UNIT 1

Lets recite this poem

FIRST DAY AT SCHOOL

New words

wonder, drawing, stares, Gran puppy

Let’s read                           

 
I wonder if the sea is blue.                            

Reading is fun

• What does the child in the poem think about his drawing?
• What does the child wonder about his teacher?
• Do you think the child would like to carry his puppy to school?
  
  

Let's talk

I wonder if the sea is blue.

• Do you remember your first day at school? How did you feel
  
  

• When you entered your class what did you like?
• Who was the first friend you made?
• What did you enjoy doing the most?
• Do you have a pet at home who waits for you to come back from school?

Let's act

• Find a partner. Let your partner pretend to be the teacher who welcomed you to your class.
• Now act out your first day at school.
• Look at the picture. What are the children doing?

Let's listen and sing

Let's write

How many words can you make using letters from the word in the picture? 

One has been done for you.

         POT           

                       

                       

• Circle what you can carry in your school bag. Now write the names of your things in the box below.
  
  

1. _____

2. _____

3. _____

4. _____

5. _____

6. _____

7. _____

8. _____

Let’s do

• What  are the children doing? Choose the correct word from the  ribbon and then fill in the blanks.
  

Eating

Ridding

Going

Studying

Sharing

Returning

Laughing

Let’s practice

__a___ ___b__ ___c__ __d___ __e___ __f___

Haldi's Adventure

 

New words

giraffe, surprised, adventure, wonderful, playground

Reading is fun

• Where was Haldi going?
• Why did Haldi stare at the giraffe?
• How did she reach school?

Let's talk

• How do you go to school?
• What do you wear to school?
• Have you ever seen anything strange on your way to school? Talk about it.

Say aloud

 Let's colour  

 Find the shapes and colour them.

 

The paddlin-pool

Down by the river

On the way to school,

We have to pass

By the paddling-pool.

The grass is green,

And the water cool,

And we stay to play

By the paddling-pool,

Down by the river

On the way to school.

--Ann Berry

 

• Fill in the blanks with the words in the brackets—( sail, bark, sing, play, ring )
  

  Boats _____ .

  Dogs _____ .

  Children _____ .

  Bells  _____ .

  Birds _____ .

• Write the names of the days of the week. You can begin with Sunday.
  _____
  _____
  _____
  _____
  _____
  _____
  

• Haldi wrote her name at school in this way--'haldi'. She made one mistake. What was it?

  Write her name correctly.        _____

  Now write your name correctly. _____

• Haldi wrote—I met a giraffe

  She made two mistakes.What are they? Write Haldi's sentence correctly. 
  _____
  _____.

Let’s get ready for school

• Fill in the blanks with ‘before’ or ‘after’.
  

_____ eating food, I wash my hands.

_____ reaching school, I sit in class.

_____ eating food, I wash my mouth.

_____ reaching home, I do my homework.

 Let's sing

BELLS

Ding-dong!

Ding-dong!

All the bells are ringing:

Ding-dong!

Ding-dong!

It's a holiday,

Ding-dong!

Ding-dong!

All the bells are singing:

Ding-dong! Ding-dong!

Let's go out and play.

--Margaret Russell

Fun time

• What is the sound of your school bell?
• Can you make sounds of different bells that you have heard?
• Different bells make different sounds. Try and make the sound of a _____

• Write the first letter of each picture given in the box

What have you spelt? 

_____

 

Teacher’s pages

UNIT 1

As we start this book, let us remember a few ideas that were reflected on in  Book One.

• We need to remember that when we teach English at this level, there is a transition from the home language to the school language. It is not only a move from the mother tongue to the second and third language, but also a move to the more disciplined environment of the school, where social behaviour is to be related to a group of peers.
• Learning English therefore need not involve the loss of the home language.
• While the child is being exposed to new ideas and worlds, she is still rooted in present environments; attempts are made in the book to draw on what is familiar to the child.
• The book supports the child's emotional needs and anxieties in order to strengthen the pathways to learning.
• By using games and tasks that draw on the imagination, the child will see that organised play and work have their own rules and discipline. Imaginative thinking is given a boost.
• The book encourages the child to use language in speech and writing, to express feelings and opinions, to reach out to others, see other points of view and thus develop as a social being.
• The child learns through fun and enjoyment, music, games and activity. There should be as much movement as possible, so that the child gets to use language without much conscious effort. All this is provided in the book.
• Praise the child for efforts and performance; Say 'that's good' or 'let's tiy again' or 'do you want to change what you have done?' rather than using stricter forms of speech.
• Be aware of different abilities amongst the children who are musically inclined
  /mathematically
  inclined/physically active/more introvert. Find ways to encourage each one to participate actively in the class.
• Modulate your voice when you communicate with the class; rephrase in different words if they do not understand you the first time.
• Let children work at their own speed.

In Book Two, emphasis has been laid on all the language skills.

Listening and speaking

Read poems and stories aloud, before you ask children to repeat or recite. Exposure to the sounds of language is important. Do not give meanings, but let them make sense of meanings by using whatever knowledge of the world and of language they already have. You are advised to practise the sounds of language yourself, before you start repeating them in class in Say aloud.

Speaking on issues relevant to the child's life is to be done in Talk time. Which language should the child use here? Encourage the child to talk, and help him/her to increase the use of English. The environment should be motivating, encouraging and free from stress and fear for this to happen.

Reading

By now, the child should be reading on his/her own so avoid the temptation to explain difficult words; instead let her guess meanings by choosing options that are given in the book or which you can give. All meanings need not be understood at once; some meanings can come later, after the child realises that her guessing of meanings may not be according to the context. When reading has to develop, the child should be given a chance to read with comprehension; reading is not merely mouthing words.

Writing 

continues as in Book One, with added focus on the running hand. This is necessary for eye and hand coordination at this stage. Please see that the child does not lift the pencil from the book while practising running hand till a word has been completed. Also see that the child has the correct grip on the pencil. More practice can be given for this, but do not overload the child with writing at this stage. For writing, activities like paper tearing, cutting, pasting, colouring within boundaries, stringing beads, using spoons for transferring rice from one bowl to another, for instance, are all important means of developing good handwriting at this stage.

Note : If the child is inclined to left-handed writing, do not push the child to be a right-handed writer.

As in Book One, divide the class into groups for activities; call a group by different Names --  flowers, colours, birds, animals etc.

Dramatise emotions like being shy, happy, excited or angry.

Unit 1  focuses on what the child's anxieties and uncertainties might be in going to school from a familiar home environment. The Unit tries to help the child acclimatise to the different world of the school. But as said earlier, it encourages the child to talk of the familiar - pets, family etc. and at the same time tries to ensure that expectations for school exist e.g., personal habits, the things to pack into a school bag etc.