refresh

Zoom: My Car

Preparation

Film track
Song track
Flashcards
Classroom Poster
Pupil’s Book
Puppets
Reward Stickers

Extras:

  • Toy car(s)
  • Standard Online Resource Sheet
  • Easy Access online picture sheet (optional)
  • Hair dryer/blower (optional)

Easy Access Unit Theme Summary

In this unit, pupils explore car.
The core language is car, fast
The complete unit text is: My car goes fast!
Repeated language: hello

The general learning activities explored in the unit are:

  • Sharing the car, collecting friends
  • Being responsible and careful (not going too fast)
  • Enjoying the physical sensation of movement and travel
  • Becoming familiar with the English term for car and the statement My car goes fast.
  • Keeping to a path like a car on the road.

REMINDER: The first activity is shown as a touch activity because this is the most universal sense.
However, where suitable, show the film first. The film sets the context, creates the atmosphere, attracts the pupils and presents the characters easily.

Multi‑sensory presentation

Creating the context in a physical environment

Explore the car in the home language using the car flashcard, a toy car, familiar actions and game contexts.
Link the film and topic theme with the children’s own experiences.
Show the car flashcard or a toy car and ask the pupils to identify it by naming it in the home language if they can or making an engine sound.
With physically able children, invite the children to show you actions that they associate with a car. This might be for example, miming steering, or miming wheels turning.
Praise everyone.

Set the audio‑visual context

Watch and listen to the film My car

Play the animated film, Car.
Explain in the home language that the film will show Zoom polishing his car and going for a drive with his friends.
Watch the film animation Car.
After viewing, highlight how the car interacts with its environment: going faster than the birds can fly; point out how the sound surprises the worms in their holes; indicate that Zoom takes care not to squash the worm on the road as he goes past fast.

Watch the film again.
Note also how the speed makes a breeze that blows the Baby Beetles’ antennae backwards! If you can, bring in a hair dryer or cold‑blowing vacuum cleaner that can let the pupils feel the breeze of fast moving air, as in Zoom’s open top car! If possible, link the speed of the air to the idea of the moving car and use the word fast. Link this word to the full phrase My car goes fast!

Explore the theme with the pupils to help the pupils to focus on cars, for example, ask them if they have any toy cars or if they travel by car. Do their families have a car?
Present or remind the pupils of the actions linked with cars, such as miming steering. Watch the film together again and encourage the pupils to pretend to drive the car like Zoom, if they can. If possible, encourage them to join in with the word, fast or the whole sentence My car goes fast!

Praise everyone.

Audio activity with the song

Listen and respond

Pin up the character flashcards in a line on the board or a mobile display board and below them, pin up the car flashcard, to focus attention.
Revise the action of the short film by asking who goes in the car first.
Elicit Zoom or help them to choose Zoom.
Move the Zoom card down the board next to the car card. Praise everyone and then continue, gradually adding Ring Ring, then Splish Splash and Tick Tock.
Explain that you can all join the car by passing the car flashcard round in a circle or holding it out for each pupil to touch as you take it round.
Sit in a circle.
Play the song and pass or show the car flashcard around the group. Try to join in with the song words My car goes fast! and encourage the pupils to do so too.
While the pupils are waiting to touch or pass the card, invite them to mime steering like Zoom.
Praise everyone.

Interaction with the theme

A simple, group activity

a) Give each pupil a toy car to move. Mark a clear circle or path on the floor with chalk or cushions.
Invite the pupils to move their toy car along the circuit while everyone joins in with the song using the words and/or actions outlined above.

b) Take turns. If you have one toy car only, play the song on repeat and invite each pupil in turn to move the toy car while the others steer, clap or sing along.

c) Sit around a table and mark a road on it with chalk or strips of paper. Place the character flashcards along the route. Invite the pupils to run their toy car along the road or to touch your hand as you move the car. If you do not have a toy car, you can use the car flashcard and pretend to drive it along. Play the song as the car moves.

Note: If your pupils prefer to make a car engine sound instead of singing at first, that is fine too.
Praise everyone.

Movement with the song

Actions to music

Follow the action suggestions on the Standard version cards if your pupils can manage them. Otherwise, try the options below.

a) Set up groups of four chairs like the four seats in Zoom’s sport’s car. Use the character flashcards or hand out the character pictures if you made them in the Let’s play unit (downloaded online extra resource). Line up the pupils in groups of four in the order Zoom, Ring Ring, Splish Splash and Tick Tock. Invite the pupils to join the cars in the right order as the song plays, then all to mime driving to the end of the song.

b) Adapt the action for non‑mobile children to generate energy and movement, for example, give each pupil a character picture and push their wheelchairs into the sets of four seats as in b).

