Translate page into: Arabic Chinese Dutch French German Japanese Portugese Russian Spanish

 

   Would you like to review a past theme?

On this page you will find all the old themes and links:

 

 

On Monday, April 20th:

 

• our theme was the weather
• we read the book, A Day at the Beach by Ed Briant
• click here to play an English game about the weather, http://genkienglish.net/weathergame.htm  
• parents try asking your child each day, "What's the weather like?"
• If you visit the Rhine falls there are a few free weather exhibits in the park surrounding the area. 

 

On Monday, April 27th:

 

• our theme was the sea
• we read the book, The Snail and the Whale by Julia Donaldson
• click here to see a video about the author Julia Donaldson, http://www.scottishbooktrust.com/podcasts/video/julia-donaldson
• click here to play an English game about sea animals, http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-games-paint-sea.htm
• If you visit the Wilhelma Zoo in Stuttgart, please stop by the aquarium and ask your child to name the animals. Make it a game!
• Watch the movie, Finding Nemo, with English subtitles.

 

 

On Monday, May 4th:

 

• our theme was the family 
• we read the book, Monkey Puzzle by Julia Donaldson
• click here to see if you can remember baby monkey's family, http://genkienglish.net/familygame.htm
• click here to sing along with baby monkey, http://genkienglish.net/monkey.htm
• Spread some family photographs on the floor and ask your child to find the ones with grandmother, uncle, brother, sister, and so forth!
• Have your child draw a family tree and write down the English words for each family member.

 

 

On Monday, May 11th:

 

• our theme was dress-up
• we read the book, Froggy Gets Dressed by Jonathan London
• click here to dress Mr. Tumble, http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/somethingspecial/games/dressup.shtml
• click here to dress Elmo from Sesame Street, http://www.sesamestreet.org/game_player?p_p_lifecycle=0&p_p_id=gamePlayer_WAR_sesameportlets4369&p_p_uid=62ff5322-2814-11dd-9344-87b80efb5536

• click here to play eat it or wear it, http://www.noggin.com/games/pinky/eatitorwearit/
• click here to put clothes on baby monkey, http://www.genkienglish.net/clothesgame.htm
• click here to sing a song and watch baby monkey put on his clothes, http://www.genkienglish.net/winterclothes.htm
• click here to read a book about baby monkey putting on his winter clothes, http://www.genkienglish.net/picturebookclothes.htm
• During play time have your child dress his or her favorite stuff animal or toy. Repeat the phrases "take off" and "put on".
• Play a game where your child gets to tell you what to put on for a special occasion like going to the park!

 

On Monday, May 18th:

 

• our theme was colors and shapes!
• we read the book, The Mixed-up Chameleon by Eric Carle
• click here to see a video of the story, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYnQt-mzWJE

• click here to see how well you know your colors, http://genkienglish.net/coloursquiz.htm
• click here to paint different shapes, http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-games-paint-shapes.htm
• click here to learn the names of shapes with Big Bird from Sesame Street, http://www.sesamestreet.org/game_player?p_p_lifecycle=0&p_p_id=gamePlayer_WAR_sesameportlets4369&p_p_uid=9b9d7c77-486c-11dd-bf7b-df62be721a24
• Walk around the house and tell your child, I spy something blue and they have to guess what you spy in English! Then it is your child's turn to spy something!
• Go to a park with a playground and play I spy or collect items from the park! Don't forget to put the items back to where they came from!

 

On Monday, May 25th:

 

• our theme was about animals!
• we read the book, Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Eric Carle
• click here to see how well you know your animals, http://www.vocabulary.co.il/games2/matchgame/match.php 

• click here to name the animal sounds, http://tinyurl.com/pta2t9

 

On Monday, June 8th:

 

• our theme was pets!
• we read the book, Daddy, Could I have an Elephant by David A. Carter
• click here to see how well you know your animals, http://www.vocabulary.co.il/games2/matchgame/match.php 

• click here to name the animal sounds, http://tinyurl.com/pta2t9

 

On Monday, June 15th:

 

• we reviewed many themes we have learned this year, such as parts of the body, clothes, numbers, and so forth!
• we read the book, Olivia by Ian Falcon
• click on these links to play many games about clothing:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/somethingspecial/games/dressup.shtml

http://www.sesamestreet.org/game_player?p_p_lifecycle=0&p_p_id=gamePlayer_WAR_sesameportlets4369&p_p_uid=62ff5322-2814-11dd-9344-87b80efb5536

http://www.noggin.com/games/pinky/eatitorwearit/

 

 

On Monday, July 6th:

 

• we celebrated birthdays and learned the phrase How old are you?!
• we read the book, Surprise Party by David A. Carter
• click on this link to play the song the kids sang in the classroom: http://genkienglish.net/howoldmini.swf
• read the story: http://genkienglish.net/picturebookhowoldareyou.htm
• at home ask your children how old are each of their stuff animals? Make up ages.
• at home take out family photographs and have your child guess each person's age. Have your child count up by saying higher or count down by saying lower.

