Speech: Answering Questions About Ongoing Actions for Primary 2

Class: Primary 2
Term: First Term
Week: 8
Age: 7 years
Duration: 45 minutes
Subject: English Studies
Curriculum Theme: Speech
Previous Lesson: First Term English Language Studies Examination
Topic: Speech: Answering Questions About Ongoing Actions
Subject Matter: Given oral information through response to question e.g. Q- Are you cooking? A-No, I am not; I am singing. Q-Are Bash and Aisha sleeping? A-No, they are reading.

Specific Objectives

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

Cognitive Domain

• Identify ongoing actions from pictures or real-life scenarios.
• Recall the correct structure for answering questions about ongoing actions (e.g., “Yes, I am,” “No, I am not; I am…”).

Affective Domain

• Participate actively in question and answer sessions.
• Show confidence when speaking about ongoing actions.

Psychomotor Domain

• Orally answer simple questions about ongoing actions using correct sentence structures.
• Formulate simple affirmative and negative responses to questions about what people are doing.

Reference Materials

The following resources were used in planning this lesson:

• 2014 9 Years Basic Education Curriculum
• Relevant State Unified Scheme of Work
• Primary 2 English Studies Textbook
• FCT ERC/NAPPS Scheme of work

Instructional Materials

The teacher will teach this lesson with the aid of:

• Chart showing different ongoing actions (e.g., a child eating, a woman cooking, children playing).
• Flashcards depicting various actions.
• Notebooks
• Pencils

Rationale for the Lesson

This lesson is important because it helps pupils develop their oral communication skills by enabling them to accurately describe and respond to questions about current activities. Mastering this skill is fundamental for everyday conversations and forms a basis for understanding more complex grammatical structures in English.

Prerequisite/Previous Knowledge

Pupils should be able to identify simple actions and understand basic ‘yes’ or ‘no’ responses. They should also have some familiarity with simple sentences in English.

Lesson Content/Board Summary

Speech: Answering Questions About Ongoing Actions

Answering Questions About What YOU Are Doing

When someone asks you “Are you…?” about an action you are doing now, you can answer in two ways:

1. Yes, I am. (If you are doing the action)
2. No, I am not; I am… (If you are not doing the action, and you want to say what you are doing instead)

Examples:

1. Question: Are you eating?
2. Answer 1: Yes, I am.
3. Answer 2: No, I am not; I am drinking.

1. Question: Are you reading?
2. Answer 1: Yes, I am.
3. Answer 2: No, I am not; I am writing.

Answering Questions About What OTHERS Are Doing

When someone asks “Is he/she…?” or “Are they…?” about actions others are doing now, you can answer:

1. Yes, he/she is. (For one person, affirmative)
2. No, he/she is not; he/she is… (For one person, negative and corrective)
3. Yes, they are. (For more than one person, affirmative)
4. No, they are not; they are… (For more than one person, negative and corrective)

Examples:

1. Question: Is Mary sleeping?
2. Answer 1: Yes, she is.
3. Answer 2: No, she is not; she is playing.

1. Question: Is John cooking?
2. Answer 1: Yes, he is.
3. Answer 2: No, he is not; he is watching TV.

1. Question: Are Bash and Aisha sleeping?
2. Answer 1: Yes, they are.
3. Answer 2: No, they are not; they are reading.

Teaching Methods/Instructional Techniques

Discussion, Demonstration, Guided Practice, Question and Answer, Explanation, Oral Repetition

Instructional Procedures

Step 1: Introduction

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Engaging/Recalling

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher greets the pupils and asks them to recall some actions they know, like “eating,” “sleeping,” “playing.” The teacher then performs a simple action (e.g., writing on the board) and asks, “What am I doing?” to introduce the idea of ongoing actions.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils respond to the teacher’s questions and name different actions. They observe the teacher’s action and say, “You are writing.”

Learning Point: Identifying ongoing actions

Step 2: Explanation of Answering “Are you…?” Questions

Time: 8 minutes

Teaching Skill: Explaining/Modelling

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher explains how to answer questions like “Are you…?” using “Yes, I am” or “No, I am not; I am…” The teacher uses flashcards or gestures to demonstrate. For example, the teacher pretends to eat and asks, “Am I eating?” then answers, “Yes, I am.” Then pretends to drink and asks, “Am I eating?” then answers, “No, I am not; I am drinking.”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils listen attentively and observe the teacher’s demonstrations. They repeat the answers after the teacher.

