Meaning of Congratulatory Greetings and When to Use Them for Pre-School Level 4

Class: Pre-School Level 4
Term: Second Term
Week: 4
Age: 5 years
Duration: 30 minutes
Subject: Personal Development
Curriculum Theme: Personal Development
Previous Lesson: Understanding and showing appreciation
Topic: Congratulatory Greetings: Meaning and When to Use Them
Subject Matter: Congratulatory Greetings: Meaning and When to Use Them

Specific Objectives

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

Cognitive Domain

• State the meaning of congratulatory greetings.
• Identify situations where congratulatory greetings are used.

Affective Domain

• Show happiness for a friend’s success or good fortune.
• Appreciate the importance of using polite greetings.

Psychomotor Domain

• Demonstrate how to congratulate a friend.
• Use simple congratulatory phrases.

Social Domain

• Participate in role-play scenarios involving congratulatory greetings.
• Interact positively with peers during congratulatory moments.

Reference Materials

• NAPPS National Unified Teaching Scheme for Pre-School Level 4
• Early Childhood Care and Education resources
• Pictures showing people congratulating each other
• Flashcards with scenarios for congratulations

Instructional Materials

• Charts with pictures of children celebrating
• Posters showing different congratulatory situations (e.g., birthday, winning a race, getting a new toy)
• Flashcards with phrases like “Congratulations!”, “Well done!”
• A toy bicycle or a picture of one
• A wrapped “birthday gift” (empty box)

Rationale for the Lesson

Learning about congratulatory greetings helps young children develop essential social skills and empathy. It teaches them how to express joy for others’ achievements and fosters positive relationships, contributing to a supportive classroom and community environment.

Prerequisite/Previous Knowledge

Pupils can already say basic greetings like “hello,” “thank you,” and understand simple positive events like birthdays or getting new things.

Lesson Content/Board Summary

Congratulatory Greetings: Meaning and When to Use Them

What are Congratulatory Greetings?

• Congratulatory greetings are special words we say to someone when something good happens to them, or when they do something good.
• It means we are happy for them and we want to share their joy.

When to Use Congratulatory Greetings:

• When someone has a birthday. (e.g., “Happy Birthday!”)
• When someone gets something new and special. (e.g., a new bicycle, a new dress)
• When someone wins a game or a competition. (e.g., “Congratulations! You won!”)
• When someone does something very well. (e.g., “Well done! You drew a beautiful picture.”)
• When someone achieves something important. (e.g., graduating from a class)

How to Congratulate Someone:

• Smile and look at the person.
• Say kind words like “Congratulations!”, “Well done!”, “Happy Birthday!”.
• Sometimes, you can give a gentle pat on the shoulder or a high-five (if appropriate).

Key Words

• Congratulate – To tell someone you are happy for their success or good fortune.
• Well done – A phrase used to praise someone for doing something good.
• Happy – Feeling or showing pleasure or contentment.

What the Teacher Should Show or Draw

The teacher will display charts and posters showing:

• A child receiving a birthday cake.
• A child winning a race.
• A child showing off a new toy.
• Two children shaking hands or high-fiving after a good performance.

Congratulatory Song

Tune: “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”

Lyrics:

When a friend does something great,
We say “Congratulations!” straight.
Happy for you, yes we are,
Shining bright, just like a star.
“Well done, friend!” we all will say,
Happy for you every day!

Actions: Clap hands on “Congratulations!”, point to a friend on “Happy for you”, make a star shape with hands on “shining bright”.

How to use the rhyme: Sing the song together, encouraging pupils to use the actions. Repeat it a few times to help them remember the words and the feeling of congratulating others.

Watch and Practise

Let’s watch a short video about saying “Congratulations!” and “Well done!” to our friends.

Teaching Methods/Instructional Techniques

Play-based Learning, Demonstration, Guided Practice, Songs and Rhymes, Storytelling, Picture Talk, Question and Answer, Role-play, Repetition.

Instructional Procedures

Step 1: Introduction

Time: 2 minutes

Teaching Skill: Engagement/Recall

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher greets the pupils and asks them if anything good happened to them or their friends recently. “Did anyone get a new toy? Did anyone have a birthday? Did anyone do something really well?”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils share short responses about good things that happened.

