The Very Hungry Caterpillar

by Eric Carle

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Texts to be used
The book: Eric Carle, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Puffin. ISBN 0-14-050087-1 

Large size book: ISBN

 Here are some interesting websites with information about the author and suggestions for activities based on the book and for materials to help you teach it. 

Making materials to teach with

The Eric Carle website

 

Learning aims for this unit
Methods:
  • Ways of working with text with young learners
  • Making materials to help present texts
  • Presenting new vocabulary

Language: 

  • Talking about numbers
  • Fruit and food words
  • Days of the week and capital letters
Click here for Working with Language

 
Working with the texts: tasks 

You can, of course do these tasks on your own, but you will get more out of them and a lot more practice in speaking English if you do them with a colleague or someone (several people) in your tutorial group. 

1. Pre-reading: 

  • Think in general about how you would present such a text. How would you present unfamiliar words to the class without translating them?
  • How would you practice the new words with the class when you had presented them?
2.Reading and working with the texts: 

The book 

  • Read quickly through the book and then try to re-tell the story aloud in English.
  • Read it again and make a list of the words you think your pupils will understand quite easily.
  • Read it yet again ( all this re-reading is help you to memorise the story!) and make a list of the words your pupils may not understand
  • Think about how you would explain the meaning of these words to them in English or in other ways
  • Collect together groups of word according to meaning ( for example, days of the week)
  • Identify two points of grammar which are repeated throughout the story
  • Practise reading the story aloud as dramatically and interestingly as you can
  • How can you check how to pronounce unfamiliar words?
  • See if you can TELL the story without looking at the text

The websites: 

Look through the two websites and try to find one or two activities which you might find useful with your own class. (Most of the activities are intended for native speakers, but you might find several which would be useful to you as a language teacher. You may also find some ideas for using this English text as a lead-in to other subjects you teach. (Biology, for example?) 

3. Follow up tasks. 

  •  Plan how you would present this story to your class. Think about what words you would have to explain, about what extra materials you might need to prepare, about how you might follow up and extend the story
  • Have a look at the teaching plan for English and see what it says about stories
  • How would you follow up the story to make the pupils use the language they have heard actively?

 
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Last modified by kh December 7, 2004