DIDACTIC UNIT

MY FAMILY

BY
ALEJANDRO LANDINEZ

GENERAL ASPECTS
Title: My family
Level: Sixth graders
Term: Third
Temporalization: 8 lessons of one hour and forty minutes each
Author: Javier Alejandro Landnez S.
INTRODUCTION
The main topic of this didactic unit is The Family Members; it gives enough tools to the students, not
only to learn the vocabulary related, recognizing it from words, pictures and sounds; but also to make
written and oral productions, at the same time that they are able to use it in their daily routines.
JUSTIFICATION
Through this didactic unit I want to give importance to the family. It can be said that the family is the
first school in charge of giving a good formation to the human being, and maybe it is the most
important one because in this environment is where people get their first experiences and values. The
family gives shape to its members; and here it is where they learn values, attitudes, behaviors and
principles, which will allow them to live in society.
OBJECTIVES
Communicative: Introducing the members of the family to others, talking about family members; for
example their likes, dislikes, professions, etc.
Linguistic: Expressions like: this is my, he/she is a/an, who is he/she? I would like to introduce you
my family, how many brothers and sisters do you have? He/she is ___ years old; he/she is from ___.
Vocabulary: father, mother, parents, brother, sister, siblings, son, daughter, children, kids,
uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, cousins, grandfather, grandpa, grandmother, grandma,
grandparents, grandson, granddaughter, grandchildren, grandkids, great grandfather /
mother / parents / son / daughter / children / kids; god father / mother / parents / son /
daughter / children; step father / mother / son / daughter / brother / sister; father /
mother / son / daughter / brother / sister in law; boyfriend, girlfriend, fiance, fianc,
groom, bride, husband, wife, widow, widower.

Attitudinal: Showing interest for the different activities proposed, tolerating others in the diverse
exercises done in groups, having respect for the classmates opinions, showing respect, responsibility
and punctuality in the classwork.
CONTENTS
Functional content: asking and answering questions about family members, introducing them to
others, talking about their hobbies, etc.
Grammatical content: subject pronouns, possessive pronouns, possessive adjectives, reflexive
pronouns, present simple, present perfect, past simple, present perfect.
Lexical content: family members; father, mother, etc.
Socio-cultural aspects: recognizing diversity and multiculturalism in the other students, taking into
account that every student is different and worthy of respects and having positive interpersonal
relationships with classmates.
Transverse themes: (CLIL) Content and Language Integrated Learning, in connection with geography
by studying nationalities and countries.
Previously acquired knowledge: to develop the activities correctly, the students should have learnt
basic vocabulary related to the family members.
METHODOLOGY
Regarding methodology, I prefer to use the Direct Method; it is the most suitable because it allows
students to perceive meaning directly through the target language, which in this case is English. To
guarantee understanding, I will use visual and hearing aids with students; at the same time I will
include pantomime to give a better idea about the vocabulary and concepts. The goal is to get students
to communicate as if they were in real situations. Four skills are emphasized and grammar is learnt
inductively. With this method students must think, use and be involved in the English language;
speaking is the most important ability and reading and writing come later with some time and practice.
There are interaction between teacher and students and between students themselves, but mainly it is a
method that is teacher-directed.

RESOURCES
Leavitt, C. (2007) The Kids' Family Tree. New York: Sterling; Reprint edition.
Two Minute English, (2013, March 15th) My Family, retrieved from:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQaS-p6_63s
Family from Magic English, (2010, March 15th) retrieved from:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Akz2fTrqT6s
The Family from Self-study, Cambridge, (2014), retrieved from
http://www.selfstudy.cambridge.org/media/11194/9780521136204p008-011.pdf

PEDAGOGICAL TASKS FOR EACH LESSON

As a first step, its good to start with prior knowledge of the students, and then to build new vocabulary
and grammar structures. Heterogeneity of students is taken into account; this because not all the
students have the same skills and not all of them learn in the same way.
Students will be organized in different ways, depending on the activity developed in class; in lines, in
circle, in groups of four, three, couples, and individually for self-assessment, personal study and
assimilation of the content.
It is useful to create an English corner in the classroom with posters, drawings and images related to the
family members.
Use of audiovisual aids and technology will also be a must in the classes; students will be able to take
their tablets and computers to the class.

PROJECT NAME
MY FAMILY AND THE ROLE THEY HAVE IN THE COMMUNITY.
GENERAL
AIM
Identify
basic and
advanced
vocabulary
related to the
family
members.
Recognize it

COMMUNICATIVE
AND GRAMMATICAL
TOPICS
Personal pronouns,
possessive adjectives,
possessive pronouns,
reflexive pronouns,
pronunciation of the
vocabulary of family
members.

LESSON 1
SKILLS
Listening
and
speaking.

ACTIVITIES/ TASKS

Flashcards with vocabulary are

presented through the video beam.
Students listen and repeat the words,
then pictures are shown and students
say the word referred by each image.
Second, photocopies with the drawing
of a family tree are supplied to all the

TIMIN
G
20 min

20 min

from pictures
and audio
tracks.
Talk about
family
members
personal
information,
countries and
nationalities

students. They draw family and write

the names of each member.
Family members are presented to the
class saying some of their personal
information, like names, professions,
etc.

40 min

Questions about the topic are made to

check the students current knowledge.
20 min

AIM
Identify
family
members
from the
family tree.

