Lesson: Change Over Time (Teacher's Edition)

My Presentation: Change Over Time

Lesson Unit Overview

Topic: "Change Over Time". This lesson uses pages from the textbook to build a simple, structured presentation for Primary 3-4 ESL students.

Overall Objective: By the end of this lesson, students will be able to structure and deliver a short presentation about change, using simple comparative language ("In the past...", "Now..."), supported by personal and general examples. This lesson builds both content knowledge and pronunciation skills needed for the final "Me and My City" showcase.

Lesson Flow:

  1. Warm-up & Phonics (15 mins): Use the "Our Speaking Sounds" section to pre-teach and drill pronunciation of key vocabulary for the lesson. This is crucial for weak students.
  2. Hook (5 mins): Introduce the concept of "change" using the modern city image.
  3. Vocabulary (10 mins): Define and practice "Past," "Present," and "Future."
  4. Model 1 - Personal Change (15 mins): Guide students to talk about how they have changed since they were a baby. This will be the first part of their presentation.
  5. Model 2 - World Change (15 mins): Use examples of transport to show how the world has changed. This forms the second part of their presentation.
  6. Practice & Synthesis (10 mins): Use the "Understanding Check" to review concepts and let students practice their presentation sentences.

Part 0: Our Speaking Sounds

Teaching Goal: Foundational Pronunciation Practice (15 mins)

Rationale: The students are very weak in English, especially pronunciation. This section uses the phonics workbook methodology to break down difficult but essential words for this lesson and their final presentation. By grouping words by sound, we make them easier to learn and remember.

Instructions:

  1. Introduce the Activity: Say, "Before we talk about our big ideas, let's practice some important sounds! This will make our speaking strong and clear."
  2. Teach Sound Group 1 (a_e):
    • Point to the first group. Say: "This is the 'ay' sound, like in 'day'. Look: c-h-a-n-g-e. The 'e' at the end is magic! It makes the 'a' say its name: 'ay'!"
    • Go through each word: "change", "age", "place". For each word, click the checkpoint (??) to show the visual cue. Have students say the word and do the action shown in the pop-up. Drill them 3 times each. (e.g., "change, change, change!")
  3. Teach Sound Group 2 & 3 (Short Vowels):
    • Introduce the short 'a' /æ/ (as in apple) for 'past' and 'fast'. Contrast it with the long 'a' /eɪ/ from the first group. Use the checkpoint visuals to help.
    • Introduce the short 'i' /ɪ/ (as in igloo) for 'live' and 'city'.
    • Drill these words similarly. Focus on making the sounds short and sharp.
  4. Teach Sound Group 4 (Syllables):
    • Say: "Some words are long. We can break them into parts. Let's be word detectives and find the parts!"
    • Go to 'pre-sent'. Click the checkpoint. Say: "This word has two parts. Clap with me! PRE-SENT." (Clap twice). Do the same for 'fu-ture' and 'tra-vel'. This kinesthetic learning helps immensely.
  5. Practice Sentences: Read the sentences in the practice box aloud. Have students repeat after you. Then, have them practice saying the sentences to a partner. This moves from single words to connected speech.

Sound Group 1: The 'ay' Sound (Magic 'a_e')

change ??

?

age ??

place ??

Sound Group 2: Short Vowel Sounds

past ??

fast ??

live ??

city ??

Sound Group 3: Word Parts (Syllables)

Present

pre·sent ??

Future

fu·ture ??

Travel

tra·vel ??

Let's Make Sentences! ??

1. Things change over time.

2. In the past, cars were not fast.

3. I live in a big city.

Part 1: What is "Change"?

Teaching Goal: Introduce the Core Concept (5 mins)

Objective: To grab students' attention and introduce the theme of "change" in a visual and relatable way, activating their prior knowledge.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

  1. Display the Image: Direct all students to look at the picture of the modern city.
  2. Ask Engaging Questions:
    • Say: "Look at this beautiful city. What do you see?" (Elicit answers like: "lights", "tall buildings", "cars").
    • Say: "Is this city from a long, long time ago? From the PAST?" (Shake head 'no'). "Is this city from NOW? The PRESENT?" (Nod 'yes'). "Good! This is a modern city."
  3. Introduce the Key Word:
    • Say: "Think about Hong Kong 100 years ago. Did it look like this?" (Elicit "No!"). "What has happened?"
    • Click the ?? checkpoint to reveal the animated "CHANGING!" visual.
    • Say: "Yes! It has CHANGED! Everything changes. Old things become new. Small things become big. This is called CHANGE. Today, our whole presentation is about... CHANGE!"
  4. Anchor the Concept: Write the word "CHANGE" in big letters on the whiteboard. This visually reinforces the main topic of the lesson.
A modern city at night

Look at the world around us. Some things are very old. Some things are very new. ??

In this unit we will learn:

  • How things change over time.
  • How new things change how we live.

Part 2: Past, Present, and Future

Teaching Goal: Introduce Key Time Vocabulary (10 mins)

Objective: To teach and solidify the meaning and pronunciation of "Past," "Present," and "Future" using physical gestures (Total Physical Response - TPR).

