1 - Whose Birthday Is Next? ~5 mins
Whose birthday is coming up next in this class? Say the month in English first.
Today you will name ten Spanish months (January to October), write a full date using one of those months, and spot one big difference from English: Spanish months stay in small letters.
Two more months will come in a later lesson, so everyone can finish the year set.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Name ten months of the year in Spanish (enero–octubre)
- Give a full date using a month from today's list
- Notice that Spanish months are not capitalised
Take a few quick birthday months in English only. Do not teach the Spanish forms yet; the flashcards in the next step do that job. If two pupils share a month, that is useful later when you sort the class by month.
Keep the energy light: the hook is curiosity about dates, not a test of days vocabulary from earlier in the unit.
If anyone names November or December, smile and say those two Spanish months arrive next time; today we own January to October.
2 - Ten Spanish Months ~10 mins
Here are today's ten months, one card at a time. Look at the English and the picture first. Listen to the Spanish model, then repeat it with the class. Watch the spelling: every month starts with a small letter.
Run this on the IWB with the whole class. Use European (Castilian) Spanish to match the board audio: stick to one model all lesson.
First-meeting flow for every card: show English + image → play the audio (or say the Spanish yourself) → class repeats twice together → only then invite a volunteer to recall it. Do not ask pupils to guess Spanish before they have heard it on this first pass.
Chunk the set to keep load manageable:
- Cards 1–5: enero, febrero, marzo, abril, mayo. After mayo, chorally repeat the date frame once: Mi cumpleaños es el 12 de mayo.
- Cards 6–10: junio, julio, agosto, septiembre, octubre. Give junio and julio an extra listen–repeat beat (they look alike). Soft j is like a gentle h: “say julio as if you are fogging a window — brilliant!” After octubre, chorally repeat the date frame again with two swapped months from the list.
Pronunciation guides (Castilian): enero (eh-NEH-roh), febrero (feh-BREH-roh), marzo (MAR-thoh; Latin American audio may sound MAR-soh — match whatever the board plays today), abril (ah-BREEL), mayo (MAH-yoh), junio (HOO-nyoh), julio (HOO-lyoh), agosto (ah-GOHS-toh), septiembre (sep-TYEM-breh), octubre (ok-TOO-breh).
Date model (leave it visible): Mi cumpleaños es el 12 de mayo (mee koom-pleh-AH-nyos es el DO-theh deh MAH-yoh) — My birthday is the 12th of May. Pattern: day number, then de, then the month in small letters. Day numbers may stay in English digits if Spanish numbers are not secure yet.
Cultural spark (30 seconds): on a Spanish calendar you might see Día de Reyes under enero or a local summer feria under agosto — and those month names still start with small letters.
3 - Month Bingo ~10 mins
You each have a printed bingo card showing Spanish months. Listen for the month the teacher calls, mark it on your card, and whisper the word as you mark it. First full line stands and calls ¡Bingo!
Watch one quick demo mark on the board before you start.
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.
4 - Into Your Copy ~3 mins
Open your copy. First we say the date frame together from the board, then you write one full birthday-style date using a month from today's list. Keep every month in small letters, just as Spanish does.
Frame on the board: Mi cumpleaños es el ___ de ___.
Before pens move (hear → say → see → write):
- Leave the gapped frame and a month word bank (enero–octubre) visible on the IWB.
- Chorally repeat Mi cumpleaños es el 12 de mayo twice.
- Swap in two more class examples using taught months only (e.g. el 3 de marzo, el 20 de octubre) and class repeats each once.
- Then everyone writes.
Core task: one birthday-style date using a month from today's ten. If a pupil's real birthday is in November or December (not taught today), they choose a month from the list — a favourite holiday month, a classmate's month, or something like el 6 de enero for Reyes — so every pen can move honestly. English day numbers in digits are fine.
Extension only (fast finishers): a second date for a holiday they like, still from today's list (optional prompt: el 6 de enero for Reyes).
Walk the room and check two things: the month is not capitalised, and they used de between the day and the month. Do not collect the copies.
Warm line: “That small letter on mayo is proper Spanish, not a mistake — exactly right.”
5 - Match Then Say Your Date ~10 mins
Part 1 – Match: On the board, volunteers flip two cards at a time and find each Spanish month with its English name. The class says the Spanish quietly together as each pair is found.
Part 2 – Birthday chain (about 3 minutes): With a partner, take turns saying one full date from today's list. Partner A: Mi cumpleaños es el 12 de mayo. Partner B repeats it, then says their own date with a different taught month. Keep months in small letters. Use the frame on the board if you need it.
Part 1 (about 6–7 minutes): whole class on the IWB with volunteers only. Do not send pairs to devices. Audio plays on flip, so pronunciation gets another pass. If the same pair is missed twice, stop and say both sides together. Watch for junio and julio — celebrate when someone keeps them straight.
Part 2 (about 3 minutes) – productive pair chain: leave the gapped frame visible: Mi cumpleaños es el ___ de ___. Model one exchange with a confident pupil first. Then pairs: A says a full birthday-style date using any taught month; B echoes it and adds a different one. English day digits are fine. Nov/Dec birthdays still pick a taught month from the list. Circulate and listen for small-letter months and the word de.
Praise script: “I heard a full Spanish date — that is the real skill, not just the single word.”
If matching runs long, cut to five or six pairs found, then protect the three-minute chain so every pupil produces a spoken date before discussion.
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