Gazi University Gazi Faculty of Education School of Foreign

Languages Department of English Language Teaching

TUBITAK PROJECT

LESSON PLAN & MATERIALS: SPORTS

Prepared by
Mustafa Hakan YANAR
mustafahakan.yanar@gazi.edu.tr

Ankara, 2023
Theme

Sports

Student Profile

YLs who are in 5th grade. In this class, the participants of the study, who are disadvantaged young learners identified, and rest of the class are
being taught this special lesson.
They love predicting the content, categorization, and critical thinking activities. Moreover, they are very active. They like to act out things
they have learned

Language Objectives

● Vocabulary: Sports: basketball, tennis, baseball, soccer, swimming, skiing

● Grammar: Likes & dislikes
Target function & useful language
Expressing likes and dislikes: I like tennis; she doesn’t like tennis.

Duration

80 minutes

Critical Thinking

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 Sequencing
Learning Strategy Activities

Social and affective strategies: They are addressed via the teacher providing positive reinforcements such as “well done! Great! You are
going well!” while monitoring the class and after a YL gives a true answer.
Metacognitive strategies: The teacher asks about which activity YLs enjoyed most.
Cognitive strategies: It is aimed at fostering disadvantaged young learners' cognitive vocabulary learning strategy by asking them to close the
images and trying to guess their meanings.

Aims

● By the end of the lesson, disadvantaged young learners will have been able to identify target vocabulary items within the context of
“Sports” based on the categorization vocabulary activity, guided writing, and information gap speaking activities which learners
actively repeat target vocabulary items and being engaged actively,
● By the end of the lesson, disadvantaged young learners will have been able to associate target vocabulary for “my day” with images
presented by the teacher in the input presentation and with the help of listening activity,
● By the end of the lesson, disadvantaged young learners will have been able to use like and dislike target patterns to express their likes
and dislikes with the aid of guided language skill-based practice activities specifically designed for the target group’s strengths.
● By the end of the lesson, disadvantaged young learners will have been able to discriminate target words with aid of missing flashcards
activity in which learners close their eyes and find out the missing flashcard after they open their eyes.

Materials

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 ● Worksheet
● Visuals

Anticipated Problems Solutions

• Some of the learners may forget to bring their materials
to the class.
• Some learners can give a wrong answer.
• Early finishers may appear, or an activity may not go as planned.
• Some of the learners may persist in switching to L1.
• The teacher has extra materials to give learners.
• The teacher turns the class and asks if other learners agree with their
friend. After that, the teacher gives two options one of which is the
wrong answer that learners have said, the other one is the true one.
• The teacher applies an extra activity.
• The teacher gives the instruction in L2 to imply that English is used
for communication, not a topic of study. Furthermore, he uses body
gestures and mimics to make his speech comprehensible.

Advance Procedure & Steps Interaction

Organizer The teacher greets learners and starts lessons, as a starter, one of the instructional techniques suggested for Patterns
the start of lesson as an advance organizer, -mind-map is used to activate learners' schemata.
-mind-map
The teacher writes sports on the board and asks learners whether they can think of any examples. While
he elicits answers, he draws a web semantic map and writes those sports.
● “Today we will learn about sports. Do you know any sports?

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 Later, he introduces a puppet called Bob and the teacher pretends as if the puppet is saying something to
him. He says that Bob does some sports that learners have told. So the teacher provides learners with an
aim. T-Ss
● “Bob does some of these sports? Do you know which ones Bob do?”
● “Let’s learn!”

Presentation of Explicit Teaching of Vocabulary

Information With target vocabulary items simplified for the target group, the teacher starts pre-teach vocabulary with
the function of expressing likes. In this context, the teacher provides visuals of the sports and their use in T-Ss
-Explicit teaching
a sentence. For each word he provides the word and applies TPR. Then, he encourages learners to repeat
of vocabulary
the target sentences. For the word ‘basketball’;
● “Basketball, throw the ball! (TPR)
-Discrimination
● “Repeat after me! Sally likes playing basketball”
This process applies to all target words.
-Color Coding as a
Color Coding as a visual support for disadvantaged young learners
visual support for
Delaney (2017) highlights disadvantaged learners should overtly see the spelling of a word with different
disadvantaged
colors to ease the process of repeating. Hence, as a visual support, target vocabulary items for
young learners
disadvantaged young learners are given words in color coded manner (to see the product please visit
Delaney (2017)
flashcards in the worksheet part)
Discrimination Opportunity for Disadvantaged Young Learners
After the teacher finishes vocabulary teaching, the teacher asks which words they studied and gets words