 

On Monday, July 13th:

 

• our theme was Share, Don't be Greedy! We reviewed the names of different foods.
• we read the book, The Very Greedy Bee by Steve Smallman
• read a similar story about a Greedy Hippo: http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-stories-greedy-hippo.htm
• during lunchtime ask your children, "What are you eating?" If they are shy then make them laugh by asking them if they are eating something very silly like a sock!
• you can also pretend you are going to eat a sock or something else that is silly.

 

On Monday, July 20th:

 

• our theme was Put on/ Take off!
• we read the book, Joseph had a Little Overcoat by Simms Taback
• click on this link to play the baby Monkey dress-up game: http://genkienglish.net/clothesgame.htm
• have your child practice putting on and taking off clothes of different dolls or stuff animals.
• make this activity into a game by telling your child take off the doll's names hat or put on the doll's boots.
• dress-up into silly costumes with your child when naming the different clothes items.

 

On Monday, July 27th:

 

• our theme wa Space! We celebrated the American Space shuttle launch and solar eclipse!
• we read the book, Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! Off to the Moon! by Dan Yaccarino
• play a game to learn about the space shuttle, visit this website: http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forkids/kidsclub/flash/games/levelone/KC_Grab_It.html
• click on this website and help your child build his/her own planet: http://www.kidsastronomy.com/fun/make-a-planet.htm
• read a story about space here: http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-stories-cold-planet.htm
• sing a song about the solar system here: http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-songs-space.htm

 

On Monday, September 14th:

 

• our theme was Animals!
• we read the book, An Octopus Follwed Me Home by Dan Yaccarino

• click here to name the animal sounds, http://tinyurl.com/pta2t9

• click here to learn how to spell the names of animals, http://www.mrcpl.org/literacy/lessons/sight/index.html

• play an animal matching game, http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/teletubbies/funandgames/animalparade/index.shtml

 

On Monday, September 21st:

 

• our theme was numbers and counting!
• we read the book, Little Quack by Lauren Thompson
• count animals by playing this game, http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-games-animal-countdown.htm
• count with Big Bird, http://bit.ly/KglNt
• around the house, have your child count how many chairs, socks, and fingers they have!
• ask your child if their favorite toy can count, then have them pretend the toy is counting!

 

On Monday, September 28th:

 

• our theme was the family and superheroes!
• we read the book, You Can Do Anything Daddy  by Michael Rexy
• listen to the Superhero song we sang in class http://genkienglish.net/superhero.htm
• read a story about Superheroes online, http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-stories-superhero-high.htm
• design your own superhero, http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-games-superheroes.htm

• play a pretend game with your child where you and your child each pick a toy to pretend are superheroes, name what powers you have by repeating the phrase we learned in class, "I'm a superhero, I can..."

  • See how many verbs your child can come up with, then pretend you are saving another toy!

 

On Monday, October 5th:

 

• we learned the phrase "I wish..." Our theme was opposites!
• we read the book, The Mixed-Up Chameleon by Eric Carle
• easy: review the alphabet with this game http://www.learningplanet.com/act/abcorder.asp?contentid=172
• play this game to practice the alphabet, see if your child can pronounce the words out loud http://www.crickweb.co.uk/assets/resources/flash.php?&file=wordorder1
• difficult: if the first game is too easy, then complete these sentences http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks1/english/coconut/index.htm

• play I spy at home or when you are driving by saying, "I spy something..." Then describe the object using adjectives. Start with colors, then use adjectives like big, small, thin, large, cold, hot, hairy, smooth....

 

On Monday, October 12th:

 

• our theme was sports!
• we read the book, Snail Saves the Day by John Stadler
• easy: dress Dolly for the right sport http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-games-sportsmixer.htm
• paint the names of the sports http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-games-multimatch-sports.htm
• difficult: if the first game is too easy, play basketball and learn prepositions http://www.marks-english-school.com/games/b_prepmed.html

• at home, try to name the types of items needed to play a sports activity, then play the game!

• at home, pretend to play different sports. You mime the sport and your child guesses which sport!

 

On Monday, October 19th:

 

• our theme was Halloween!
• we read the book, Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson
• listen and watch part of the story and play games, http://www.gruffalo.com/section.php?s=broom/demo/
• easy: use the arrow keys to help the witch catch the letters, http://www.gruffalo.com/html/game3_witchwords.html
• difficult: read and hear a Halloween story! http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-stories-dark-wood.htm

• we had no class on Oct. 26th.

