A day to give thanks

The main goals of this ESL lesson plan are to:

• – Discover Thanksgiving vocabulary including “Pilgrim,” “harvest,” and “voyage” while learning about American holiday traditions through videos and readings in this A2 English lesson.
• – Understand adjectives versus adverbs by learning to identify differences and practicing with sentence completion exercises for adult English lessons.
• – Compare holiday celebrations by discussing Thanksgiving versus Christmas traditions, sharing personal holiday experiences, and exploring cultural differences using these English teaching materials.

In this A2 English lesson, the students will learn about Thanksgiving, its history and traditions. They will also practice the understanding of the differences between adverbs and adjectives.

Warm-up

The lesson starts with a mind map in which the student reveals hints to guess the holiday (Thanksgiving).

Video: Thanksgiving history and traditions

Prior to watching a video, the student gets familiar with vocabulary (occasion, church, voyage, etc.) and practices using it in sentences.

Next, they watch the video Thanksgiving history and traditions and complete the sentences extracted from it using the new vocabulary (Pilgrim, crops, parade, etc.). The student then checks if the statements based on the video are true or false. This section ends with a discussion about Thanksgiving celebrations and holidays in general.

Reading: What people do on Thanksgiving

The student reads two passages about celebrating Thanksgiving within the family and answers the reading comprehension questions.

The student is given words (harvest, gifts, Santa Claus, Pilgrims) they need to match with the correct holiday – Thanksgiving or Christmas. This section ends with a discussion about the student’s favorite holiday.

Grammar: adjectives vs. adverbs

The student learns the difference between adjectives and adverbs, and how to identify them and use them correctly. They also learn about different types of adverbs (place, manner, time, frequency, reason/purpose). They practice adjectives and adverbs by completing sentences, correcting mistakes, and adding commas in the correct places between adjectives.

The lesson ends with a vocabulary review and a wrap-up discussion.