In the last issue of English Now, we gave you news and ideas for using stories in your English language primary class. In this issue we continue that theme with a lesson idea based on a simple story which can be used to supplement your lessons in grade 3 and 4.


A quick recap about using stories:

• Stories are enormously valuable in the primary classroom. They do not have to contain only familiar language if the teacher uses facial expressions, voice and gestures to make the meaning clear.
• Repetition is crucial. When you come to the part that is repeated several times in the story, say it clearly and ask the learners to join in, repeating it chorally.
• Use your voice for characters – speak loudly, softly, slowly and vary the pitch.
• Involve the learners – let them do actions and predict what will come next in the story.


The lesson plan on the next page links to the story below

The hatmaker and the monkeys

Once upon a time there was a man who made hats. He was a hatmaker. One day he had enough hats to sell so he put them all in his cart and set off for the market. It was a very hot day and it was a long journey. The man began to feel very tired. He came to a tree and sat down. He was pleased to sit down under it in the shade. Soon he fell asleep. He did not know that there were monkeys in the tree. They were very interested in the hats. While the man was sleeping the monkeys crept down from the tree and took the hats out of the cart. Each monkey put a hat on and then climbed back up into the tree.

After a while the man woke up. He noticed that his cart was empty. There were no hats in it! “Where are my hats?” he said. “Where can they be?” He looked everywhere but couldn’t find the hats. The man was very worried. “Oh dear!” he said “What am I going to do?” Then he looked up. He saw the monkeys in the tree wearing his hats! The man was very angry and shook his fist at the monkeys. The monkeys shook their fists too! Then the man shouted at the monkeys and can you believe it! … the monkeys shouted back too! The man was getting angrier and angrier and he started stamping his feet. And guess what? The monkeys did the same! Now the man was so angry that he was jumping up and down , and of course the monkeys did the same. Monkeys can imitate well. They copy the things people do, so the hatmaker had an idea. He would get them to copy another action. He took off his own hat and threw it on the ground. Then he waited…and suddenly, just as he had planned, those naughty monkeys took off their hats and threw them on the ground. Very happy, the hatmaker picked up all his hats and put them back in his cart. He wasn’t feeling tired anymore and off he went to the market to sell his hats.


Lesson ideas



Aim: to develop students’ listening skills through a fun, interactive storytelling session
Time: 40 mins

Procedure:

1. Bring in old newspapers and give simple instructions to help your students make a paper hat. Alternatively, you can get them to do this as homework to bring in to class.

2. The students put on their hats and follow the teacher’s instructions – an adaptation of the wellknown game “Simon says”.

The instructions might be:
• take off your hat
• put on your hat
• make a fist
• stamp your feet
• jump up and down
• sit down
• stand up
• go to sleep
• throw your hat on the floor

3. The teacher shows a picture of a monkey and a man. She prepares the students for the topic of the story by eliciting ideas and introducing the characters.

4. The teacher tells the story using lots of gesture, voice and facial expressions. She gets the students to follow her gestures and actions. If there is time, the teacher can tell the story again encouraging even more participation form the students.

5. The teacher can follow up the storytelling with one or some of these ideas:
• Role-play – in pairs students take the roles of a monkey and the man and act out the story.
• Creating a new story – in small groups, students change the story e.g. shoes not hats, the shoemaker does other actions copied by the monkeys. The students can then retell their version of the story.
• In groups students make a book of the story using pictures to illustrate their sentences.
• Language work – the teacher can prepare a gap-fill of the story and students put in missing key vocabulary.

Students can re-order cut up sentences based on the story.

Adapted from Gail Ellis and Jean Brewster’s “The Storytelling Handbook for Primary Teachers” (Penguin ELT)


 You could use a photo like this one to lead into the story

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