Title: The secrets of language

Lesson plan elaborated by: Katarzyna Maciejak

Topic

The secrets of language? Communicating. Language functions.

Target group

4th‑grade students of an elementary school.

Core curriculum

II. Language education.

1. Language differentiation. Student:

1) knows ways to enrich vocabulary;

2) understands the concept of style, recognizes colloquial, official, artistic, scientific and journalistic style.

III. Creating a statement.

2. Elements of rethoric. Student:

3) functionally uses rhetorical means and understands their impact on the recipient;

4) recognizes and distinguishes the means of persuasion and manipulation in advertising texts, defines their function;

IV. Self‑education. Student:

9. reliably, with respect for copyrights, uses information.

The general aim of education

To acquaint students with the language communication function.

Key competences

• communicating in the mother language;

• communicating in foreign languages;

• learning to learn

• social and civic competences.

Learning outcomes

Student:

• read and listen in a careful manner;

• recognizes the diversity of spoken and written Polish;

• skilfully uses dictionaries;

• recognizes different ways of communicating;

• uses and processes information;

• creates consistent oral statements;

• applies the acquired knowledge.

Methods / techniques

• giving: explanation;

• activating: discussion;

• exposing: presentation;

• programmable: using a computer..

Forms of work

• uniform collective

• uniformed and differentiated in group

• group work

Lesson plan overview (Process)

Before classes

Students write in the „Before the lesson” command in the abstract „Secrets of language”: Make a short note to complete the following text:

Language is the best way to communicate. With the help of language, people express their thoughts, express them or write them down. But not only! Thanks to the language you can ...

(e‑textbook).

Introduction

1. The teacher introduces students to the subject matter of the classes, and then introduces the youth with the goals of the lesson.

2. The students selected by the teacher present on the class answers prepared at home for the ‘Before the lesson’ task.

3. The instructor initiates a controlled conversation on the topic of the role and function of language as a communication tool and asks the youth about various ways of communicating to people both in the past and the present.

Realization

1. Teacher and students launch the „Secrets of language” abstract. Students play the first part of the recording about language functions. After hearing the text, the youth read the text themselves, extracting important and interesting information for them, and then create their own note in a notebook, answering the questions contained under the text.

2. Students practice vocabulary related to naming emotions and feelings: an interactive exercise and an exercise with a form.

3. The teacher informs students what the persuasive language function is. Students look at the advertisements indicated in the abstract and talk about the persuasive function of the language.

4. The students in pairs write their own advertising slogans for the action: reading books and adopting animals from the shelter.

5. Then the students will get acquainted with the text of Jerzy Bralczyk in the lesson „Jakie zagadki kryje w sobie język” on the epodreczniki.pl website. After reading the text, students consider the use of stylistic means in the slogans of advertising.

Summary

1. Students play charades in pairs. The task is to draw and guess the phraseology related to language, eg. to have a big mouth

2. The teacher sums up the lesson, assessing the contribution and involvement of students. He can use surveys addressed to students for evaluation.

Homework

Invent an advertising campaign for the selected charity event.

Develop motto, advertising text and, if you want, prepare a poster or a short movie.

The following terms and recordings will be used during this lesson

Terms

Texts and recordings

The secrets of language

Arrange a short note that supplements the following text:

Language is the best way to communicate. With the help of the language, people express their thoughts, say them or write them down. But not only! Thanks to the language you can...

Language is a code – a set of symbols which can be meaningfully combined by means of grammar. To be a competent language user, you need to be capable of deciphering these symbols and using them to create meaningful combinations. These symbols correspond to phones in speech and letters in writing. Being a multi‑purpose tool, language enables establishing and maintaining contact with various people, providing information, describing the world, expressing emotions (euphemisms, hyperboles) and influencing others (e.g. slogans and advertising taglines).

Sometimes language is also called an “archive” of customs, social change and linguistic remnants of the past. This results from the fact that many of the words and grammatical forms used today are evidence of language history. You can find detailed information on old word forms and the origin of words in etymological dictionaries or old texts. By using various expressions to describe the surrounding reality, people develop a linguistic image of the world. A great deal of societies’ cultural and spiritual wealth is locked up in proverbs, set phrases and idioms. They also reflect a community's common knowledge about the world, and even stereotypes. Language is also an artistic medium and serves a magical purpose – it helps create new worlds.

You have already learned that words often serve people to express emotions and feelings.

Language can also be used to persuade someone to do something. Then we are talking about the persuasive function of language.

Such advertising phrases have their name. These are slogans. Some of them are transferred to colloquial language and function in it as sayings.

In order for the slogan to be remembered, its creators use various linguistic means. They often come up with rhymed slogans, they also use comparisons and metaphors.

We have discussed only some language functions. In the future you will learn more about them, and now play a game that will help you to remember language phrases.