Note for teachers using this lesson plan

Before this lesson, ensure you have a small broom, a dustpan, a waste bin, and various types of clean “dirt” like paper scraps and biscuit wrappers ready for demonstration and guided practice. The central idea is for pupils to understand what makes an environment dirty and how they can safely participate in keeping it clean. Observe pupils as they demonstrate picking up dirt and placing it in the waste bin to confirm their understanding of proper waste disposal.

Class: Pre-School Level 2
Term: Second Term
Week: 9
Age: 3 years
Duration: 30 minutes
Subject: Health Habits
Curriculum Theme: Health Habits
Previous Lesson: Not separately stated in the scheme.
Topic: KEEPING HOME AND SCHOOL SURROUNDINGS CLEAN
Subject Matter: CLEANLINESS. (Talking Care of Our Environment). Weekly focus: Keeping Home and School Surroundings Clean.

Specific Objectives

By the end of the lesson, pupils should be able to:

Cognitive Domain

Identify common types of dirt found in home and school surroundings (e.g., wrappers, paper scraps).
Name simple tools used for cleaning (e.g., broom, waste bin).
State one reason why clean surroundings are important.

Affective Domain

Show willingness to participate in simple cleaning activities.
Appreciate the importance of having clean surroundings.

Psychomotor Domain

Demonstrate simple sweeping motions with a small broom.
Pick up small pieces of dirt and place them correctly in a waste bin.

Work together with peers to keep a designated area clean.
Share cleaning tools appropriately during group activities.

Reference Materials

NAPPS National Unified Teaching Scheme for Pre-School Level 2
Relevant Early Childhood Care and Education resources
Suitable early-years health habits workbook/textbook

Instructional Materials

Small broom and dustpan
Waste bin
Examples of “dirt” (e.g., clean biscuit wrappers, sweet wrappers, paper scraps, dry leaves)
Picture cards showing clean and dirty environments
Chart posters illustrating cleaning actions
Video on keeping the environment clean
Learning Stamps, Story Book, Picture Book, Flash Cards, Picture Charts, Jigsaw Puzzles (as per seed)

Rationale for the Lesson

This lesson is important for 3-year-olds as it introduces them to the practical aspects of cleanliness in their immediate environment. Learning to keep their surroundings clean helps develop good hygiene habits, promotes a healthy living space, and teaches them responsibility towards their community from an early age.

Prerequisite/Previous Knowledge

Pupils can identify basic objects around them and may have seen adults cleaning at home or school. They also have a basic understanding of what “dirty” means.

Lesson Content/Board Summary

KEEPING HOME AND SCHOOL SURROUNDINGS CLEAN

Cleanliness means keeping our places free from dirt.

Our home and school surroundings should be clean.

What makes our surroundings dirty?

Biscuit wrappers
Sweet wrappers
Nylons
Pieces of waste papers
Food crumbs
Dry leaves

Why should we keep our surroundings clean?

To stay healthy and avoid sickness.
To make our home and school look nice.
To feel happy and comfortable.

How can we keep our surroundings clean?

Sweep the floor with a broom.
Pick up dirt (wrappers, papers).
Put all dirt into a waste bin.
Wash our hands after cleaning.

Key Words

Clean – Free from dirt.
Dirt – Things that make a place messy, like wrappers or dust.
Sweep – To clean the floor with a broom.
Waste bin – A container for putting rubbish.

Clean-Up Time Song

Tune: “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”

Lyrics:

Clean up, clean up, every day,
Pick the dirt and throw away.
Home and school, so neat and bright,
Making everything just right.
Clean up, clean up, happy day,
Keeping germs and dirt away!

Actions: Mimic sweeping, picking up dirt, throwing into a bin, smiling, and wiping hands.

Watch and Practise

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sD36X4k69vI

💡 Teacher Guide for Using This Board Summary

How to teach the content: Begin by asking pupils what they see around them. Introduce the idea of “clean” and “dirty” using real examples of dirt. Explain why cleanliness is important using simple language and relate it to their health and comfort. Go through the “How can we keep our surroundings clean?” points one by one, demonstrating each action.

What to show or demonstrate: Show real examples of dirt (wrappers, paper scraps). Demonstrate how to use a small broom and dustpan to sweep a small area. Show how to pick up dirt carefully and place it into the waste bin. Emphasize washing hands afterwards.

How to use the rhyme/song: Introduce the “Clean-Up Time Song” after discussing how to clean. Sing it together several times, encouraging pupils to do the actions. Use it as a transition song for cleaning activities.

How to use the video: Introduce the video as a fun way to learn more about keeping places clean. Play the video “Keep Our School Clean Song” once or twice. After watching, discuss what they saw in the video and ask pupils what they can do to keep their school clean, encouraging them to repeat actions or phrases from the video.

