Basic Intermediate Advanced
Lesson Plan:
Using Past Tense in Friendship Describing
Teacher: Xuan Hong
Business/Materials Lesson Objectives
- a length of string or yarn
- Students will identify the characteristics of healthy
friendships and explore strategies for building and maintaining
positive relationships.
- Students will use past tense to demonstrate the
- a model scrapbook friendship and things in the past.
Warm-up and Objective Discussion
Friendship Web:
- Students should first sit in a circle. Give a length of string or yarn to every pupil.
- Have one student begin by expressing something they value about a friend or a satisfying
interaction they've had with a friend. Students will use the simple past tense, this is the
grammar they learned in the previous lesson.
- Following their sharing, the student in the circle tosses the ball of yarn to a different student
who shares something similar while holding onto one end of the string.
- Continue until all of the students have taken a turn and a web connecting them is formed by
the yarn.
- This exercise establishes a pleasant atmosphere for talking about the issue and serves to
emphasize how friendships are intertwined, and is an opportunity for students to practice
speaking in the past tense, a tense they have already learned
Objective Discussion:
- Start a conversation with the children about what they noticed during the warm-up exercise
after it is over. Encourage them to consider how each person's relationship contributed to the
greater network, signifying the ties that bind friendships together.
- After that, move on to talking about the qualities of wholesome friendships. Invite students to
discuss what qualities - such as communication, empathy, trust, and respect - they think define
a good friend. Encourage deeper comprehension and involvement by illuminating these
qualities with prompts and examples.
- During this process, introduce vocabulary on the topic of friendship, as well as promote
students to use past and present perfect tenses to describe actions that happened in the past or
activities that continue to happen in present.
- Lastly, discuss techniques for creating and preserving wholesome relationships, like setting
boundaries, resolving conflicts, active listening, and expressing gratitude. Students should be
prompted to consider how they might use these techniques in their own friendships.
Instruct and Model R W L S
Teacher Talk:
- Alright class, today we're diving into the wonderful world of friendship! Now, let's think about what
makes a friendship truly special. Have you ever had a friend who was always there for you, through
thick and thin? Someone you could trust and rely on? That's what we're going to explore today. First,
think about the best friend you have ever met in your life, think about where you met that person, and
what memorable memories you have. Well, one thing to note is what tense will you use when you
recall somethings?
- Personal Story: You know, when I was your age, I had this friend named Sarah. We did everything
together! We shared our dreams, laughed at silly jokes, and supported each other through tough times.
It was such a special bond, and it taught me a lot about what it means to be a good friend. These are
things we used to do together, everything happened in the past.
- So next, can anyone tell me about our friendship? I'm very curious
Making it "Sticky" (MUD):
We're going to discuss what makes friendships strong, understand those qualities, and then practice
them ourselves.
I use "model, infer, and elaborate" . I talked about my friendship first, using Past Tense, so I make
them to produce some sentence in this tense by themself, then elaborate the rules
Modeling:
First, I'd teach the characteristics of healthy friendships, just like in the previous scenario. Then, when
it comes to incorporating past tense, I'd model sentences using past tense to talk about past
experiences with friends. For example, "Yesterday, my friend and I played soccer together," or "Last
summer, we went on a camping trip and had so much fun."
Elaborating:
Throughout the lesson, I'd ask questions to reinforce understanding of both friendship qualities and
past tense usage. For instance, "Can anyone tell me why using past tense is important when talking
about past events?" or "How does using past tense change the meaning of a sentence?"
Guided Practice R W L S
Past Tense Friendship Interviews:
- Pair students up and assign each pair to interview each other about a memorable friendship
experience using past tense.
- Teacher provides a list of prompting questions (e.g., "Can you tell me about a time when you and
your friend had a disagreement?") to guide their conversations.
- Students take turns interviewing and responding, practicing their past tense usage.
- Teachers go around and ask students about the partner' answer and correct the sentences they give.
Independent Practice R W L S
Friendship Reflection Writing:
- Have students write a reflective essay or journal entry about a significant friendship in their lives.
- Encourage them to use past tense to describe key events, challenges, and memorable moments they
shared with their friend.
- Provide sentence starters or prompts to guide their writing if needed (in class)
Assessment R W L S
Assessment Activity: Friendship Memory Scrapbook
Instructions:
- Students will reflect a friendship that was meaningful to them in a scrapbook by writing the
story and draw basic picture. They can also include photographs, mementos,.... This could be
a friendship from childhood, a recent friendship, or even a fictional friendship from literature
or media.
- For each memory included in the scrapbook, students will write a short narrative in the past
tense, describing the event or moment. They should focus on using appropriate past tense
verbs to demonstrate their understanding of Past Tense
- Alongside each memory, students will identify and discuss the characteristics of a healthy
friendship that were evident in that particular moment. Encourage students to include a variety
of memories that showcase different aspects of friendship, such as fun activities, meaningful
conversations, moments of support, etc.
- Once the scrapbooks are complete, students will have the opportunity to share them with their
classmates in small groups or during a class presentation. Peers and the teacher will provide
feedback on the use of past tense, the depth of reflection on friendship characteristics, and the
overall creativity and presentation of the scrapbook.
Authenticity:
- This assessment encourages students to reflect on real-life experiences of friendship and apply their
understanding of healthy relationships and past tense language usage.
- The assessment also fosters personal connection and relevance, making the learning experience
more meaningful.
- Additionally, the scrapbook format provides a creative outlet for students to express themselves
visually and linguistically.
