Lesson plan 6 Secondary Level

1. I.F.D.C. LENGUAS VIVAS
TALLER DE PRÁCTICA DOCENTE
ALUMNO RESIDENTE: López, Fernanda Emili E.
Período de Práctica: Nivel secundario
Institución Educativa: I.F.D. N°13
Dirección: Italia 141, Zapala, Neuquén.
Sala / Grado / Año - sección: 5° 1
Cantidad de alumnos: 17
Nivel lingüístico del curso: Principiantes
Tipo de Planificación: clase
Unidad Temática: Héroes
Clase Nº: 6
Fecha: 28/05/15
Hora: 09:10 a 10:30
Duración de la clase: 80 minutos
Fecha de primera entrega: 25/05/2015
Teaching points:
 Revision of past simple (did you.?)
 Presentation of the past continuous. (What were you doing when…?)
 Referring to past situations.
Learning Aims
During this lesson, learners will be able to:
 Develop reading skills by reading a text.
 Develop speaking and listening skills by interacting with peers and the teacher and listening
to a video.
 Develop their writing skills by writing sentences and questions.
Language Focus
Function Lexis Structure Pronunciation
Rev Describing a
picture.
Describing actions.
“I was washing the
dishes, and my wife
was giving the baby
a bath” / “I was
Are you…?
(reading, painting?)
/wɒz/
/wɜː/

2. washing my
clothes” / “My
husband and I were
watching TV and
out children were
doing their
homework” / “I
was listening to
music”
She’s
having dinner / he’s
reading a
newspaper / she’s
washing her hair /
he’s cooking / he’s
feeding the dog /
they’re doing the
shopping
New Saying what other
people were doing
at a specific time in
the past.
“There was a
blackout” / “the
lights went out” /
What were you
doing…?
Was he/she ….?
Were you…?
/blækaʊt/
Teaching approach: Communicative approach
Integration of skills: in this lesson plan, students’ listening and speaking skills are integrated
through the teacher’s talk and through students’ interaction with the teacher. Ss will first watch a
video which will introduce them to the topic of the lesson. As regards reading and writing skills, Ss
will be assessed as regards their reading comprehension skills after reading a text and completing
activities related to it. Moreover, ss will practice their speaking skills through different questions
they will ask their partners.
Pedagogical use ofICT in class: Ss will watch a video which will be displayed severaltimes for Ss
to carefully pay attention to the expressions used.
Materials: board, pieces of chalk, printed activities and video projector.
Seating arrangement: semi-circle to foster interaction among ss.
Cooperative work:
In this lesson, students will work together in different parts of the lesson. Firstly, they will
all together analyse a video and try to understand the use of the past continuous together.
Secondly, they will work with pictures and articles. They will exchange sheets with their
partners. Finally, they will work together in a role play activity.
Possible problems/difficulties and possible solutions:

3. The activities may take longer than expected. That is why it is necessary to check the time spent on
each activity so as not to run out of time to end the exam. If the video projector doesn’t work, I’ll
bring my personal computer to the lesson.
Potential problems students may have with the language:
Ss may understand the vocabulary used to refer to different actions in progress at a specific time in
the past. I think that with the help of flashcards and miming of certain actions, Ss will remember
them quite easily. Moreover, the expressions will be repeated several times in the lesson.
Assessment: pronunciation and understanding of questions will be assessed by asking questions
individually for example: “What were you doing…?” I’ll assess their ability to refer to themselves.
Short questions like: Is this right? Together with an expression of confusion will be used to helps Ss
understand that they are making a wrong statement or question.
Routine (2’): Hello everybody! How are you?
Transition: Let’s watch a video and you tell me what you think is about.
Presentation (10’)
First, the T will teach/revise some necessary vocabulary that is used in the video:
“There was a blackout” / “the lights went out” / “I was washing the dishes, and my wife was giving
the baby a bath” / “I was washing my clothes” / “My husband and I were watching TV and out
children were doing their homework” / “I was listening to music”
The T will write all the expressions on the board and she’ll focus on miming half of them
and showing ss some pictures.
It’s probable that Ss are familiarized with some of the vocabulary provided on the video. For this
reason, the T will ask Ss to choose or point to the pictures they know.
The T may ask: What do you see in this picture? Ss: a city
T: what do you notice in the picture? Ss: the light?
T: Yes! There is a blackout in this city (T writes the word on the board) and it is the same as
saying: the lights went out. Do you understand? Which verb is WENT in the present? Ss: Go (T
writes “lights went out” on the board).

