What do you usually ask for in a café at home? Think of two or three drinks you would order without looking at a menu.
Today you will learn eight Spanish drink words, then practise asking for one out loud, just as you would at a café counter.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Name eight drinks in Spanish with el or la
- Ask for a drink in a short spoken phrase
- Notice one café custom that is different from home
Collect four or five everyday answers quickly (tea, water, juice, a fizzy drink). Do not translate yet. The point is to put the class in café mode before the Spanish words arrive. Promise that by the end of the lesson they will each ask for something different in Spanish.
Here are today's eight drinks. Watch and listen first: you will see the English and the picture, then hear the Spanish with el or la. Repeat each one twice with the class. Notice the pattern: most take el, and two take la.
Work through the pile on the IWB in hear-then-say order only. For each card: show English and image, play the audio (or model yourself with the article), then class repeats twice (once all together, once by table). Do not ask for Spanish before the first model.
Split the load to help articles stick. First five: el agua, el zumo, la leche, el café, el té. Quick thumbs-check (thumbs up if they can still hear the article). Then the last three: el refresco, la limonada, el batido. Optionally group on screen as el-drinks vs la-drinks so the article is a pattern, not eight separate facts.
Pronunciation quick guide: el agua (el AH-gwah), el zumo (el THOO-moh), la leche (lah LEH-cheh), el café (el kah-FEH), el té (el TEH), el refresco (el reh-FREHS-koh), la limonada (lah lee-moh-NAH-dah), el batido (el bah-TEE-doh). Pause on el agua and note that it takes el even though the noun is feminine. After that gender note, add a light hook: el batido is a fun one (bah-TEE-doh); say it like the blender is already going.
Always insist on the article when naming: zumo alone is not enough; el zumo is the answer.
Listen carefully. When you hear a drink you know, mark it on the paper bingo card on your desk. First full line shouts Bingo! then reads their line in Spanish with el or la.
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.
Open your copy. Copy the eight drinks with their articles from the list on the board, then circle the two you would order.
Pause the board. Keep a static list of the eight target forms with articles fully visible for the whole three minutes (flashcards parked on a summary slide or written up). Walk the room and check that the article is going in front of every word and that accents are on café and té. Do not collect these. The circling task makes them choose, which helps the words stick.
When you name a drink you use el or la. When you order one at the counter you switch to un or una.
Part A — Practise the order phrase first (whole class, before any spin):
Repeat each model twice with the class:
Un zumo, por favor. (oon THOO-moh, por fah-VOR): A juice, please.
Una limonada, por favor. (OO-nah lee-moh-NAH-dah, por fah-VOR): A lemonade, please.
Un agua, por favor. (oon AH-gwah, por fah-VOR): A water, please. (Still un, even though agua is feminine.)
Rule: Un with el-drinks, Una with la-drinks. Exception: el agua becomes Un agua.
Quick guide while you order:
- Un + drink: zumo, café, té, refresco, batido, agua
- Una + drink: leche, limonada
Part B — Spin the wheel
When the wheel lands on a drink, order it aloud using the phrase from Part A: Un or Una + the drink + por favor.
Part A before any spin (about 3 minutes): Keep the three model lines on the IWB. Model each twice; class echoes twice. State plainly: un goes with el-drinks and una with la-drinks. Then the exception: el agua becomes Un agua, por favor (still un, never una agua). Point at the quick guide (Un list / Una list) so pupils can see which article to pick without guessing.
If it helps, jot a tiny bridge chart in a corner of the board: el → un · la → una · el agua → un agua. Do not re-list full target forms with articles in the pupil prose; the wheel already shows the items and the quick guide only groups bare drink words under Un or Una.
Part B spins: Spin, name a volunteer, and have them ask for whatever lands with the full frame. Class echoes the full phrase once after each good attempt. If someone freezes, whisper the article (un or una) and let them finish. If the wheel lands on water, listen for Un agua and correct gently if you hear Una agua. Keep Part A models and the quick guide visible throughout the spins.
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