Meaning and Ways of Cooperating in School for Pre-School Level 4

Class: Pre-School Level 4
Term: Third Term
Week: 8
Age: 5 years
Duration: 30 minutes
Subject: Civic Education
Curriculum Theme: Civic Education
Previous Lesson: Not separately stated in the scheme.
Topic: COOPERATION IN SCHOOL
Subject Matter: Meaning and ways of cooperating in school.

Specific Objectives

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

Cognitive Domain

• Identify different members of their school.
• State the simple meaning of cooperation.
• Mention at least two ways they can cooperate with their schoolmates.

Affective Domain

• Show willingness to cooperate with others in school.
• Appreciate the importance of working together.

Psychomotor Domain

• Participate in a cooperative activity like sharing or tidying up.
• Demonstrate simple cooperative actions through role-play.

Social Domain

• Interact positively with peers during group activities.

Reference Materials

• NAPPS National Unified Teaching Scheme for Pre-School Level 4.
• Relevant Early Childhood Care and Education resources.

Instructional Materials

• Chart pictures of a school (showing pupils, teachers, head teacher, cleaners, security guards).
• Pictures of children sharing toys, helping each other, and working together.
• Classroom toys or blocks for sharing activities.

Rationale for the Lesson

This lesson introduces Pre-School Level 4 pupils to the concept of cooperation, which is fundamental for positive social interaction and a harmonious learning environment. Understanding cooperation helps children develop empathy, sharing skills, and a sense of belonging, preparing them for group work and community living.

Prerequisite/Previous Knowledge

Pupils can identify their school and some people who work there. They have some experience playing with other children and following simple instructions.

Lesson Content/Board Summary

COOPERATION IN SCHOOL

Cooperation means working together with others to achieve something good or to help each other. When we cooperate, we make things easier and more fun for everyone.

Members of Our School

In our school, many people work together:

• Pupils: Children who learn in the school.
• Teachers: Adults who teach and care for the children.
• Head Teacher/Proprietor: The person in charge of the school.
• Cleaners: People who help keep the school neat and tidy.
• Security Guards: People who help keep the school safe.

Ways We Can Cooperate in School

We can cooperate with everyone in our school:

1. With other pupils:
   • Share our toys and crayons.
   • Help each other clean up the classroom.
   • Play together nicely.
   • Take turns when playing games.
2. With our teachers:
   • Listen carefully when they are talking.
   • Follow instructions.
   • Help them carry light books or materials.
   • Help keep the classroom tidy.
3. With the Head Teacher/Proprietor:
   • Greet them respectfully.
   • Follow the school rules.
4. With cleaners and security guards:
   • Don’t litter the compound.
   • Greet them politely.

Cooperation Song

Tune: “The More We Get Together”

The more we work together, together, together,
The more we work together, the happier we’ll be.
For your friends are my friends,
And my friends are your friends,
The more we work together, the happier we’ll be!

Actions: Pupils hold hands and sway, then point to friends, then clap.

How to use the rhyme: Sing the song together, encouraging pupils to do the actions. Emphasize the words “work together” and “happier.”

Watch and Learn About Cooperation

Let’s watch a short video about working together and helping each other.

Key Words

• Cooperation – working together to help each other.
• Schoolmates – friends or other children in your school.
• Share – letting others use what you have.
• Help – doing something to make it easier for someone else.

Teaching Methods/Instructional Techniques

• Play-based Learning
• Demonstration
• Guided Practice
• Songs and Rhymes
• Picture Talk
• Question and Answer
• Role-play
• Repetition
• Practical Activity

Instructional Procedures

Step 1: Introduction

Time: 3 minutes

Teaching Skill: Engagement/Recall

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher greets the pupils warmly and leads them in a short welcome song. The teacher then asks pupils to name their school and some people they see in school every day.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils respond to greetings, sing along, and name their school and some school members (e.g., “my teacher,” “my friends”).

Learning Point: Pupils are engaged and recall familiar school members.

Step 2: Meaning of Cooperation

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Explanation/Picture Talk

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher shows pictures of children working together, sharing, and helping. The teacher explains in simple terms that “cooperation means working together to help each other and make things good.” The teacher asks, “What do you see in this picture? Are they helping each other?”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils look at the pictures, point to actions of helping, and repeat the word “cooperation.”

