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Are Schools the same in Other Countries? A2

Are Schools the same in Other Countries? A2

  • Level: A2
  • Topic: Education + Culture
  • Learning Outcome: Can talk about their school compared to other schools.
  • Grammar: Comparatives
Key Language:

School: social studies; technology; after school clubs; project; (not) allowed to; uniform; education system; graduation; final exams;

Violet makes friends with a visiting Japanese student called Kana and they compare their school experiences and work on a project comparing schools around the world.
Can you answer their quiz questions? What are the differences between your school and schools in other countries?

Transcript

Are Schools the same in other countries?_Transcript
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Aim of Activity

10 - 15 minutes

Follow up activity after watching Animation to check understanding.

Steps for Students

  1. Listen to the teacher and look at the pictures: ACTIVITY 1
  2. Are the sentences true or false?
  3. If a sentence is false, what is the correct answer?
  4. Write down 3 more points that you remember from the Animation.

Click on the link: ACTIVITY 1

Students can answer the questions by:

  • saying ‘TRUE’ or ‘FALSE’
  • standing up if it’s TRUE and sit down if it’s FALSE
  • moving left if it’s TRUE and right if it’s FALSE

For online classes the Teacher can use the emoji function to correct

Questions:

  1. Kana and Violet are talking for the first time.
  2. Violet has visited Japan before.
  3. Kana is from the capital city Tokyo.
  4. Violet has a pet dog from Kana’s hometown.
  5. Kana starts school at 6am.
  6. All Japanese school students go to after school clubs.
  7. Kana gets a lot of homework every day.
  8. Kana hates wearing make-up.
  9. The school day in Taiwan is shorter than in other countries.
  10. Schools in South Korea are less strict than in other countries.

 

TIP!

This activity could be done before the video is played and as a follow up activity to aid with understanding the story.

  1. True – they are in the same class (social studies) but are introducing themselves for the first time.
  2. False – but she has always wanted to go there.
  3. False – she is from Akita in the North of Japan.
  4. False – but she knows the name Akita as there is a dog of the same name.
  5. False – – she starts at 8:30am
  6. False – not ‘All’ but ‘most’.
  7. True – she sometimes falls asleep doing her homework.
  8. False – she is not allowed to wear make-up at school.
  9. False – it is longer.
  10. False – it is stricter.

Activity attachment

Are Schools the same in Other Countries? A2 – Activity 1
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Aim of Activity

10 - 15 minutes

To provide students with extra vocabulary on the topic.

Steps for Students

Steps for Ss

  • Watch the online game with your class and see how many questions you can answer correctly.
  • Now interview your classmates and write the name + details of their answers:

FIND SOMEONE WHO…

  • was absent last week?
  • has a red pencil case?
  • cheated in their last exam?
  • gets good grades in Maths?
  • handed in an assignment on time this month?
  • reviews their English lessons at home?
  • always hands in their homework late?
  • always knows the correct answer?
  • has a busy schedule today?
  • owns 3 or more erasers?
  • Click on the link and play the video, pausing between questions to allow students to answer:

FIND SOMEONE WHO…

  • was absent last week?
  • has a red pencil case?
  • cheated in their last exam?
  • gets good grades in Maths?
  • handed in an assignment on time this month?
  • reviews their English lessons at home?
  • always hands in their homework late?
  • always knows the correct answer?
  • has a busy schedule today?
  • owns 3 or more erasers?

To complete this activity students must move around the classroom and interview their classmates, remind them to make correct question forms:

  • Were you absent last week?
  • Do you have a red pencil case?
  • Did you cheat in their last exam?
  • Do you get good grades in Maths?
  • Have you handed in an assignment on time this month?
  • Do you review your English lessons at home?
  • Do you always hand in your homework late?
  • Do you always know the correct answer?
  • Do you have a busy schedule today?
  • Do you own 3 or more erasers?

Not available

Activity attachment

Are Schools the same in Other Countries? A2 – Activity 2
Download

Aim of Activity

10 - 20 minutes

To aid with memorisation and pronunciation of school subjects.

Steps for Students

  • Click on the link and watch + repeat the school subjects listed:

  • How many subjects can you remember?
  • Play Taboo with your group or the whole class. Your teacher will give you instructions. Remember that you cannot say the Taboo word.

