Aural Discrimination: Vowel Sounds /a:/ and /ↄ:/ Primary 4 (Basic 4) First Term Week 11 and Second/Third Term Week 4 English Studies

AURAL DISCRIMINATION: VOWEL SOUNDS  /a:/ and /ↄ:/ PRIMARY 4 (BASIC 4) FIRST TERM WEEK 11, SECOND TERM WEEK 4 AND THIRD WEEK 4 ENGLISH STUDIES

ENGLISH STUDIES

FIRST TERM WEEK 11

SECOND TERM WEEK 4

THIRD TERM WEEK 4

PRIMARY 4 (BASIC 4) 

THEME – SPEECH WORK 

TOPIC – AURAL DISCRIMINATION: VOWEL SOUNDS  /a: / and /ↄ:/

LEARNING AREA

1. Introduction

2. Vowel Sound /a:/

3. Vowel Sound /ↄ:/

4. Revision and Lesson Evaluation

5. Practice Exercise/Test Questions and Answers

LEARNING OBJECTIVES 

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

1. identify the vowel sounds /a:/ and /ɔ:/.

2. pronounce words containing the sounds correctly.

3. distinguish between the sounds /a:/ and /ɔ:/ in spoken words.

4. listen carefully and identify words with the target sounds.

5. use words containing the sounds in simple sentences.

ENTRY BEHAVIOUR

The pupils have previously learned how to identify and pronounce vowel sounds. In this lesson, they will learn to distinguish between the vowel sounds /a:/ and /ɔ:/.

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

The teacher will teach the lesson with the aid of:

1. Flashcards containing words with /a:/ and /ɔ:/

2. Charts showing the target sounds and example words

3. Audio recordings (where available)

4. Pupils’ notebooks and writing materials

METHOD OF TEACHING

Choose a suitable and appropriate methods for the lessons.

Note – Irrespective of choosing methods of teaching, always introduce an activities that will arouse pupil’s interest or lead them to the lessons. 

REFERENCE MATERIALS

1. Scheme of Work

2. 9 – Years Basic Education Curriculum

3. Course Book

4. All Relevant Material

5. Online Information

CONTENT OF THE LESSON

INTRODUCTION

Aural discrimination is the ability to hear, identify, and distinguish between different speech sounds. It helps pupils improve their listening, pronunciation, reading, and speaking skills.

Vowel sounds are speech sounds produced without any obstruction of airflow in the mouth. In English, some vowel sounds are short while others are long.

In this lesson, pupils will learn to distinguish between the vowel sounds /a:/ and /ɔ:/.

The sound /a:/ is a long vowel sound heard in words such as car, farm, park, star, and arm. It is pronounced with the mouth open and the tongue placed low in the mouth.

The sound /ɔ:/ is also a long vowel sound. It is heard in words such as ball, call, wall, talk, and walk. It is pronounced with the lips slightly rounded.

Although these sounds are both long vowels, they are different in pronunciation and can change the meaning of words. Therefore, pupils need to listen carefully and practise saying them correctly.

Through listening activities, repetition drills, and sentence practice, pupils will learn to identify the sounds, distinguish between them in spoken words, and use words containing the sounds in simple sentences. This will help them speak English more clearly and confidently.

VOWEL SOUND /a:/

The sound /a:/ is a long vowel sound produced with the mouth open and the tongue low.

Examples:

• car

• far

• park

• farm

• star

• hard

• arm

• bark

VOWEL SOUND /ɔ:/

The sound /ɔ:/ is a long vowel sound produced with rounded lips.

Examples:

• ball

• call

• wall

• tall

• talk

• walk

• chalk

• fork

MINIMAL PAIRS

/a:/ – /ɔ:/

cart – court

dark – dork

lark – lord

park – pork

bard – board

SENTENCES PRACTICE

1. /a:/

• The car is new.

• We visited the farm.

• The star shines brightly.

• My father parked the car.

• The dog barked loudly.

2. /ɔ:/

• The ball is round.

• Please call me.

• The wall is high.

• We walk to school.

• The teacher used chalk.

SUMMARY

The sounds /a:/ and /ɔ:/ are long vowel sounds. Pupils should listen carefully, pronounce them correctly, and distinguish between words that contain the two sounds.

PRACTICE EXERCISE/TEST QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 

A. Repeat After the Teacher: /a:/

1. car

2. farm

3. star

4. park

5. arm

B. Repeat After the Teacher: /ɔ:/

6. ball

7. call

8. wall

9. talk

10. walk

C. Tick (✓) the Word with the Sound /a:/

11. car / call

12. park / pork

13. farm / form

14. star / store

15. arm / warm

D. Tick (✓) the Word with the Sound /ɔ:/

16. ball / bar

17. wall / well

18. talk / tank

19. call / car

20. walk / work

E. Fill in the Blanks with the Correct Word: car, farm, ball, wall, walk

21. My father drives a ______.

22. We visited the ______ yesterday.

23. The boy kicked the ______.

24. The picture is hanging on the ______.

25. We ______ to school every day.

F. Make Sentences with These Words:

26. car

27. farm

28. star

29. ball

30. walk

ANSWERS

11. car

12. park

13. farm

14. star

15. arm

16. ball

17. wall

18. talk

19. call

20. walk

21. car

22. farm

23. ball

24. wall

25. walk

26. Car – My father drives a car to work.

27. Farm – We visited the farm during the holiday.

28. Star – The star shines brightly at night.

29. Ball – The boy kicked the ball across the field.

30. Walk – I walk to school every morning.

PRESENTATION

To deliver the lesson, the teacher adopts the following steps:

1. The teacher revises previously taught vowel sounds and asks pupils to pronounce some familiar words.

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils pronounce the words and participate in the revision.

2. The teacher introduces the vowel sounds /a:/ and /ɔ:/ and pronounces them clearly.

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils listen carefully and repeat the sounds after the teacher.

3. The teacher presents examples of words containing the sound /a:/: car farm star park arm

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils pronounce the words correctly.

4. The teacher presents examples of words containing the sound /ɔ:/: ball call wall talk walk

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils pronounce the words correctly.

5. The teacher drills the pupils on the pronunciation of the two sounds and highlights the differences between them.

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils listen, repeat, and distinguish between the sounds.

6. The teacher reads words containing the target sounds in random order.

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils identify whether the words contain /a:/ or /ɔ:/.

7. The teacher uses the words in simple sentences and reads them aloud.

Examples:

• My father drives a car.

• We visited the farm.

• The star shines at night.

• The boy kicked the ball.

• We walk to school every day.

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils repeat the sentences and identify the target sounds.

8. The teacher guides pupils to make their own sentences using words containing /a:/ and /ɔ:/.

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils construct simple oral and written sentences.

9. The teacher summarizes the lesson by reviewing the sounds, examples, and sentence practice.

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils answer oral questions and participate in the summary.

CONCLUSION

To conclude the lesson for the week, the teacher revises the entire lesson and links it to the following week’s lesson.

LESSON EVALUATION 

Teacher asks pupils to,

1. identify the vowel sounds /a:/ and /ɔ:/.

2. pronounce 5 words containing the sounds correctly.

3. distinguish between words containing /a:/ and /ɔ:/.

4. identify words with the target sounds when read aloud.

5. use words containing /a:/ and /ɔ:/ in simple sentences.