1 - What Day Is It Today? ~5 mins
What day is it today? What day comes next? You already know the answers in English, and probably in Irish too. Today we learn all seven days of the week in German, in order, so you can name any day of the school week, just as a class in Germany does on their wall planner.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Name the seven days of the week in German
- Say the days in order from Monday to Sunday
- Spot the day words when you hear or see them in a game
Ask two quick questions only: what day is it today, and what day comes next. Take answers in English first, then in Irish if anyone offers. Do not teach the German yet; the flashcards in the next step do that work. Keep the hook brisk so the class meets the new words with energy.
2 - Seven German Days ~10 mins
Here is how a class in Hamburg labels their week on the wall planner. You will meet the seven days in two short chunks. For each card: hear the German and see it first, then say it with the class. Listen for the strong tahk ending on most days. Mittwoch is the odd one out: no tahk ending; it is MIT-vokh, like a soft clearing of the throat at the end. Have fun with it. Every German day starts with a capital letter.
Run the flashcards on the IWB. Do not ask pupils to guess from English first. For each card: show the German, play the audio, then whole-class repeat twice (once together, once by table). Chunk the set to protect working memory: first Montag, Dienstag, Mittwoch with choral repeat and a quick order check (point and chorus Mon–Wed). Then Donnerstag, Freitag, Samstag, Sonntag the same way. Finish with one full Monday–Sunday chorus.
Sound hook: Mittwoch is the odd one out — no tahk ending; it is MIT-vokh. Invite a playful throat-soft /ch/ and praise bold attempts.
After the full set, run a 60-second clap-rhythm chant: class claps the stress on each day in order (mon-TAHK, DEENS-tahk, MIT-vokh, DON-ners-tahk, FRY-tahk, ZAHMS-tahk, ZON-tahk). Keep it light and loud.
Only on a second, quicker run-through may you hide the German briefly and invite recall from English. Point out that German nouns are always capitalised. Pronunciation guides: der Montag (dair mon-TAHK), der Dienstag (dair DEENS-tahk), der Mittwoch (dair MIT-vokh), der Donnerstag (dair DON-ners-tahk), der Freitag (dair FRY-tahk), der Samstag (dair ZAHMS-tahk), der Sonntag (dair ZON-tahk).
When naming a day as a vocabulary item, prefer the full form with the article (der Montag) so pupils see the gender. When listing the week in order, bare Montag, Dienstag… is fine — both are real German.
3 - Match the Days ~10 mins
Volunteers flip two cards at a time on the board. When a card is flipped, everyone whispers the German day; the volunteer only taps. When a match is found, the whole class says the German together and listens to the audio.
Then look at a simple German school timetable (Stundenplan) on the board: Sport am Dienstag, Musik am Freitag, Kunst am Mittwoch. Tables take turns saying the full week Monday to Sunday, then answer: which day is Sport? Which day is Musik?
Primary mode: whole-class IWB. One or two volunteers at the board; every other pupil has a clear job (whisper the German on every flip; chorus the match). Do not circulate away from the board during this step.
Prefer the full noun form der Montag when naming a day as a vocabulary item (it shows the gender). When you just list the week in order, bare Montag, Dienstag… is fine — both are real German. If a pair is missed twice, stop and say the word together before moving on.
After matching (about 6–7 minutes), keep the day list visible and run the speaking beat (about 3 minutes): (1) tables say Monday→Sunday in turn; (2) show a simple sample Stundenplan on the board — e.g. Sport am Dienstag, Musik am Freitag, Kunst am Mittwoch — and ask the class to answer in German which day each subject falls on. First pass with the list fully visible; second pass half-cover it if the class is confident.
Differentiation only: if devices are available, pairs may run a second matching round at desks after the whole-class game; this is optional extra, not the default path.
4 - Into Your Copy ~3 mins
Open your copy. The ordered list Monday to Sunday in German stays on the board — copy from the board; do not hide it. Write the seven days in order beside a mini weekly grid (seven boxes). Circle the day with PE on it, and write one real hobby or club on another day (English is fine). Take care with the capital letters.
Pause the board interactives but keep the full ordered German list (with articles) clearly visible for the whole three minutes. Say aloud: copy from the board — do not hide it. Everyone writes; this is the only three minutes where every pupil's pen is moving. Check that each day starts with a capital letter and that the order runs Monday to Sunday. Circling the PE day and noting one hobby on another day makes the list personal without adding heavy writing. Do not collect these.
5 - Days Bingo ~10 mins
Use the bingo card on your desk. Listen carefully for each German day as it is called. Mark the day on your printed bingo card when you hear it. First full line stands and says Bingo, then reads their marked days aloud in German.
How to Play Bingo:
Option 1: Students on Devices (Digital Version)
- Use the digital version where your teacher view of the lesson displays the cards that are being called out.
- Play the pronunciation sound of each word and the children mark it off their unique digital bingo card.
- Each student has a randomised bingo card so winners will vary!
Option 2: Print Out the Bingo Cards
- Print out the Bingo Cards from the attachment above, cut out the cards, and give one to each student.
- You call out the vocabulary words and students mark off their sheets.
- First student to complete a line (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) calls "Bingo!" and wins.
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