Aural Discrimination: Vowel Sounds /e/ and /æ/, and /a/ and /a:/ Primary 4 (Basic 4) First Term Week 8 English Studies

AURAL DISCRIMINATION: VOWEL SOUNDS /e/ and /æ/, AND /a/ and /a:/ PRIMARY 4 (BASIC 4) FIRST TERM WEEK 8 ENGLISH STUDIES

ENGLISH STUDIES

FIRST TERM

WEEK 8

PRIMARY 4 (BASIC 4) 

THEME – SPEECH WORK 

TOPIC – VOWEL SOUNDS /e/ AND /æ/, /a/ AND /a:/

LEARNING AREA

1. Introduction

2. Vowel Sounds /e/ and /æ/, and /a/ and /a:/

3. Minimal Pairs

4. Practice Exercise/Test Questions and Answers

LEARNING OBJECTIVES 

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

1. identify the vowel sounds /e/ and /æ/, /a/ and /a:/.

2. pronounce words containing the sounds correctly.

3. distinguish between similar vowel sounds in spoken words.

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

5. use the words in simple sentences.

ENTRY BEHAVIOUR

The pupils have already learned how to pronounce and identify some English sounds. In this lesson, they will use that knowledge to distinguish between similar vowel sounds.

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

The teacher will teach the lesson with the aid of:

1. Flashcards with words containing the target sounds

2. Charts showing vowel sounds

3. Audio pronunciation guide (if available)

4. Pupils’ notebooks

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 recognize and distinguish between similar-sounding speech sounds. Mastering the differences between the vowel pairs /e/ and /æ/, and /a/ and /a:/ is crucial for clear English pronunciation and avoiding common listening or speaking misunderstandings.

AURAL DISCRIMINATION: /e/ and /æ/, AND /a/ and /a:/

1. /e/ Sound (short vowel)

Examples:

• bed

• pen

• red

• men

• ten

2. /æ/ Sound (short vowel)

Examples:

• cat

• man

• bag

• cap

• hat

3. /a/ Sound (short vowel in some accents)

Examples:

• ago

• about

• banana

4. /a:/ Sound (long vowel)

Examples:

• car

• park

• farm

• father

• arm

MINIMAL PAIRS

/e/ – /æ/

1. bed – bad

2. pen – pan

3. men – man

4. red – rad

5. ten – tan

/a/ – /a:/

1. cut – cart

2. hut – heart

3. cap – carp

4. bat – bath

5. back – bark

PRACTICE EXERCISE/TEST QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

A. Say whether you hear /e/, /æ/, /a/ or /a:/

1. pen ______

2. cat ______

3. car ______

4. bed ______

5. farm ______

6. man ______

7. park ______

8. ten ______

B. Choose the correct word. 

9. The boy sat on the ______. (bed / bad)

10. I saw a black ______. (cat / cart)

11. My father drives a ______. (car / cat)

12. She has a ______ of water. (pan / pen)

13. The farmer went to the ______. (farm / fan)

C. Circle the correct word:

14. (pen / pan)

15. (bed / bad)

16. (cat / cart)

17. (man / men)

18. (car / cat)

D. Oral Practice

19. Repeat after the teacher:

• pen – pan

• bed – bad

• man – men

• cat – cart

• car – cat

ANSWERS

1. /e/

2. /æ/

3. /a:/

4. /e/

5. /a:/

6. /æ/

7. /a:/

8. /e/

9. bed

10. cat

11. car

12. pen

13. farm

14. pen / pan

15. bed / bad

16. cat / cart

17. man / men

18. car / cat

PRESENTATION

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

1. The teacher introduces the lesson by pronouncing the vowel sounds /e/, /æ/, /a/ and /a:/ clearly.

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

2. The teacher explains how each sound is produced using mouth position.

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils observe and imitate the teacher’s pronunciation.

3. The teacher writes example words on the board for each sound.

• /e/: bed, pen, red

• /æ/: cat, man, bag

• /a/: banana, ago

• /a:/: car, farm, park

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils read and repeat the words aloud.

4. The teacher pronounces the words and asks pupils to identify the correct sound.

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils listen carefully and respond.

5. The teacher drills pupils using minimal pairs such as:

• pen – pan

• bed – bad

• car – cat

• heart – hat

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

6. The teacher gives listening practice by saying words randomly for identification.

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils identify and respond correctly.

7. The teacher guides pupils to use the words in simple sentences.

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils make sentences orally.

8. The teacher corrects errors and summarizes the lesson.

Pupils’ Activities: The pupils participate in the review and practise pronunciation.

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 /e/ and /æ/, /a/ and /a:/ correctly.

2. pronounce words containing these vowel sounds correctly.

3. distinguish between similar vowel sounds in spoken words.

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

5. use words containing these vowel sounds in simple sentences.