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 from learners. Later he asks from the class to repeat the words studied altogether.
● “Which sports did we learn?”
● “Tell me the sports we learned. Altogether!”
Missing Flashcards
This game is prepared to cater for discrimination opportunities. In this game, the teacher firstly shows all
the six cards and encourages learners to look at them, then he wants learners to close their eyes, and he
removes a flashcard. After he removes a flashcard, he asks learners to open their eyes and ask which
flashcard is missing.

Guided Practice In this section, learners are asked to do the following guided language activities:

-Critical thinking
Critical Thinking: Sequencing
-Guided language
Learners are asked to unscramble the words and write the correct sequence of words.
activities
● “Unscramble the words.”
Differentiated Instruction: Differentiating through Process
Reading Activity: Learners are asked to choose a paragraph between the two texts and do the activities T-Ss
-Sequencing in
accordingly. They will circle the correct choice.
tasks
● “Choose and read one of the following texts. Then, circle the correct option.”
-Drill-repetition-
Listening Activity:
practice.
Listening for main idea: learners are asked to listen to a recording and put a tick on the sports mentioned
-Checking for
(T69.4)
understanding

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 (CFU) ● “Listen and put a tick on the sports mentioned.”
Learners are asked to circle peoples’ sports for likes and dislikes from the recording. (T69 4)
● “Listen and circle the correct answer.”
Guided Writing Activity:
Speaking Activity:
In pairs, learners are asked to apply an information gap activity. In this context, they are asked to fill in
the table whether they like or dislike the sports mentioned. Then, they are required to ask whether their
friends like those sports. Lastly, they are asked to report their findings to the class.
● “Work in pairs.”
● “Put ticks or crosses on the sports you like/ dislike.”
● “Ask your friend about the sports. Then, put ticks or crosses on the sports your friend likes/
dislikes.”
● “Tell your answers to the class.”

Independent As Independent Practice, homework is assigned via asking disadvantaged young learners to find four additional sports
Practice
and stick their images to a paper.
(Homework)
● “Find four additional sports and stick their images to a paper. Then, write the sport’s name and sentences using
like/ do/esn’t like for yourself about the sports you find.”

Pedagogical Reasoning for Research Project

Disadvantaged Young Learners (Special Educational Needs) Dimension

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The Type of Instruction:
Bryant and Smith (2019) notes two main instruction types for teaching students with Special Needs (SEN): Direct Instruction and Strategy
Instruction. Simply, Direct Instruction refers to a teacher directed instruction with explicit teaching of skills while Strategy Instruction refers to a
self-regulatory type of instruction in which disadvantaged learners’ schemata is activated in the first place (Bryant & Smith, 2019). In this
lesson, an eclectic approach is considered, as suggested by Bryant and Smith (2019), and instructional techniques from both of the instructions
for special educational needs are utilized. For instance, both explicit teaching of vocabulary in addition to activation of schemata in the first
place is utilized.
The Sequence:
To maximize disadvantaged learners’ learning, while planning and delivering instruction for disadvantaged students, Bryant and Smith (2019)
highlight a lesson sequence which cultivates principles from Direct and Strategy Instruction. These procedure is as follows:
I. advance organizer
II. presentation of subject matter
III. guided practice
IV. independent practice (either assigned as homework or applied in the class with support)
Since the research project aims to synthesize the two educational fields, the suggested sequence is applied from SEN perspective at the same
time considering the stages’ relevance and proximity to the sequence commonly applied within the field of Teaching English to Young Learners
(TEYL). Briefly, while preparing this lesson the question of “what could be the equivalent, or at least related, techniques and methods suggested
for SEN dimension to the TEYL? is asked and the two fields are synthesized.
Checking for Understanding (CFU):
Bryant and Smith (2019) suggests that disadvantaged learners’ understanding should be checked with several activities. In this sense, the notion
of concept checking is aimed at with guided language activities rather than isolated concept checking questions as an adaptation.
Instructional Techniques:

