Daily Lesson Plan -- Lesson 21

Letter Uu

Subject: English | Class: Nursery | Series: Skillford

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Overview

This lesson introduces the letter "Uu". Learners meet the big capital "U" and the small "u" and learn the short sound /u/, as in umbrella and up. They look at a picture of a cricket umpire standing under a big blue umbrella, and learn two action words: under (a girl under a table) and up (an arrow pointing up). On the second day they trace and write "Uu", capital first, then small, and circle the pictures that begin with /u/. "Uu" is the last letter in this group (Qq to Uu).

Learning Outcomes (from textbook)

• Point to 'Uu' and say the sound /u/.
• Name three things that begin with the sound /u/.
• Trace and write 'Uu', capital first, then small.

Key Vocabulary

• umpire
• umbrella
• under
• up

Speech-Bubble Sentence

• "The umpire is under an umbrella."

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Day 1: Look and Say (30 minutes)

Materials

• Textbook page 56
• A big umbrella
• A small table
• Picture cards (or the book pictures) of umpire, umbrella, under, up
• A computer or laptop keyboard

Circle Time Warm-Up (4 minutes)

• Sit the learners in a circle and sing a hello song together
• Draw a big "U" in the air with your finger and ask learners to copy you
• Say the short sound /u/, as in up. Learners say /u/ /u/ and point up each time
• Remind learners: the sound is a short /u/, not the name "you"

Meet the Letter (4 minutes)

• Open page 56 and point to the big white "U" and the yellow "u"
• Say: "This is big U. This is small u." Learners point and repeat
• Show that "U" is like a cup that can hold water; small "u" is a small cup with a little line down the side
• Tell learners: "Today we will say /u/, find /u/ things and write Uu."

Look and Say (8 minutes)

• Point to the man in the white hat and say: "He is an umpire. He watches the cricket match." Learners repeat "umpire"
• Point to the big blue umbrella and say "umbrella". Learners repeat and hold a pretend umbrella
• Read the sentence aloud: "The umpire is under an umbrella." Learners echo it
• Point to the girl under the table and say "under". Learners crouch down low
• Point to the green arrow and say "up". Learners stretch up tall
• Play "Point to it": say a word, learners point to the right picture in their book

Science (6 minutes)

• Open the big umbrella and let learners stand under it
• Count together how many learners are standing under it
• Say: "We are under the umbrella! Under starts with /u/."

Technology (5 minutes)

• Let each learner find the U key on the keyboard and press it
• Then hold shift and press it again
• Point to the screen: "This one is small u. This one is big U."

Under and Up Game (2 minutes)

• Say "under": learners crawl under the table, one or two at a time
• Say "up": learners jump up

Wrap-Up (1 minute)

• Ask: "What does umbrella start with?" Learners say /u/

Differentiation

• Support: Let shy learners point to pictures instead of saying words; say the word with them
• Extension: Ask confident learners to say all four /u/ words without help

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Day 2: Trace and Write (30 minutes)

Materials

• Textbook pages 56-57
• Playdough
• Arrow cards (some pointing up, some pointing down)
• Pencils and crayons

Warm-Up (3 minutes)

• Show page 56 again. Point and say: umpire, umbrella, under, up
• Say the sentence together: "The umpire is under an umbrella."

Engineering (5 minutes)

• Give out playdough
• Make an umbrella: a flat dome first, then a thin curved handle underneath
• Learners hold up their umbrella and say "umbrella, /u/ /u/ umbrella"

Trace and Write (9 minutes)

• Open page 57 and let learners run a finger over the big "Uu" at the top
• Show the capital "U": start at the top, go straight down, curve round the bottom and go back up to the top
• Show the small "u": start at the middle line, go down, curve round the bottom, go back up, then go straight down the right side
• Hand out pencils and check the grip
• Row 1: look at the model "Uu", then trace each dotted pair, capital first
• Row 2: trace each dotted pair carefully
• Rows 3 and 4: learners write "Uu" on their own, capital first, then small
• Praise every try: "What a lovely round U!"

Circle the /u/ Pictures (4 minutes)

• Point to each picture and say its name: soap, umbrella, panda, umpire
• Ask: "Does it begin with /u/?" Learners point up if it does
• Learners circle the umbrella and the umpire
• The soap begins with /s/ and the panda begins with /p/

Arts (4 minutes)

• Colour the umbrella at the top of page 57
• As they colour, ask: "What is this?" Learners say "umbrella"

Maths (5 minutes)

• Hold up arrow cards one at a time
• Learners stand for up and crouch for down
• Put the up cards in one pile and the down cards in another, then count each pile together

Differentiation

• Support: Use a thick crayon for tracing; hold the learner's hand for the first "Uu"
• Extension: Let confident learners write "Uu" on the board with a marker

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Teaching Tips (from textbook)

• Guide learners to trace and write Uu, starting with a capital letter first, followed by a small letter.