Handa´s Surprise
Activities To Prepare children for reading
1.The children of our class learn the vocabulary of the fruits.
Materials of this activity are the fruit flashcards, and some coloured flashcards.
We have to see with the class all of the fruits flashcards, and teach them their names and the correct pronunciation… After, to check that they have learned we try to repeat the same flashcards with them. For example, a banana, an apple, an orange, a pineapple...
For example, yellow, orange, brown, green, black, white...
The teacher takes the fruits again and she/he asks to the class: What is this? It is a apple, it is a banana, it is an orange.
The teacher asks: What colour is it? When they answer correctly, they have to make a sentence with the object and the colour. For example: Banana is yellow and apple is green.
The principal aims of this activity are to learn more vocabulary and to improve making correct sentences. Also, it could be a help remember the story Handa when we read.
3. Animals
The children of our class learn the vocabulary of something, the animals. The materials of this activity are animal’s flashcards and animal toys.
We have to see with the class all the animals’ flashcards, and teach them their names, the correct pronunciation… After, to check that they have learned we try to repeat the same flashcards with them. For example, a monkey, an elephant, a zebra, a tiger...
The teacher takes the animals again and she/he asks to the class: what animals is this? Is it a monkey, is it an elephant and is it a zebra ...
Children free play with animals toys and the teacher ask each child: What is your favourite animal? My favourite animal es an elephant, and children draw animal in teir notebook. Now ..
5. Best Friend
What is your favourite or best friend? My friend is.., and draws her friend in their notebook too.
The principal aims of this activity are to learn more vocabulary and to improve making correct sentences. Also, this could help remember the story Handa when they read.
6. I went to the zoo and saw ...
Begin the game by modelling the example sentence: “I went to the zoo and saw a tall giraffe”. The first pupil repeats the model sentence and adds the name of another animal (and also, he/she have to add one adjective to the word).
The game is continued around the classroom with each pupil, in turn, repeating what has been said before and adding a new word.
This game is very good for increasing their short term memory and putting into practice lexical sets. This game is open to possible adaptations (changing the topic, words following the alphabet...).
7. Colour call
This is a quick reaction game. It is especially good with children, who get restless and need a release for their energy from time to time.
The players stand in a circle. One player has a paper ball. He throws it to another player in the circle, at the same time calling out a colour. The second player must catch the ball and, upon catching it, call out the name of something that is that colour (a fruit, an animal…). He, in turn, tosses the paper to the next player, shouting out the name of a different colour and so on.
Activities during reading the history
Work with the DVD
- Pupils have to watch the DVD (the real book) and listen to the dialogues very carefully.
- Then, pupils have to read aloud the adapted story (readers).
- After, pupils have to practice the new vocabulary. Pupils have to identify fruits and animals in the text.
- The children have to watch this DVD two times.
- Teacher write in another list Handa`s actions verbs: to walk, to go to see her friend and to give a present.
And at the same time the teacher has to make on the blackboard a disordered list of six animals and six fruits.
The principal’s objectives of this list are to write correctly the names of the animals, fruits and understand the animals in actions. Each child has to copy this list in their notebook, and draw fruits.
6. Where do Handa and Akeyo live? Which continent? What do you think? They live in Africa.
1. Phisycal Description
What is Handa like?
Pupils have to describe Handa’s face (eyes, ears, nose, and mouth), skin (white, dark/black), hair (short, long, straight, curly)
Talk about this picture?
- What is the favourite fruit of Akeyo? Tangerines. The favourite fruit of Akeyo is a tangerine.
- What are Handa and Akeyo doing?! Look at the picture: Handa and Akeyo are eating and sharing a tangerine. They are good friends.
5. We establish a temporal sequence
Throughout the pictures representing the story. This way, the student places each picture in the right order following the correct story telling.
Students should remember the story, as it develops.
6. Think about other end for the story and draw it
7. Teacher said the children
Handa gives her friend, Akeyo, some tangerines. Why? Because a goat (the horns of a goat strike) strikes a tangerine tree and the tangerines fall on Handa’s basket.