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As both of the fields favor fostering learners’ critical thinking skills, a critical thinking activity is included.
Instructional Components:
As an instructional component, Bryant and Smith (2019) notes several components such as drill-repetition-practice and sequencing. In SEN
contexts, sequencing means breaking down a task into its parts with step-by-step prompts. In addition, drill-repetition-practice means repeated
practice Bryant and Smith (2019). While planning this lesson, the two aforementioned components are included to foster disadvantaged young
learners language learning. To this end, activities in this lesson have steps each of them leading forward to the final task completion or product.
For instance, in the speaking activity, steps are provided one by one.
Data from Descriptive Needs Analysis
Shin et al. (2021) highlights the significance of knowing our learners in several ways. From this perspective, in order to know our learners, at the
beginning of the research project, a descriptive needs analysis in several areas such as exam analysis, learners observation, parental and learner
surveys are applied and the preliminary findings unravel that the target disadvantaged young learners group is successful at multiple choice and
short simple answers. To cater for this need, activities in this lesson are prepared requiring short and simple answers. Besides, presentation and
guided activities are simplified at a word and text level.

References

Bryant, D. P., Bryant, B. R., & Smith, D. D. (2019). Teaching students with special needs in inclusive classrooms. Sage Publications.
Delaney, M., & Farley, S. (2016). Special educational needs-into the classroom. Oxford University Press.
Ortega, D. P., Cabrera, J. M., & Benalcázar, J. V. (2018). Differentiating instruction in the language learning classroom: Theoretical
considerations and practical applications. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 9(6), 1220-1228.
Shin, J.K., Savić, V., & Machida, T. (2021). The 6 Principles for exemplary teaching of English learners: Young
learners in a multilingual world. TESOL International Association.
Worksheet

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Reading Activity:

READ the following text. Then, circle the correct option. 📖

Jack
Hello, my name is Jack. Sports have always been a big part of my life, and I like basketball and skiing. My friend
John is also a big fan of baseball and enjoys playing pick-up games with his friends. My cousin Sarah loves tennis
and spends her weekends playing at the local courts. My brother Mike is an ambitious skier and loves skiing on
weekends. However, I don’t like swimming and playing baseball and soccer games. Overall, sports bring us all
together and keep us active and healthy.
1. Jack likes playing basketball / soccer.
2. Sarah/ Jack likes tennis.
3. Jack doesn’t like skiing/ swimming.
4. Mike/ Sarah likes skiing.
5. Jack likes / doesn’t like playing soccer games.
6. John likes / doesn’t like baseball.

Vocabulary Activity
Unscramble the words below.

isnetn tennis blaeatbsak

reccos iingks

lbalaseb mwingsm

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Listening Activity
Listen and circle the correct answer. ( = like, = dislike) 🎵
basketball swimming tennis

Jenny

George

Writing Activity

Now, write four sentences using like/ do/esn’t like according to the table.
1. Jenny doesn’t like basketball.
2.
3.
4.
5.

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Speaking Activity

1. Work in pairs.
2. Put ticks or crosses on the sports you like/ dislike.
3. Ask your friend about the sports. Then, put ticks or crosses on the sports your friend likes/ dislikes.
4. Tell your answers to the class.

basketball swimming skiing soccer tennis Useful Language

You “I like playing

basketball, but my
friend doesn’t like
playing
Your Friend ❌
basketball”

Homework

Find four additional sports and stick their images to a paper. Then, write the sport’s name and sentences using like/ do/esn’t like for yourself
about the sports you find.

SUMMARY

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 Basketball Tennis Baseball Soccer Swimming Skiing

İPUCU: Elinizle aşağıda verilen kelimeleri kapatarak resimlerle kelimeleri tahmin etmeye çalışarak kelimeleri resimlerle ilişkilendirme
çalışmanız kelimelerin aklınızda daha iyi kalmasını sağlayacaktır.

👍 👎
I/you/we/they like swimming. I/you/we/they don’t like swimming.

He/she/it likes swimming. He/she/it doesn’t like swimming.

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Reading Answers:
1. Jack likes playing basketball / soccer.
2. Sarah/ Jack likes tennis.
3. Jack doesn’t like skiing/ swimming.
4. Mike/ Sarah likes skiing.
5. Jack likes / doesn’t like playing soccer games.

Listening Answers

basketball swimming tennis

Jenny

George

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Basketball
15
Tennis
16
Baseball
17
Soccer
18
Swimming

19
Skiing
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