 

On Monday, November 2nd:

 

• our theme was space adventures!
• we read the book, Moonpowder by John Rocco.
• sing a song about the solar system here: http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-songs-space.htm
  • Can your child name the planets in English?
• easy: choose which type of game you want to play about space, http://www.tsgc.utexas.edu/everything/moon/games/#
• difficult: read a story about space here: http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-stories-cold-planet.htm

• Look at the stars and planets at night. See if your child can name the stars, constellations, and the moon in English. Have your child tell you a story about the moon first in German, then try telling the story in English.

 

On Monday, November 9th:

 

• our theme was countries and animals!
• we read the book, Slowly, Slowly, Slowly Said the Sloth by Eric Carle.
• easy: read a story about zoo animals, http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-stories-abc-zoo-popup.htm

• difficult: put the animals in alphabetical order,http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-games-animal-countdown.htm

• If you have a chance, go to the zoo and ask your child to guess which country the different animals are from.

• Watch the Disney movie Madagascar!

• Have your child name the animals in their room. Ask your child which country the animal comes from? Ask your child to describe the animal's home in German if the child cannot do this in English. Then have your child draw the animal, the country, and the home!

 

On Monday, November 16th:

 

• our theme was clothes!
• we read the book, The Smartest Giant in Town by Julia Donaldson.
• easy: click here to put clothes on baby monkey, http://www.genkienglish.net/clothesgame.htm
• easy: click here to sing a song and watch baby monkey put on his clothes, http://www.genkienglish.net/winterclothes.htm

• difficult: click here to dress Elmo from Sesame Street, http://www.sesamestreet.org/game_player?p_p_lifecycle=0&p_p_id=gamePlayer_WAR_sesameportlets4369&p_p_uid=62ff5322-2814-11dd-9344-87b80efb5536

• Have your child dress a toy and tell you what the toy is wearing!

• Have your child tell you what to wear on a Saturday. You have to wear whatever your child says as long as he/she says it in English!

 

 

On Monday, November 23rd:

 

• our was Thanksgiving!
• we read the book, Today is Thanksgiving, by P.K. Hallinan
• easy: play the Thanksgiving memory game, http://www.dltk-holidays.com/thanksgiving/memory/index.htm

• difficult: play the Thanksgiving hangman game, http://www.dltk-holidays.com/thanksgiving/hang-man/hangman.htm

• difficult: play the Thanksgiving crossword puzzle game, http://iteslj.org/cw/1/af-thanks.html

• Read your child a story about Thanksgiving in German!

• Here's a great animated Thanksgiving story, http://www.brainpopjr.com/socialstudies/holidays/thanksgiving/zoom.weml

• Take a nature hike and talk about how Native Americans used to live off the land. Collect leaves, sticks, and rocks and make a memory book of the adventure! Have your child label these items in English.

 

On Monday, December 7th:

 

• our theme was transportation and emotions!
• we read the book Thomas and the School Trip by Rev. W. Awdry.
• easy: help Mr. Bump find the right car, http://www.kindersite.org/Content/Mr.Bumps%20Bumper%20Cars.swf

• easy: What is Thomas the Train feeling? http://www.thomasandfriends.com/uk/games_emotions.asp

• difficult: listen to a story about a train, http://www.storyplace.org/preschool/activities/enginenine.asp

• Next time you ride the s-bahn or train, play I spy while waiting for the train to arrive. You can say, "I spy something red." Keep giving clues till your child guesses. They should be able to know colors and some adjectives you say in English.

• Pretend you are fixing a toy train and ask your child to give you the tools in English.

 

On Monday, December 14th:

 

• our theme was the holidays!
• we read the book A Wish for Wings That Work: An Opus Christmas Story by Berkeley Breathed.
• easy: help decorate a gingerbread man! http://www.starfall.com/n/holiday/gingerbread/load.htm?f&n=main

• easy: match the Christmas vocabulary! http://www.esolcourses.com/content/topics/christmas/beginner-christmas-picture-quiz.html

• difficult: watch 3 videos about the story we will read in class. Unfortunately these are only in English with no translation, http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=11570F08216D59E7

• We sang this song in class, Where are the Christmas Presents. Watch the video, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_QBBESuhSk&feature=player_embedded

 

For the previous class on Monday, January 11th:

 

• our theme was the family 
• we read the book, Tosh by Friederike Klippel 
• click here to sing along with baby monkey, http://genkienglish.net/monkey.htm
• click here to see if you can remember baby monkey's family, http://genkienglish.net/familygame.htm
• We also learned about the snow! Can you dress these snowmen? http://www.starfall.com/n/holiday/snowman/play.htm?f
• Activity: Spread some family photographs on the floor and ask your child to find the ones with grandmother, uncle, brother, sister, and so forth!