# The Daily Oral Routine ## Why a Fixed Routine Children thrive in predictable structures. When they know what is coming, anxiety drops and participation rises. The daily oral routine is the same every day — same segments, same order, same length. Over the first two weeks, it becomes automatic. By week four, children are running parts of it themselves. The routine is 12–15 minutes. It can run at the start of the school day, at the start of any period, or as a standalone session. --- ## The Routine Structure ``` Segment Time What Happens ------------------------------------------------------------ 1. Morning Greeting 2 min Fixed exchange. Same every day. 2. TPR Warm-Up 3 min Teacher-led movement + commands 3. Today's Language 4 min One phrase or topic, taught through story/object/picture + repetition 4. Pair Talk 3 min Children talk to each other in pairs 5. Share Out 2 min One or two pairs tell the class ------------------------------------------------------------ Total 14 min ``` Each segment is described in detail below, with scripts for the first two weeks. --- ## Segment 1: Morning Greeting (2 minutes) **Purpose:** Signal that English has started. Create a ritual that builds confidence through repetition. **The same exchange, every single day:** > Teacher: "Good morning, everyone!" > Class: "Good morning, teacher!" > Teacher: "How are you today?" > Class: "I am fine, thank you! How are you?" > Teacher: "I am very well, thank you!" After one week, the class knows this by heart. After two weeks, it is automatic. **In Week 3, add a small variation:** > Teacher: "Good morning! How are you today?" > (Points to one child) > Child: "I am fine, thank you!" > Teacher: "Are you happy or tired today?" > Child: "Happy!" (or "Tired!") > Teacher: "She is happy today! Tell your neighbour — are you happy or tired?" This takes the fixed greeting and opens it into a mini peer interaction. **Teacher note:** Do not skip this even if you are running late. It takes two minutes and it is the most important signal that English time has a beginning. --- ## Segment 2: TPR Warm-Up (3 minutes) **Purpose:** Get bodies moving, reduce anxiety, review vocabulary through physical response. **How it works:** Teacher gives commands. Children do them. No one has to speak yet. **Week 1–2 commands (teach through action, not explanation):** ``` Stand up. Sit down. Hands up. Hands down. Clap! Stop. Jump! Turn around. Touch your nose. Touch your ears. Open your mouth. Close your mouth. ``` **The teaching sequence for new commands:** 1. Say it and do it yourself 2. "Do it with me — stand up!" (say and do together) 3. "Stand up!" — children do, you watch 4. Speed it up: rapid-fire commands, children try to keep up (this becomes a game) **Week 3 onwards — build emotion and description vocabulary:** ``` Show me happy. Show me sad. Show me hungry. Show me tired. Show me big. Show me small. Show me fast. Show me slow. ``` **Week 5 onwards — add simple sentences:** Children respond with a short phrase: > Teacher: "How do you feel?" (mimes tired) > Class: "I am tired!" **Teacher note:** Keep this energetic. Move around the room. Point at children randomly. The unpredictability keeps everyone watching. --- ## Segment 3: Today's Language (4 minutes) **Purpose:** Introduce or revisit one language chunk through comprehensible input — a story, an object, a picture, a sequence. This is the teaching heart of the routine. One topic, deeply explored, over multiple days. Do not introduce a new topic every day. ### Example Block: "I like / I don't like" (5 days) **Day 1:** > Teacher holds an apple and a stone. > "This is an apple. I like the apple." (Smile, bite mime) > "This is a stone. I don't like the stone." (Frown, push away) > "Apple — I like. Stone — I don't like." > Hold up apple: class responds "I like!" > Hold up stone: class responds "I don't like!" **Day 2:** > "Yesterday we learned — I like. I don't like." > Teacher mimes eating rice: "I like rice." > Teacher mimes something smelly: "I don't like this smell!" > Ask children: hold up an object, point at them: "You — like or don't like?" > Child responds: "I like!" or "I don't like!" **Day 3:** > Introduce "I like ___" with a noun: > "I like mangoes. I like cricket. I like my teacher." (pause for laughs) > Ask three children: "What do you like?" > Prompt if needed: "I like ___..." wait for them to finish. **Day 4:** > Partner activity: "Ask your partner — what do you like? What do you not like?" > 2 minutes of pair talk. **Day 5:** > "Tell me about your partner. What does your partner like?" > Child: "She likes mangoes." > This is the biggest stretch — third person, "she/he likes." **Teacher note:** Five days on one language chunk is not slow — it is correct. Children need to hear something 7–10 times in meaningful contexts before it sticks. --- ### Other Example Blocks (one per week) | Week | Topic | Sample Phrases | |------|-------|---------------| | 1–2 | Greetings | Good morning, How are you, I am fine | | 3 | Body parts | Touch your nose, I have two eyes | | 4 | Feelings | I am happy/sad/tired/hungry/scared | | 5 | Likes and dislikes | I like, I don't like, Do you like? | | 6 | Classroom objects | This is a pencil, Where is the book? | | 7 | Family | My mother, I have a brother, This is my family | | 8 | Animals | This is a dog, The cat is sleeping | | 9 | Colours | Red, blue, find something yellow | | 10 | Daily actions | I eat, I sleep, I play, I go to school | | 11 | Numbers in sentences | I have two pencils, Give me three | | 12 | Asking questions | What is this? Where is the ___? | --- ## Segment 4: Pair Talk (3 minutes) **Purpose:** Every child speaks. Not one child while 39 listen. All 40 children speaking simultaneously for three minutes. **Setup:** - Children are already seated in rows or groups - Each child turns to their neighbour: "Talk to the person next to you" - Teacher gives a clear prompt **Prompt design:** The prompt must be simple enough that even hesitant children can attempt it, and open enough that fluent children can extend. **Good prompts for Grade 1–2:** ``` "Tell your partner your name and one thing you like." "Ask your partner: what did you eat this morning?" "Show your partner something in your bag and tell them what it is." "Tell your partner: are you happy today? Why?" "Ask your partner three questions. Then tell me what they said." ``` **What the teacher does during pair talk:** - Walk around the room - Crouch to child level and listen in - If a pair is silent, whisper the prompt again or model the first line - Do not stand at the front doing nothing — this signals it is not important **Teacher note:** Silence in pair talk is normal in the first week. Model it yourself with a child in front of the class. Show what the exchange looks and sounds like. By week two, the room will be loud. --- ## Segment 5: Share Out (2 minutes) **Purpose:** Honour what was practiced. Amplify good examples. Give children an audience. **How it works:** Teacher picks two or three pairs to share. > "Who wants to tell me what your partner said?" > "Priya, tell us — what does your partner like?" > "She likes cricket." > "Excellent! She likes cricket. Class — say it together: she likes cricket." **Important:** Do not correct errors in share out. Celebrate the attempt. If a child says "She like cricket" — say "Yes! She likes cricket!" and move on. The correct form is modeled, not drilled. **Closing signal (same every day):** > "Very good English today, everyone. See you tomorrow!" > Class: "Thank you, teacher! Goodbye!" --- ## The First Week: What to Expect | Day | What Happens | |-----|-------------| | Day 1 | Children are confused. Do the greeting for them. Model everything. Get through it. | | Day 2 | Some children start joining the greeting. TPR warm-up starts to get laughs. | | Day 3 | The greeting is almost automatic. Some children are mouthing words in TPR. | | Day 4 | Pair talk is still quiet but children are not silent. Some are whispering. | | Day 5 | First child volunteers to share out. Everyone watches with interest. | Do not judge the first week. The routine needs two weeks to settle.