All the words will be subjects that you heard on the video:

For example:

 Taboo Word =English

  • ‘It’s what we are speaking now!’

Taboo Word = Geography

  • ‘It is when you learn about other countries’
  • Click on the link and ask students to watch and repeat the school subjects listed:

  • After watching the video put them in teams and get them to write (on board or paper) as many subjects as they can remember. Award points for the correct spelling + the most subjects listed.
  • Use the flashcards to play ‘Taboo’. This can be done as a whole class in teams or in small groups. One student must hold the flashcard above their head and the others must explain the subject without saying the word (or part of the word).

For example:

Flashcard = English

  • ‘It’s what we are speaking now!’

Flashcard = Geography

  • ‘It is when you learn about other countries’

 

TIP!

You may have other subjects in your school that are not listed here which you wish to include.

Not available

Activity attachment

Are Schools the same in Other Countries? A2 – Activity 3
Download

Aim of Activity

30 minutes

To connect topic to real life experience and teach vocabulary via a game format.

Steps for Students

  1. Create a name for your Team.
  2. Work together to complete the Digital Scavenger Hunt.
  3. Present your answers to your teacher to check
  4. The fastest team with the most correct answers is the winner.
  1. Download the PDF: ACTIVITY 4
  2. Create Teams with 4-6 members in each team.
  3. Ask the Teams to create a Team name.
  4. Tell them that the first Team to complete the Digital Scavenger Hunt is the winner.
  5. If possible, ask them to upload their answers to a shared space like Google Classroom/ Padlet

 

TIP!

If your class enjoys Scavenger Hunts and you would like to create one of your own: TIP!

See demo video here:

Not available

Activity attachment

Are Schools the same in Other Countries? A2 – Activity 4
Download

Aim of Activity

60 minutes

To engage learners creatively with target language through a joint project or pair work activity.

Steps for Students

  • Watch this online video ‘What a classroom looks like in 27 countries around the world:

  • Your teacher will ask you some questions about one of the classrooms.
  • Work with your group to design the perfect classroom.
  • Decide on the following:
    • What is the perfect number of pupils?
    • What kind of desks are there?
    • Do the pupils wear a school uniform?
    • What is on the walls?
    • Is it indoors or outdoors?
    • Do pupils share a desk or does each pupil have their own desk?
    • Are there books?
    • What kind of technology does it have?
    • Can you eat in the classroom?
    • Do the pupils stand, walk around, sit at desks or sit in the floor?
    • Is it noisy or quiet?
    • What other sounds are there? Is there music?
    • Is there a class pet
  • Present your perfect classroom to your class.
  • Play this online video ‘What a classroom looks like in 27 countries around the world

  • After playing once, assign a classroom (country) to small groups.
  • Instruct the students to watch again and try to remember details about their assigned classroom e.g. Malaysia = Group A
    • Are the pupils wearing a uniform?
    • Is there classroom indoors or outdoors?
    • How many pupils are in the class?
    • Are there too many or the right amount?
    • What does the classroom look like?
  • Ask groups to work on a project to design the perfect classroom.
  • They must first interview the others in their group and agree on the following:
    • What is the perfect number of pupils?
    • What kind of desks are there?
    • Do the pupils wear a school uniform?
    • What is on the walls?
    • Is it indoors or outdoors?
    • Do pupils share a desk or does each pupil have their own desk?
    • Are there books?
    • What kind of technology does it have?
    • Can you eat in the classroom?
    • Do the pupils stand, walk around, sit at desks or sit in the floor?
    • Is it noisy or quiet?
    • What other sounds are there? Is there music?
    • Is there a class pet
  • Groups present their ‘Perfect Classrooms’.

 

TIP!

  • If possible it would be nice to use some of their ideas to redesign your current classroom (even in a small way).
  • Here is a useful online tool that students can use to design their classrooms: TIP

This demo video gives a step-to-step guide:

Not available

The BOOST Project (Building Open Online Series for Teaching) aims to improve the digital readiness of teachers of English as a foreign language to students aged 8 -14 by providing an open-access series of engaging native-speaker content videos linked with a Resource Pack of ready-made activities to stimulate production of the language in online learning.

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