Learning Point: Pupils recall positive experiences and begin to connect to the idea of good news.

Step 2: Explanation of Congratulatory Greetings

Time: 4 minutes

Teaching Skill: Explanation/Concept Introduction

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher introduces the topic: “Today, we are going to learn about saying ‘Congratulations!’ and ‘Well done!’ when good things happen.” The teacher explains that these are special words to show we are happy for someone. The teacher shows pictures of children celebrating.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils listen attentively and look at the pictures, repeating “Congratulations!” and “Well done!” after the teacher.

Learning Point: Pupils understand the basic meaning of congratulatory greetings.

Step 3: Teacher Demonstration and Situations

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Demonstration/Modelling

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher demonstrates how to congratulate someone. “Imagine I got a new book!” (Teacher pretends to hold a book). “My friend would say, ‘Congratulations, Teacher!'” The teacher then shows charts/posters of different situations (birthday, winning a game, new toy) and asks, “What can we say here?”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils observe the teacher’s demonstration and try to suggest words for the situations shown on the charts.

Learning Point: Pupils see and hear how to use congratulatory greetings in context.

Step 4: Discussing When to Use Them

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Discussion/Reinforcement

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher elaborates on the situations when to use congratulatory greetings, focusing on the seed’s examples: “When your friend gets a new bicycle, what do you say?” “When it’s your friend’s birthday, what do you say?” The teacher uses a toy bicycle and a pretend gift to make it concrete.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils respond orally, practicing phrases like “Congratulations on your new bicycle!” or “Happy Birthday!”

Learning Point: Pupils identify specific scenarios for using congratulatory greetings.

Step 5: Congratulatory Song and Video

Time: 4 minutes

Teaching Skill: Musical Reinforcement

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher leads the pupils in singing the “Congratulatory Song” with actions. Then, the teacher plays the short video on congratulatory greetings, encouraging pupils to sing along or repeat phrases.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils sing the song with actions and watch the video, repeating key phrases.

Learning Point: Pupils reinforce their understanding through song and visual media, making the concept more memorable.

Step 6: Guided Role-play Practice

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Guided Practice/Role-play

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher organises pupils into pairs or small groups for role-play. “One pupil will pretend they just got a new bicycle, and the other will congratulate them.” “Now, one pupil has a birthday, and the other gives a gift and says ‘Happy Birthday!'” The teacher guides and provides prompts.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils take turns demonstrating how to congratulate a friend for a new bicycle and for a birthday gift, using appropriate words and gestures.

Learning Point: Pupils actively practice using congratulatory greetings in simulated real-life situations.

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.

1. What do we say when something good happens to our friend?
2. Show me how you would congratulate a friend who just won a game.
3. What would you say to a friend on their birthday?
4. When should we say “Well done!”?

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: Summarization

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher praises the pupils for their participation and reminds them to always be happy for their friends and use kind words like “Congratulations!” and “Well done!”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils listen and give a final cheer for being good friends.

Learning Point: Pupils internalize the importance of positive social interactions.

Lesson Keywords

• Congratulate – To tell someone you are happy for their success or good fortune.
• Well done – A phrase used to praise someone for doing something good.
• Happy – Feeling or showing pleasure or contentment.

Differentiation

• Support: For pupils who are shy or struggling, the teacher can provide more direct prompts, use hand-over-hand gestures during role-play, or pair them with a more confident peer. Use larger, clearer picture cards.
• Extension: For quicker learners, the teacher can ask them to think of other situations where they might congratulate someone (e.g., getting a good mark in school, helping a parent). Encourage them to use slightly longer congratulatory phrases.

Note for teachers using this lesson plan

Prepare the charts, posters, toy bicycle, and pretend gift beforehand. The key to this lesson is practical demonstration and role-play. Ensure you model the correct tone and gestures for congratulating someone. Encourage all pupils to participate in the role-play activities, even if it’s just a simple “Happy Birthday!” or “Well done!” for shy children. Emphasize that being happy for others is a kind and important social habit. Observe how pupils interact during the role-play to gauge their understanding and social development. Repeat the song and key phrases multiple times to aid memory and confidence.