Learning Point: Pupils begin to understand the concept of cooperation visually and orally.

Step 3: Identifying School Members

Time: 4 minutes

Teaching Skill: Identification/Visual Aid

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher displays chart pictures of a school with various members (pupils, teachers, head teacher, cleaners, security guards). The teacher points to each person and asks, “Who is this? What do they do in our school?”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils identify the different members of the school and briefly state their roles (e.g., “teacher teaches,” “cleaner sweeps”).

Learning Point: Pupils can identify key members of their school community.

Step 4: Ways of Cooperating (Pupil-Pupil)

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Discussion/Role-play

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher asks, “How can you cooperate with your friends (schoolmates)?” The teacher guides the discussion to sharing toys, helping to clean up, and playing nicely. The teacher then demonstrates sharing a toy with a pupil and asks pupils to role-play sharing.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils offer ideas, watch the demonstration, and then role-play sharing toys or helping a friend with a simple task.

Learning Point: Pupils understand and can demonstrate cooperation with their peers.

Step 5: Ways of Cooperating (Pupil-Teacher/Administrator)

Time: 4 minutes

Teaching Skill: Discussion/Reinforcement

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher asks, “How can you cooperate with me (your teacher)? How about the Head Teacher?” The teacher guides pupils to mention listening, following instructions, greeting respectfully, and helping keep the classroom tidy. The teacher praises good suggestions.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils offer ideas like “I will listen,” “I will greet ma,” “I will help clean.”

Learning Point: Pupils identify ways to cooperate with adults in the school.

Step 6: Reinforcement through Song and Video

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Musical/Visual Reinforcement

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher leads the pupils in singing the “Cooperation Song” with actions. After the song, the teacher introduces the short video on cooperation and plays it for the pupils, encouraging them to watch carefully.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils sing the song with actions and watch the video attentively.

Learning Point: Pupils reinforce their understanding of cooperation through song and visual media.

Step 7: Evaluation/Review

Time: 4 minutes

Teaching Skill: Questioning/Assessment

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

1. “What does cooperation mean?” (Working together/helping)
2. “Name two people in our school.”
3. “Show me how you can cooperate by sharing a toy with your friend.”
4. “What should you do when your teacher is talking?” (Listen)

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

Learning Point: Pupils demonstrate understanding of the lesson.

Step 8: Conclusion

Time: 2 minutes

Teaching Skill: Summarization/Encouragement

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher summarizes the lesson by reminding pupils that cooperation makes school a happy place. The teacher praises pupils for their participation and encourages them to always cooperate. The teacher might give a simple instruction like “Let’s all cooperate to pack our books now.”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils listen to the summary and participate in a final cooperative action.

Learning Point: Pupils consolidate their learning and are encouraged to practice cooperation.

Lesson Keywords

• Cooperation – working together to help each other.
• Schoolmates – friends or other children in your school.
• Share – letting others use what you have.
• Help – doing something to make it easier for someone else.
• Listen – paying attention with your ears.

Differentiation

• Support: For pupils who struggle to grasp the concept, the teacher can use more direct physical demonstrations, hand-over-hand guidance during sharing activities, and ask simpler “yes/no” questions. Repetition of the key phrase “working together” will be helpful.
• Extension: For pupils who quickly understand, the teacher can ask them to give more examples of cooperation they have seen at home or in the playground, or assign them a small leadership role in a cooperative classroom task (e.g., leading a small group to pack away blocks).

Note for teachers using this lesson plan

Before the lesson, ensure you have clear, large pictures of different school members and children cooperating. Prepare a few classroom toys or blocks that can be used for a practical sharing activity. The main idea children must grasp is that “cooperation means working together to help each other.” Judge understanding by observing if children can identify cooperative actions in pictures or demonstrate them during role-play or clean-up time. Encourage all pupils to participate in the song and actions. For shy pupils, invite them to join a friend in a cooperative task. Emphasize that cooperation makes everyone happy and makes tasks easier. Reinforce the concept throughout the school day by praising cooperative behavior.