What to watch for: Observe if pupils can correctly identify dirt and if they understand the basic actions of sweeping and putting dirt in the bin. Correct any unsafe handling of tools or improper waste disposal.

Teaching Methods/Instructional Techniques

Play-based Learning, Demonstration, Guided Practice, Songs and Rhymes, Picture Talk, Question and Answer, Imitation, Practical Activity.

Instructional Procedures

Step 1: Introduction

Time: 3 minutes

Teaching Skill: Engaging/Recalling

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher greets the pupils, sings a short welcome song, and asks them to look around the classroom. The teacher asks, “Is our classroom clean or dirty today?”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils respond to greetings, sing along, and observe their surroundings, giving simple answers like “clean” or “dirty.”

Learning Point: Pupils are engaged and begin to observe their environment.

Step 2: Presentation (What is Cleanliness?)

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Explaining/Illustrating

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher explains what “clean surroundings” means using picture cards of clean and dirty places. The teacher shows examples of common dirt like wrappers and paper scraps, asking, “What are these? Do they make our place clean or dirty?”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils look at the pictures and real examples, identify dirt, and say whether it makes a place clean or dirty.

Learning Point: Pupils understand the concept of cleanliness and identify common types of dirt.

Step 3: Demonstration (Identifying and Disposing Dirt)

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Demonstrating/Modelling

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher places some “dirt” (e.g., clean wrappers, paper) on the floor in a designated area. The teacher then demonstrates how to pick up the dirt carefully and put it into the waste bin, explaining, “This is where rubbish goes.”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils watch the teacher’s demonstration carefully, pointing to the dirt and the waste bin.

Learning Point: Pupils observe the correct way to pick up and dispose of dirt.

Step 4: Guided Practice (Simple Cleaning Actions)

Time: 6 minutes

Teaching Skill: Guiding/Facilitating

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher provides small brooms and dustpans (or encourages miming the actions). The teacher guides pupils to practise simple sweeping motions and picking up imaginary or actual small pieces of dirt, then guides them to “put” it in a waste bin.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils imitate the sweeping and picking-up actions, practising with the tools or miming the actions as guided by the teacher.

Learning Point: Pupils develop psychomotor skills related to cleaning.

Step 5: Activity/Reinforcement (Clean-Up Time Song)

Time: 3 minutes

Teaching Skill: Reinforcing/Singing

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher leads the pupils in singing the “Clean-Up Time Song” several times, encouraging them to perform the actions. The teacher praises pupils for their participation.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils sing the song with enthusiasm and perform the corresponding cleaning actions.

Learning Point: Pupils reinforce learning through song and movement, associating actions with cleanliness.

Step 6: Application (Video and Discussion)

Time: 4 minutes

Teaching Skill: Visual Learning/Discussion

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher plays the video “Keep Our School Clean Song” for the pupils. After the video, the teacher asks simple questions like, “What did the children do in the video?” or “What can we do to keep our school clean?”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils watch the video and respond to the teacher’s questions, sharing what they observed and what they can do.

Learning Point: Pupils apply what they’ve learned to real-life scenarios and connect with the importance of cleanliness.

Step 7: Evaluation/Review

Time: 4–5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Questioning/Assessment

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher checks pupils’ understanding through short questions and practical tasks.

“Point to something dirty in this picture.” (Teacher shows a picture of a dirty place).
“What do we use to sweep the floor?” (Teacher shows a broom).
“Where should we put this wrapper?” (Teacher holds up a wrapper and points to a waste bin).
Ask a few pupils to demonstrate picking up a piece of paper and putting it in the bin.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils respond orally and demonstrate the required skill where appropriate.

Learning Point: Pupils demonstrate understanding of the lesson.

Step 8: Conclusion

Time: 1 minute

Teaching Skill: Summarising

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher praises the pupils for their participation and reminds them to always keep their home and school surroundings clean to stay healthy and happy. The teacher leads a final “Clean-Up Time” chant.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils listen to the reminder and participate in the final chant.

Learning Point: Pupils receive a positive reinforcement and a clear message about the importance of cleanliness.

Lesson Keywords

Clean – Free from dirt.
Dirt – Things that make a place messy, like wrappers or dust.
Sweep – To clean the floor with a broom.
Waste bin – A container for putting rubbish.

Differentiation

Support: For pupils who need extra help, provide larger pieces of “dirt” to pick up, offer hand-over-hand guidance for sweeping motions, and repeat instructions slowly. Use more visual aids and one-on-one prompts.
Extension: For pupils who grasp the concept quickly, encourage them to identify more types of dirt (e.g., dust, spilled water) or explain in their own words why it’s important to put dirt in the bin. They can also help model correct cleaning actions for their peers.