4. T: Excellent, now we will talk about actions. Which ones of the following I’m going to write do you
know?
“I was washing the dishes, and my wife was giving the baby a bath” – T: What do you think about
these expressions? Who can mime “wash the dishes” and “give the baby a bath”? In this way the T
can ask Ss to activate previous knowledge.
“I was washing my clothes” T: What about this one? It is “washing” and “clothes” (T points to her
clothes)? Is their meaning clear?
“My husband and I were watching TV and out children were doing their homework” T: These
two are very easy! Tell me…from these two pictures…which one is the first one? And “doing
homework”?
T: Then the last one says “I was listening to music”. (T mimes the expression and checks ss
remember it.)
The T will encourage ss to watch the video of a TV news show. T: We are going to watch a
video. It describes different situations people went through when the light went out in a city. So pay
attention to what the people say and then we discuss about it.
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1GGYf2LFBg (up to 1’27)
Video description: It is a TV news show which discusses what different people in a city
were doing the day before when the lights went out.
Reason for choosing: I think it is short and it succeeds in giving ss the idea of the past
continuous use. As the reporters introduce the news of the day, I think ss will easily understand that
they are referring to past situations.
Transcript:
Bob Rogers: Good morning everybody, along with Jackie Williams, I’m Bob Rogers. Well,
as you all know by now, there was a blackout in Centerville last night. The lights went out all over
now.
Jackie Williams: Side by side Tv news reporter, Scott Mason is standing by downtown to
find out what were the people doing last night when the lights went out. Scott, are you there?

5. Scott Mason: Jackie, it seems like everybody in town is talking about the blackout last
night. Everyone has a story to tell. What were you doing last night when the lights went out?
Man: I was washing the dishes, and my wife was giving the baby a bath.
Woman: I was washing my clothes at the laundry and suddenly everything got dark.
Woman 2: My husband and I were watching TV and out children were doing their
homework.
Scott Mason: And what were you doing last night when the lights went out? Excuse me!
What were you doing last night when the lights went out?
Boy: The light went out last night?
Scott Mason: Yes, the lights went out all over town.
Boy: ha, how about that? I just didn’t know. I was listening to music all night.
Scott Mason: You were listening to music? But there was no electricity.
Boy: Batteries.
Scott Mason: So you see...everyone is talking about what they were doing last night when
the lights went out.
T: Great, what did you see? What’s the video about?
Ss: the blackout in the city.
T: Yes! But what did the people say? What did they talk about?
Ss: their actions?
T: Yes! The people talked about what they were doing when the lights went out. What do
you think about “were doing”? Remember the use of was / were? What did it refer to?
Ss: The past!
T: Yes, so in this case it refers to the past and it is about what the people were doing when
something else interrupted. For example, last night I was having a shower when my father called me
on the phone (T mimes the expression). This is called the Past continuous. When do you think we
use past continuous?
Ss: Actions!?
T: yes! Actions which refer to what we were doing in the past. Now let’s see how it is
formed.
Take a look at the sentence I said: “I was having a shower” (T writes it on the board)
How do we form it?
Ss: was having?
T: yes, what’s was?
Ss: the verb “To be” in the past

6. T: yes! So we can use was or…which is the other verb “to be” in the past?
Ss: were?
T: Excellent! So we use (and writes it on the verb) WAS /WERE and…what else do you
see in the verb?
Ss: having?
T: Yes we use: WAS / WERE + -ING.
Transition: Now, let’s see if we can work on making sentences together.
Activity 1 (20’) Speaking and writing to check Ss’ comprehension of the tense:
T: So there was a blackout in Centerville. Let’s say we all live there! I’d like you to ask
your partners about what they were doing last night during the black out. How are you going to ask
them? It starts with…What…
Ss: What were you doing last night?
T: yes, excellent. I’ll give you some options so you can choose from the pictures what you
were doing.
PICTURES (All pictures from this lesson plan were taken from the book Side by Side
2 - :

