(Based on a lesson plan by Rajni Bhargava and Rozanne Zeppieri)
Proficiency Level: Novice High/Intermediate Low
Objectives: Students will be able to:
- ask and answer questions about weather conditions using an authentic map of a country where Hindi and/or Urdu is spoken.
- identify and describe a variety of leisure time activities.
- express preferences about weather and activities.
- compare weather conditions in the target culture to those in the community where the students live.
Language: Use correctly:
- vocabulary: weather-related phrases
- list a variety of leisure activities based on weather that teenagers in the target culture might enjoy
- expressions of preference (X-ko pasand hai, pasand nahiiN hai, X-ko + infinitive + pasand hai)
Performance Assessment:
- Interpretive: Students read descriptions of weather and match to the appropriate city on a map.
- Interpersonal: Using an authentic online weather site from India or Pakistan, students ask and answer questions about the conditions that are occurring there. They talk about what activities may be possible and express preferences about the ones they would like to try based on current conditions.
- Interpersonal/Presentational: Students interview each other about the activities they like and do not like to do and then create a chart of the class preferences.
Learning Activities:
1. Teacher arrives to class with a backpack, sunglasses, and a camera in hand. S/
he opens the backpack and takes out a large map of India and talks about where s/he is going. S/he asks students yes/no questions about travel. Have they traveled to India? To South Asia? Did they travel with family members? Did they go to …..(shows various places on a map)?
2. Teacher explains that s/he is going to India with a group of students (those in the class) and they will visit the Moussourie, an ideal place for a summer camp in the foothills of the Himalayas.
3. To enrich their vocabulary related to weather, students read http://hindi.oneindia.com/news/2013/06/07/india-weather-report-of-india-248010.html.
4. In the context of the upcoming trip, the teacher describes the weather conditions the group may encounter and shows various conditions using a weather map of the area. As s/he talks about the weather, s/he projects visuals of each condition and uses: http://www.accuweather.com/hi/browse-locations/asi. Students listen,read and categorize the new expression according to the season in which they might take part in the activity.S/he describes different conditions they might experience during the summer, winter, fall, and summer.
4. As the teacher talks about the weather and corresponding leisure activities, students move to designated parts of the room depending on their preferences (I like, I do not like). Once they gather into groups, they come up with two or three reasons they like/dislike the activity.
5. Students survey one another about their preferences for leisure activities and complete an activity grid based on what they hear from the classmates. They then answer questions using the information in the grid. “Who is the most active?” Who is most likely to enjoy a beach vacation?”
6. In pairs students fill in a Venn diagram comparing the weather in India with the weather in the region of the US where they live as well as leisure activities they might do during each season of the year.
7. Students negotiate what they like to do and agree on a time and an itinerary. They use a blank map to mark the place and the activities. (Some groups might need an extended task: Given small visuals of articles of clothing, students “pack their suitcases” depending on the weather and the activities they prefer. They share the contents of their suitcases with a partner talking about the decisions they made)
8. Next they watch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeIjvzjps50
Suggestion for follow-up lesson: