1 - Show Me Without Words ~5 mins
Show me happy without saying anything. Now sad. Now tired.
Today we put German words on those faces, so you can say how you feel in one short sentence.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Name eight feelings in German
- Say how you feel with Ich bin…
- Spot those words when you hear them
Open with silent gestures only. Ask three volunteers to mime happy, sad and tired, then invite the class to guess in English. Do not give the German yet; the next step lands the words. Keep the energy light so quieter pupils still join in. Celebrate bold faces with a quick smile or thumbs-up so the room feels safe to act.
2 - Label the Feelings ~10 mins
Listen as each picture is tapped on the board, then say the German back together. We will meet the words in two short rounds of four. Listen for the rounded ü, the ö, and the ä when they appear.
Stay at the board and run this as two rounds of four so eight new words do not land at once.
Must-say production targets (chorus fully with Ich bin…): glücklich, traurig, müde, ängstlich, nervös. These five are the ones pupils must say in later pair work.
Listen-and-point bonus words: schüchtern, überrascht, wütend. Still show and chorus them, but treat extra clean production as a bonus if the class is secure; do not insist every pupil owns these three for speaking yet.
Round 1: glücklich, traurig, müde, wütend. Point, play or say each word, class repeats twice (once all together, once by table). For the must-say words, chorus the frame: Ich bin glücklich (ish bin GLUEK-likh), and so on.
Round 2: schüchtern, überrascht, ängstlich, nervös. Same pattern; push full Ich bin… sentences hard on ängstlich and nervös.
Full pronunciation list (say these aloud; use on-screen audio if unsure):
- Ich bin — ish bin
- glücklich — GLUEK-likh (round the lips for ü; final ch is a soft "ikh")
- traurig — TROW-rikh (final -ig is a soft "ikh", not "ish")
- müde — MUE-duh (round the lips for ü)
- wütend — VUE-tent (round the lips for ü)
- schüchtern — SHUEKH-tern (round the lips for ü; ch is a soft throat sound)
- überrascht — UE-ber-rasht (round the lips for ü)
- ängstlich — ENGST-likh (ä like the e in "bed"; final ch is a soft "ikh")
- nervös — ner-VOES (lips forward for ö)
If a pupil flattens an umlaut, model the lip shape again and have the table echo. Celebrate the first full Ich bin… sentence out loud — big reaction when a table nails ängstlich or glücklich with the umlaut. Keep all eight on the word table for recognition; lean production energy on the five must-say targets.
3 - Match the Playground Feelings ~9 mins
Imagine break time in a German school yard. Watch the board. When a volunteer turns two cards, say the German under your breath with Ich bin…. After every match, the whole class choruses the full sentence together.
Run this as a whole-class IWB memory game with volunteers only — seated pupils do not flip cards. Stay at the board, coach each volunteer to say a full Ich bin + feeling phrase when a pair is found, and lead a class chorus after every successful match so row-3 pupils produce the phrase too. Prefer must-say targets (glücklich, traurig, müde, ängstlich, nervös) when you coach volunteers; accept listen-and-point bonus words (schüchtern, überrascht, wütend) with a supported chorus. If a pair is missed twice, reveal it and chorus it yourself. Keep the pace friendly, not a race. Frame each match lightly: "Your classmate in Hamburg just looked like this — how do they feel?" Warm line: grin when a quiet table joins the chorus — that is the win, not speed.
4 - Into Your Copy ~3 mins
The word table stays on the board. Open your copy. Copy the frame Ich bin ___., then copy one feeling word from the board into the gap (underline any umlaut). This is copy-from-the-board, not a spelling test.
Pause the board and keep the word table visible for the whole three minutes. Before pens move, take ten seconds to model umlauts on the board: write u → ü and show two short strokes above, then o → ö and a → ä the same way. Leave glücklich, müde, wütend, schüchtern, überrascht and ängstlich on screen as write-on models. Every pupil copies the frame Ich bin ___. plus one chosen word from the board (nudge less confident writers toward a must-say word: glücklich, traurig, müde, ängstlich or nervös). Walk the room and praise careful umlauts. Do not collect the copies — this is personal practice. Support: point shy writers at the word bank on the IWB.
5 - Feelings Bingo at Break Time ~9 mins
You have a paper bingo card. Listen for each call. Mark the matching square on the card you have been given. When you complete a line, call Bingo! Then the class cheers Ja! and choruses Ich bin… with the winning feelings.
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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