7. T: So you can choose from all these pictures or from the two others we already used. Let’s
quickly revise the vocabulary from all of them.
The T will write the verbs on the board and ss have to match the verbs with the correct
picture:
EXAMPLE:
She’s having dinner / he’s reading a newspaper / she’s washing her hair / he’s cooking /
he’s feeding the dog / they’re doing the shopping
Some Ss will be asked to match the sentences with its correct picture.
T: Now, each of you will receive a chart which you have to complete with your partners’
information. We’ll do number 1 all together as an example. Remember, you have to ask each other
about what you were doing when the lights went out.
The T will give Ss the charts to complete and will say: Ok, X choose one of your partners
and ask him/her about what he / she was doing last night during the blackout.
Ss: X, what were you doing last night?
X: I watching TV / I do homework
If Ss answer this, the T will say: Remember to look at the example from the board when
you answer the questions. It says “I was having a shower”. So what is missing in “I watching TV”
or “I do homework”?
Ss: was?? And the -ing?
T: Great! Now you can ask your partners and complete the chart. You have to ask 7 partners
and complete the chart.
Chart ss will have to complete:
What was……doing?
What was Florencia doing? She was….
What was…doing?

8. The T will ask some Ss to read their answers so as to check the correct pronunciation of
“was/were”.
Transition: So far we’ve discussed what you were doing during last night’s blackout. However,
there was a robbery in another part of the city!
Activity 2 (20’)
T: While you were doing different activities, there was a robbery in one of the apartments in
Centerville. First, let’s look at the picture of the scene and tell me what you see. Then, we’ll read
the newspaper article.
The T will give Ss the following picture (not yet the newspaper article).
T: What were the people doing when the thieves broke into the apartment? X choose one of the
pictures and describe it.
Ss possible answers: They were watching a football game / they were visiting Grandma / they were
having a picnic / he was playing tennis
The T will also encourage Ss to answer yes/no questions: Was he (points to the picture) washing the
dishes? Was she visiting her aunt in the hospital?
Once Ss have discussed the pictures with the T, they are ready to read the article together.
Newspaper article and picture extracted from Side by Side 2 – Molinsky and Bliss. (2001)

9. The following is the vocabulary Ss will have to learn from the article:
Break into: This has already been seen in one of the previous lessons; however, the T will say: A
thief breaks into a house or flat. What does that mean to you?
Tenants: They are the people who live in the flat. (T points to the people from the pictures)
Laundromat: It’s the place where you go to wash your clothes (T mimes the expression)
T: Now I’d like you to read the complete article and then we’ll focus on what each of the
people were doing. Let’s complete a True or False activity. Read carefully because exercises 6 and
7 have to be completed by you.
Read the article and then write T (True) or F (False). Write two sentences and then exchange the
sheet with your partner.
1) The robbery occurred in 157 River Street.
2) It occurred yesterday afternoon.
3) The woman in Apartment 1 was washing her clothes.
4) The woman in Apartment 2 was visiting a friend.
5) People from Apartment 3 were having a picnic.
6) The man in Apartment 4 was…
7) ………………………………………………………………

10. There is a short difference from a regular true-false activity in the last 2 exercises (6 and 7).
T: You have to complete exercises 6 and 7 and then give it to your partner to complete with True or
False.
The T will monitor the activity walking around and helping ss create new sentences on their
own.
The exercise will be checked with the whole group and ss will be asked to read aloud the
sentences created on their own.
Transition: Great! Now, in the last part of the lesson I’d like you to act out the 6 different people
from the apartment!
Activity 3 (15’):
Ss will form 2 groups of 7/8 students according the total number of students that day.
T: Form 2 groups of 7 or 8 students. One of you has to be the news reporter and the rest are the
people who weren’t in the apartment the day of the robbery!
The T will walk around helping Ss prepare their roles and deciding what each of them will say to
the TV news reporter.
T: It’s not necessary to say exactly what is on the newspaper article. You can invent your own
actions!
Closure (8’):
Ss will have time to perform the role play assigned and the T will say goodbye to everyone. The
assignment of the day will be to comment on the video uploaded about the lesson in the blog.
Taller de Práctica Docente 2015
Lessonplancriteria Peer and Self-check Yes No
1 Heading Doesthe lessonplanheadingincludeall the requiredinformation?
Has it been completed in Spanish?