Learning Point: Responding to “Are you…?”

Step 3: Guided Practice (You)

Time: 7 minutes

Teaching Skill: Guided Practice/Correction

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher asks individual pupils “Are you…?” questions based on actions (e.g., “Are you sitting?”, “Are you standing?”, “Are you singing?”). The teacher guides them to give full, correct answers, providing support and correction as needed.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils take turns to answer the teacher’s questions using “Yes, I am” or “No, I am not; I am…”

Learning Point: Practising ‘I am’ responses

Step 4: Explanation of Answering “Is he/she…?” Questions

Time: 7 minutes

Teaching Skill: Explaining/Modelling

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher introduces questions about other people using “Is he/she…?” and demonstrates answers like “Yes, he/she is” or “No, he/she is not; he/she is…” The teacher points to pictures on the chart (e.g., a boy running) and asks, “Is he walking?” then answers, “No, he is not; he is running.”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils observe the pictures and listen to the teacher’s explanations and model answers. They repeat the phrases.

Learning Point: Responding to ‘he/she is’

Step 5: Explanation of Answering “Are they…?” Questions

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Explaining/Modelling

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher extends the concept to multiple people using “Are they…?” and answers like “Yes, they are” or “No, they are not; they are…” The teacher points to a picture of two girls dancing and asks, “Are they sleeping?” then answers, “No, they are not; they are dancing.”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils pay attention to the examples for plural subjects and repeat the answers.

Learning Point: Responding to ‘they are’

Step 6: Group Practice (He/She/They)

Time: 4 minutes

Teaching Skill: Group Work/Application

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher divides pupils into small groups. Each group gets a few flashcards. The teacher asks a question (e.g., “Is the girl in the picture cooking?”) and groups discuss and provide an answer. The teacher monitors and provides feedback.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils work in groups, discuss the actions in the flashcards, and formulate answers to the teacher’s questions.

Learning Point: Applying question structures

Step 7: Evaluation/Review

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Questioning/Assessment

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher evaluates the learning by asking the following questions:

1. (Teacher pretends to read) Are you sleeping?
2. (Pointing to a boy in a picture who is running) Is he walking?
3. (Pointing to two girls in a picture who are singing) Are they dancing?
4. What do you say if you are doing an action? (e.g., “Yes, I am.”)

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils answer orally and in writing.

Learning Point: Assessing response accuracy

Step 8: Note-Taking

Time: 4 minutes

Teaching Skill: Guided Writing

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher guides pupils to copy the essential Board Summary notes on answering questions about ongoing actions into their notebooks.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils copy the notes carefully into their notebooks.

Learning Point: Recording lesson points

Step 9: Conclusion

Time: 2 minutes

Teaching Skill: Summarising/Reinforcement

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher briefly reminds pupils that they have learned how to answer questions about what people are doing right now, using “Yes, I am/he/she/they are” or “No, I am/he/she/they are not; I am/he/she/they are…”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils listen and acknowledge the summary.

Learning Point: Consolidating lesson understanding

Continuous Assessment/Further Study

Type: Homework

Instruction: Answer the following questions about ongoing actions in your notebook. Look around your house or school and write down what people are doing.

1. Are you eating now?
2. Is your mother cooking?
3. Is your father watching TV?
4. Are your friends playing?
5. Are you writing?

Lesson Keywords

• Ongoing – Happening now.
• Actions – Things people do.
• Answering – Giving a reply to a question.
• Question – A sentence asking for information.
• Response – An answer to a question.

Differentiation

For struggling learners: Provide more one-on-one practice with simple “Are you…?” questions, using gestures and real objects. Allow them to use single-word answers initially before building up to full sentences. Use picture prompts to aid their responses.

For advanced learners: Challenge them to ask questions to their classmates and receive answers. Encourage them to describe more complex ongoing actions or to form questions using different subjects (e.g., “Is the dog barking?”).

Suggested Lesson Videos

For further understanding and visual examples, search on YouTube for: Primary 2 English answering present continuous questions