explain how to travel from the school to Madrid and pupils try to invent new ones. The prepositions by and on are introduced and used through this exercise.

For instance: First, I travel to Madrid by train. Second, I take the plane to Dublin.

c) Individually pupils think of another destiny looking at the map of Europe and say out loud how to go there.

d) To finish this session pupils are given a worksheet to practice the new contents.

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Write.

How do you travel from Coria to Dublin?

- First I …………………………………………………………………..

- Second ………………………………………………………………….

- Third …………………………………………………………………....

Answer the questions:

- How do you go to Trinity College?

- How do you go to Saint Patrick´s Cathedral?

- How do you go to Connolly Station?

- How do you go to the Dublin Castle?

- How do you go to the National Museum?

Session 3: WE ARE IN DUBLIN!

In order to carry out this session pupils and teacher will go to the computer room.

a) The teacher reads a text (which is also in the blog) with the title: Let’s find out about Dublin. Once pupils listen to the teacher they read the text on their own and work on the vocabulary in groups. After that, the teacher asks the pupils questions about the text orally.

“Ireland is a large island located on North West Europe. It is separated from

Britain by the Irish Sea. To the north, west and south is the Atlantic Ocean.

The capital of the Republic is Dublin and it is the largest city in the country,

with 915,115 inhabitants. Dublin is located on the east coast of Ireland.

The Liffey is the main river in the city, and there are a lot of bridges on it.

English is the spoken language in Ireland. Irish, or Gaelic is the original

native language of Ireland.

The Euro is the only currency officially recognised in the Republic of

Ireland.”

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b) Then, the teacher uses the blog (http://www.rumboadublin.blogspot.com) to introduce pictures of the main buildings in the text (church, post office, cathedral, Trinity College, park, bridge, bank, jail and museum). The teacher pronounces the names out loud and then pupils repeat and try to memorize them.

c) Looking at a map in their computers pupils try to locate specific places individually also they receive a map in paper and situate the places they have studied previously and write the names.

d) As a TPR activity pupils stand up and the teacher gives directions to revise vocabulary: Turn right, turn left and go straight on, cross the park… Pupils walk around the class according to what the teacher says. We use a wall mural to help pupils to understand.

e) To practice directions they come back to the computers, use the map and listen to the teacher who explains how to give instructions.

How can we go to the Trinity College?

As homework, pupils read the text again to answer the questions in the written form.

Session 4: TRAVELLING AROUND DUBLIN:

This session is divided in two parts:

a) Firstly, pupils work individually completing exercises about what they have studied in this unit.

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1. Write the names: Trinity College, Bridge, Christ Cathedral, Post Office,

Bank and Dublin Castle

2. Scramble about means of transports and buildings:

1.- SUB ___________________________

2.- RTMA CAR ___________________________

3.- GEBRID ___________________________

4.- RTAIN ___________________________

5.- FFICEO SPOT ___________________________

6.- NEPLA ____________________________

7.- ALCATEHDR ____________________________

3. Complete using by and on:

• I go to Art Museum __________ bus. • We go to Trinity College ________ foot. • She goes to the Christ Cathedral ______ car.

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b) In the second part of the session, students work in groups of 4 or 5 and make a mural to decorate the walls. In the murals pupils must write a sentence giving instructions to go from the place they decide to another, also print images or draw pictures related to Dublin.

(While they are working, The Dubliners can be played so they can get to know another aspect from the Irish culture).

Session 5: THE DUBLINERS:

a) To start, the teacher plays a typical CD of Irish music, firstly pupils listen to the song; Mollie Mallone and then the one called Dirty Old Town and talk about them briefly.

b) During the rest of the class, pupils can finish the murals in groups.

Session 6: OUR BLOG:

For this session pupils and teacher must go to the computer room.

a) Using the blog (http://www.rumboadublin.blogspot.com), the teacher asks pupils to read different contents in the blog, all related to Dublin. Some of them are read out loud by the teacher to practice listening and pronunciation.

b) Pupils can also write things about Dublin to be included in the blog. They send these comments to the teacher so that he/she can upload them to the blog.

c) The teacher uses the blog to show different signs that you can find in an English-spoken country.

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Session 7: EVALUATION AND PORTFOLIO SESSION:

a) In this session pupils must complete a test in order to check their knowledge. This test has four parts: listening, speaking, reading and writing.

1. Dictation: We are in Dublin. I’m not Irish. I’m not from Ireland. I travel to Ireland by

plane from Madrid. Dublin is a very nice city. People are very polite. The

weather is cloudy, windy, rainy and very wet. You can Know the city

travelling by lua (it´s a tramcar).

2.- Choose the correct option:

• Dublin is: 1. in the South of Ireland. 2. in the North of Ireland. 3. in the West of Ireland. 4. in the East of Ireland.

• _____________ and _________________ are typical buildings of Dublin. 1. Tower of London and Buckinham Palace. 2. Trinity College and Saint Paul´s Cathedral. 3. Eifel Tower and Palais de Versailles.

• The Dublin´s river is: 1. Rhin. 2. Sena. 3. Thames. 4. Liffey.

• The Trinity is: 1. A Cathedral. 2. A Bridge. 3. A Tower. 4. A College.

• Dublin is the capital of: 1. England. 2. Scotland. 3. Wales. 4. Ireland.

2.- Read the dictation.

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3.- Answer the following questions:

• Where are you? ___________________________________________

• Are you English? __________________________________________

• Do you live in Dublin? ______________________________________

• How do you travel to Dublin from Madrid? _____________________

• What´s the weather like in Ireland? _________________________

• What´s the lua? ___________________________________________

• How are Irish people? _______________________________________

5. Choose a topic and talk about it:

1.- Speak about Dublin.

2.- Speak about your city.

b) Also, they must complete the portfolio, so they can be aware of their own capabilities.

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UNIT: WE TRAVEL TO UNIT: WE TRAVEL TO UNIT: WE TRAVEL TO UNIT: WE TRAVEL TO IRELANDIRELANDIRELANDIRELAND

I CAN

AAAA B C B C B C B C

Identify a conversation Identify a conversation Identify a conversation Identify a conversation about means of transport and direabout means of transport and direabout means of transport and direabout means of transport and directionsctionsctionsctions::::

MeMeMeMe

The teacherThe teacherThe teacherThe teacher

Ask and gAsk and gAsk and gAsk and give directionsive directionsive directionsive directions

MeMeMeMe

The teacherThe teacherThe teacherThe teacher

Read a text about how to go to DublinRead a text about how to go to DublinRead a text about how to go to DublinRead a text about how to go to Dublin

MeMeMeMe

The The The The teacherteacherteacherteacher

Write about how I travel and about directionsWrite about how I travel and about directionsWrite about how I travel and about directionsWrite about how I travel and about directions

MeMeMeMe

The teacherThe teacherThe teacherThe teacher

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DIDACTIC MATERIALS IN THE CLASSROOM:

In order to make pupils conscious about another culture it is really useful to show them realia from the foreign country. For this reason, pupils can enjoy The English Corner in the classroom where they can find different objects which come from Ireland.

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ANEXES

Fast finishers and reinforcements’ activities:

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