LESSON 2
ACTIVITIES/ TASKS
Review of the family members by answering
questions like: who is your uncles son? Who is
your mothers husband? etc., including all the
members studied during the first lesson.
Next, the students work individually by solving
a word search with all family members studied.

TIMIN
G
20 min

RESOURCES
Tablet
Video beam
Speakers
Handouts

SKILLS
Listening
and
speaking

20 min

Students sing the song The Family Song by

Busy Beavers.
20 min
Activity where students work in groups and
guess family members professions by the
mimics done by one of the members of the
group.

20 min

Finally students fill in the blanks of a provided

exercise with sentences about family members
20 min

AIM
Talk about
countries and
family
members
nationalities

LESSON 3
ACTIVITIES/ TASKS
CLIL activities are presented. Integrated
activities with geography. Students check the
world map and identify some countries with
their corresponding nationalities.

TIMIN
G
20 min

Next, students invent and write a short play

including family members, countries and
nationalities. They work in groups of 3 or 4
students.

30 min

Students present their plays in front of the class.

30 min

Coevaluation is done.

RESOURCES
Tablet
Video beam
Speakers
Earth globe
Handouts

SKILLS
Listening,
speaking
and writing

20 min

AIM
Read a story
about some
family
members,
including
grammar
elements like
possessive
pronouns and
possessive
adjectives.

LESSON 4
ACTIVITIES/ TASKS
Revision of the whole vocabulary of family
members. It includes more than sixty words.
With the studied vocabulary students invent a
poem, a rhyme, a tongue twister or a song.

Invent a
story about a
family

20 min

Next, students present their work to the whole

class.

30 min

Once more, Students sing the song The Family

Song by Busy Beavers.

20 min

Finally, a photocopy with a crossword puzzle is

provided to each one of the students. The first
five students who finish the puzzle will receive
extra points.

AIM

TIMIN
G
20 min

LESSON 5
ACTIVITIES/ TASKS
Warming up activity memory game. Students
match pairs of family members in a game called
Memorama.
Secondly, students work in pairs to invent a
story about a family. The story must include
most of the words worked during all the
previous lessons.

RESOURCES
Tablet
Video beam
Speakers
Handouts
Notebook

SKILLS
Listening,
speaking
and writing

20 min

TIMIN
G
20 min

RESOURCES
Computer
Video beam
Speakers
Notebook

SKILLS
Listening,
speaking,
reading and
writing

30 min

30 min
Next, the students stand up and share the written
stories with the whole group.
Finally evaluation and coevaluation are done.

AIM
Draw a
family tree
and write
names of an
invented
family

LESSON 6
ACTIVITIES/ TASKS
Warming up activity Family song by Sesame
street.
Students are provided with blank papers to draw
a family tree and write names of people.
Students share their family trees to their
classmates in front of the class. The students ask

20 min

TIMIN
G
20 min
20 min

30 min

RESOURCES
Computer
Video beam
Speakers
Notebook
Sheets of paper
Pencils and
colored pencils

SKILLS
Listening,
speaking,
reading and
writing

questions about the family trees.

Drawings about people who live at home are
made, these drawings exclude pets.
20 min
Students give drawings and family trees to the
teacher to be checked.
10 min

AIM
Write
sentences in
present
simple,
including the
vocabulary
of the family
members and
the
possessive
adjectives

LESSON 7
ACTIVITIES/ TASKS
Review of knowledge acquired during all the
lessons. It is done through questions to all the
students.
Presentation of a video with a story about a
family. This story has the present simple in
context.

20 min

Short explanation of possessive adjectives with

some examples and exercises.

10 min

Classwork, where each student has to write ten

sentences about their family using the present
simple tense. Sentences include vocabulary of
family and possessive adjectives.

30 min

Students read some of their best sentences to the

class and coevaluation is done.

AIM
Have a short
conversation
with a
classmate
where family
members and
reflexive
pronouns are
the main
topics.

TIMIN
G
20 min

LESSON 8
ACTIVITIES/ TASKS
Warming up activity, a concentration game
where each student choses a family member
and repeats a chant by clapping hands.
Students whoever makes a mistake has to
accomplish a penalty.

RESOURCES
Computer
Video beam
Speakers
Notebook

SKILLS
Listening,
speaking,
reading and
writing

20 min

TIMIN
G
20 min

Short explanation of reflexive pronouns with

examples and exercises.

10 min

Next, students write on their notebooks

questions about a classmates family. In the
questions they have to include reflexive
pronouns.

20 min

Students work in pairs and use the time wisely

to ask and answer questions about family.

20 min

RESOURCES
Computer
Video beam
Speakers
Notebook

SKILLS
Listening,
speaking,
reading and
writing

Questions include personal information,

hobbies, likes and dislikes.
Written exam of all the vocabulary and
grammar structures seen during all the given
lessons.

30 min

ASSESSMENT, EVALUATION CRITERIA

As the chosen Method was the Direct Method, the means for evaluation will be testing through actual
use of the language, like oral interviews, participation in forum discussions and assigned written
paragraphs. Listening recognition and vocabulary knowledge will also be taken into account.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bataller, B. (2014). How to design a Didactic Unit: Valencia: Bubok.
Leavitt, C. (2007) The Kids' Family Tree. New York: Sterling; Reprint edition.
The Family from Self-study, Cambridge, (2014), retrieved from

ANNEXES

FAMILY TREE