Pupils that are not comfortable playing with others could be invited to mime being the birds that fly alongside the car at a little distance away.

Encourage all the pupils to join in and sing or to make the sound ‘Brrmm’ along to the song as they move. Invite children who can sing join in with the words My car goes fast!
Praise everyone.

Pupil's Book Craft

Activities with the Pupil’s Book page and linked craft ideas

Activities with the Pupil’s Book sheet and linked craft ideas.
Invite the pupils to sit at the tables or work surfaces. Hand out the Pupil’s Book sheets and pencils.

a) Complete the Baby Beetles Pupil’s Book activity sheet. Invite the pupils to trace the path of Zoom’s car along the road with a line. Pupils may use their fingers, a pencil or crayon - whichever is most suitable. Use the sheet to built engagement between the pupils and the characters. Describe (in the home language) the items and characters along the way. Check that the pupils are completing the sheet correctly or make a note of how easy or difficult it is for each of them to draw within the borders of the roadway.

Pupil's book page

b) Use the completed sheet with the Introduction film. Invite the pupils to point to each character on the sheet as they see the characters presented on the screen.

c) Use the completed sheet again. Play the film Car or the song and invite the pupils to trace the progress of the car along the road on the sheet with a finger.

Praise everyone.

Games

Physical play that reinforces the theme

Note: The level of physical involvement in the games will depend on the pupils’ abilities so should be chosen and adapted by the carer to suit.

a) Activity using the song and no spoken English.
Invite the pupils to sit in a small circle. Place their Pupil’s Book page in front of them. Play the song and encourage the pupils to hold one hand ready to tap the sheet, as if catching a fast‑moving car. Ask them to tap the sheet each time they hear the word fast in the song. This can help develop coordination, but is mainly aimed at developing listening and response.

b) Activity using English.
If your pupils have good verbal skills, invite the whole group to join in this activity. If the group has mixed communication skills, let the verbally able children lead and invite the less verbal pupils to contribute with sounds or gestures/actions. Revise the language learnt on the course so far. Sit in a circle and hand out the character cards and encourage the pupils to greet each other as the characters by saying Hello, Zoom! and so on. Then ask the pupils to invite each other to play as the characters so, Hello, Ring Ring! Let’s play! Praise everyone. Now hand one pupil the car card. That pupil now holds a character card and the car card. Encourage the pupil to show the car card to the next pupil and say, for example, Hello, Tick Tock, my car goes fast! Invite the pupil addressed to reply with a loud car sound, Brrrmmmm! Or to repeat Car! Brrrrm! Continue so that everyone who can join in takes a turn.

Praise everyone.

Puppets and toys

Reinforcing and extending the theme with the help of character puppets

Sit with the pupils and prepare to act out the story. Put the Zoom puppet on your hand and let the puppet hold the car flashcard.
Explain (in the home language) that Zoom is going to drive his car fast.
Give three other pupils the remaining three character puppets to wear.
Invite the rest of the class to be birds that fly alongside or after the car.
If you like, invite three pupils to sit behind small chairs and be the three worms that pop up and look as the ‘car’ goes past.
As an extra option, print off the Easy Access picture sheet that shows the worm crawling. This can be placed on the road for the car to avoid!
Play the song in the background or just the backing track without the words. If you feel able to speak in English, welcome the characters by name to join your car. Say Hello, Ring Ring, my car goes fast! and so on. Follow these steps:

  • Process around the room.
  • Collect the other three pupils and character puppets and let them join your ‘car’.
  • Go past the ‘worms’ and say Hello!
  • Wave to the ‘birds’ and say Hello!
  • Encourage the class to repeat with you, My car goes fast!
  • See and avoid the worm on the road.
  • All clap Zoom and let the Zoom puppet bow.
  • Invite a volunteer to put the car flashcard away and sit down to rest.

Praise everyone.

Play!

Linking the theme with other interactions

Pin up the flashcards for the characters and the car. Take away one card and see if the pupils can tell you in English which card has gone.
Invite a pupil to choose which card to take down. Repeat until all the cards have been removed and named.
Offer a pupil the same five cards as a fan, face down, to pick one by touching or taking it.
Show it to the class and name the car or character together. Put it back on the board until the full set of five is back in its place.
Praise everyone.

Craft with the Standard Online Resource Sheet or other

Steering wheel.
Print a copy of the Online Resource Sheet in advance. Give the Baby Beetles steering wheel picture to each pupil to colour or colour it in advance. Cut it out and perhaps stick it to a paper plate to make it easier to hold
Invite the pupils to sit on the floor or on chairs, as if they were the driver of a car.
Play the song and let them mime driving.
Allow the pupils to take the Baby Beetle steering wheel home. They can turn it while they listen, watch and play at home!
Praise everyone.