Step-by-Step Instructions:

  1. Read Definitions with TPR:
    • Read "The time before now is the past." While saying "past," point clearly behind your shoulder. Have all students copy your gesture and say "past."
    • Read "things happening now are in the present." While saying "present," point to yourself or the floor beneath you. Have students copy and say "present."
    • Read "The time to come is the future." While saying "future," point forward with a sweeping motion. Have students copy and say "future."
    • Drill this several times: "Past!" (students point back), "Future!" (students point forward), "Present!" (students point to self). Make it a quick, fun game.
  2. Use the Visual Timeline: Click the ? checkpoint to show the timeline. Reinforce the TPR. Say: "Look! The PAST (point behind) is the baby. The PRESENT (point to self) is you now, a big kid! The FUTURE (point forward)... we don't know! Maybe robots, maybe flying cars!"
  3. Connect to Personal Change:
    • Focus on the picture of the mother and baby. Say: "Look at this baby. This is from the PAST. You were a baby in the past. Are you a baby now?" (Students will shout "No!").
    • Say: "That's right! You have CHANGED!" This links the core concept to their personal experience.
  4. Introduce Presentation Sentence Frame: Click the ?? checkpoint to introduce the first key sentence pattern. Model it with clear, exaggerated intonation: "When I was a baby, I was smaaall. (use hands to show small). Now, I am biiig! (stretch arms out)." Have students repeat the full sentence with gestures. Then, ask them to turn to a partner and share one more idea (e.g., "...I could not walk. Now, I can run.").

Present, past and future ?

We say that things happening now are in the present.

The time before now is the past.

The time to come is the future.

How we change over time ??

The past is a long time ago. Look how much you have changed!

A mother holding a baby

Part 3: The World Changes!

Teaching Goal: Model Comparative Language with Examples (15 mins)

Objective: To provide students with a clear model for the second part of their presentation, comparing past and present objects using the key phrases "In the past" and "Now".

Step-by-Step Instructions:

  1. Identify the Objects: Show the two pictures. Ask: "What do you see in picture one?" (Elicit "horse"). "What do you see in picture two?" (Elicit "train").
  2. Describe the Past: Click the first ?? checkpoint next to the horse picture. Say: "This is from the PAST. A long, long time ago, people used horses to travel. It was very... (draw out the word) s-l-o-o-o-w." (Move your hand very slowly through the air). Have students repeat "slow".
  3. Describe the Present: Click the second ?? checkpoint next to the train picture. Say: "This is from the PRESENT. This is NOW! Now, we use trains. It is very... FAST!" (Move your hand quickly). Have students repeat "fast".
  4. Introduce the Comparison Sentence Frame:
    • Say: "Now let's put it together to talk about the CHANGE!"
    • Click the final ?? checkpoint ("Compare!"). The sentence frame will appear.
    • Read it with a clear pause and different tones for the two parts: "(Loudly, slowly) In the past, people used horses. (Quickly, excitedly) Now, we use trains."
    • Write "In the past, ..." and "Now, ..." on the board. These are their essential "signal phrases".
  5. Pair Practice: Have students practice this exact sentence in pairs. Then, challenge them with another example. Draw a candle and a lightbulb on the board. Ask them to create a new sentence: "In the past, people used candles. Now, we use lights."

Changes over time

Many things change. There are new ways to build and new ways to travel.

This is from the past. ??

A horse-drawn carriage on a street

This is from the present. ??

A modern train on a track in a city

How can we talk about this change? ??

Let's Check! My Presentation Ideas ??

Teaching Goal: Review and Synthesize for Presentation (10 mins)

Objective: To check students' understanding of the key concepts and sentence structures, and to help them organize their ideas for their own presentation in a low-pressure, visual way.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

  1. Frame the Activity: Say: "Great job! You are almost ready to be amazing speakers. Let's play a memory game to help you plan your presentation."
  2. Launch the Check: Click the ?? checkpoint. The "Understanding Check" overlay will appear.
  3. Interactive Q&A: Go through each icon in the overlay and ask the class what it means and what they can say about it. This is a crucial step to bridge the lesson content to their final output.
    • (Point to baby icon ??) "When you see this picture, what part of your speech is it? About the...?" (PAST!). "What is the magic sentence?" (Elicit: "When I was a baby...").
    • (Point to timeline icon ?) "What does this show us?" (PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE!). "Good job!"
    • (Point to horse/train icons ????) "What change does this show?" (Travel!). "What are the two magic phrases we use to compare?" (Elicit: "In the past..." and "Now...").
    • (Point to speaking icon ??) "This means it's your turn to speak with a strong, clear voice!"
  4. Summarize and Motivate: Say: "Excellent! For your presentation, you will talk about YOU in the past, and you will talk about how the WORLD has changed. You know all the sentences you need!" This reinforces the structure and builds confidence.

You have learned many new ideas for your presentation. Let's review the special pictures that help us remember what to say.

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