2 Learning aims Are the aims for this lesson devised in terms of development of
language skills and language learning / acquisition?
Are theyclearlywrittentoexplainwhatthe learnerswilllearnand
be able to do?

3 Teaching points Are there any new teaching points?
Are the teaching points aligned with the course syllabus and the
district curriculum?
Are they presented within a meaningful context?

4 Language focus chart Are the new and revision language items specified?
Are the new and revision language items related?
Is the pronunciation focus complete?

5 Teaching Approach Is the approach you chose suitable for your teaching context?
Are its aims and fundamentals coherent with the lesson aims?

6 Materialsand
resources
Does the lesson plan include all the required materials and
resources for this lesson?
Does it include handouts, links, video scripts and sample
flashcards?


11. Are these materials and resources coherently/adequately
included in the lesson plan?
7 Pedagogical use of ICT Does the lesson plan make meaningful pedagogical uses of ICT?
Does it include a contingency plan in case technology does not
work?

8 Seatingarrangement Does the seating arrangement foster communication and
interaction among teacher and peers? Is it coherent with the
lesson activities?

9 Cooperative work Does the lesson include instances of cooperative work among
students?Isthere a setof guidelinesandinstructionsforthiswork
to be carried out?
Doesthe lesson plan specify what kind of pedagogical mediation
the teacher will provide?

10 Possible language
difficultiesand
possible solutions
Doesthissectionexplainpossible difficultiesaccordingtoprevious
lessons’ experiences and class observation?
Does the lesson plan allow for differentiation (instruction and
assessment)?

11 Possible lessonor
classroom
management
problemsand their
possible solutions
Doesthissectionexplainpossible difficultiesaccordingtoprevious
lessons’ experiences and class observation?

Lesson development
12 Lessonstages Is the lesson plan organized in stages in accordance with the
approach or the method framing the lesson? Does it include a
warm-up, a development and a round-up or closure?

13 Lessoncontext and
content
Are the lesson context and content appealing to students? Are
they engaging? Is the context culturally relevant?

14 Lessonactivities Is each activity sustained by a pedagogical purpose? Is each
activity related to a learning aim?
Do the activities allow for language exposure, exploration,
development of language awareness ?

15 Type of activities Is there a balance of activitiesthat range from controlled practice
to freer communicative practice?
Do they facilitate integration of skills?

16 Transitions Does the lesson plan show a coherent flow of activities clearly
interconnected? Are there any comments or indicators that link
each activity or stage with the next one?

17 Language of
instructions
Are instructions written in a simple manner? Is there a set of
strategies to accompany the instructions and aid learner
comprehension?

18 Teaching strategies Is instruction aided by any teaching strategies such as…
- Modeling
- Exemplifying
- Showing
- Pointing
- Explaining


12. - Paraphrasing
- Miming
- Others?
19 Direct speech Are all instructions and possible anticipated dialogues written in
direct speech?

20 Homework Does the lesson plan include any task to do at home? Is the task
engaging? Will students feel motivated to perform it? Will the
students be in direct contact with the language? Will they share
their work with the class?

21 Active learning:
Bloom’sTaxonomy
2001
Are many learning tasks addressing a higher level of Bloom’s
taxonomy?

22 Grammar,
Appearance,and
Language
Does the lesson plan effectively communicate to the intended
audience? Has it gone through proof-reading for grammar and
spelling mistakes?

Observations:
Great improvement,Emili!
Hope my commentsonthe side andthis feedbackhelpyoufurtherdevelopthislessonplan.
Have an enrichingclass!
Cecilia
Lesson plan
component
Very Good
4
Good
3
Acceptable
2
Below Standard
1
Organization

Coherence and
sequencing 
Learning aims

Stages

Activities

Teaching strategies


13. Class. management
strategies 
Language accuracy

Observations Minimumscore:20 / 32
Score:28 /32= 8.75