Describing Family Members

Year Levels

Years 5-6

Duration

45 minutes

WALT (We Are Learning To)

Use adjectives to describe family members in Italian, focusing on physical traits and personality.

Success Criteria

• I can describe at least two family members using appropriate Italian adjectives.
• I use full sentences to describe physical and personality traits of family members.
• I can read aloud my descriptions with correct pronunciation.

Curriculum Links

Western Australian Curriculum - Languages - Italian (Years 5-6)

• AC9LIT6C05: Create and present informative and imaginative texts using modelled sentence structures.
• AC9LIT6U02: Use modelled grammatical structures such as adjectives with nouns, placement of adjectives, and sentence conventions in Italian.
• AC9LIT6U04: Recognise how language reflects cultural practices and identities, including family life in Italian culture.

The lesson builds on students' ability to compose sentences describing people and uses adjectives to convey physical and personality traits, reflecting both linguistic and intercultural understanding【1:AC9LIT6C05.md】【13:AC9LIT6U02.md】【4:AC9LIT6U04.md】.

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Lesson Outline

Time	Activity	Description	Resources	Differentiation / Support
0-5 min	Introduction & Review	Recap family member words in Italian (e.g., madre, padre, fratello, sorella, nonno, nonna). Use images or flashcards to prompt recall.	Flashcards/images of family members	Provide visual prompts and sentence starters for students needing support
5-15 min	Teaching Adjectives	Introduce adjectives describing physical traits (alto, basso, capelli ricci/piani, occhi azzurri, ecc.) and personality (gentile, divertente, serio, timido). Explain adjective-noun agreement and placement (usually after the noun). Demonstrate with example sentences: Mia sorella è alta e simpatica. Il mio papà è serio ma divertente.	Word wall/poster with adjectives, example sentences	Use audio clips pronouncing adjectives (dyslexia-friendly)
15-25 min	Listening & Speaking Practice	Play an audio recording of a short description of a family member in Italian. Students listen and fill in missing adjectives in a cloze worksheet. Next, in pairs, students take turns describing a family member (real or imagined) using sentence starters like Il mio ... è ... provided on worksheets.	Audio, cloze worksheets, sentence starters	Pairs for peer support; sentence starters for scaffolding
25-35 min	Writing Activity	Students write 3-5 sentences describing at least two family members using adjectives learned. Support sheets include adjective lists and sentence frames: Mio/mia ... è ... e ...	Writing paper, adjective lists	For students needing support: use sentence frames with blanks; for advanced learners: encourage creativity with additional adjectives
35-42 min	Extension - Character Profile	Advanced students create a detailed character profile of a family member, including physical description, personality traits, and hobbies or likes/dislikes. Can be illustrated.	Character profile templates, coloured pencils	Extension task for advanced learners
42-45 min	Sharing & Reflection	Volunteers read or present their family descriptions aloud. Class reflects on what they learned about Italian adjectives and describing people. Teacher checks for pronunciation and understanding.	None	Provide positive feedback, encourage peer support

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Differentiation Strategies

• Support: Sentence starters, visual aids, audio pronunciations, peer pairing for oral practice, simplified vocabulary lists.
• Extension: Character profiles with additional descriptive elements beyond adjectives, using more complex sentence structures.
• Dyslexia-friendly: Use audio resources for listening and pronunciation; display text in dyslexia-friendly fonts if printed; provide colourful visuals and highlight keywords.

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Assessment

• Formative:
  • Observation of pair conversations describing family members.
  • Review of written sentences for correct use of adjectives and agreement.
  • Oral presentations for pronunciation and sentence fluency.
• Success Criteria Met: Students can orally and in writing describe at least two family members in Italian using correct adjective agreement and placement.

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Resources Needed

• Flashcards or images of family members
• Word wall/poster of adjectives (physical and personality traits)
• Audio recordings of family member descriptions
• Cloze worksheets with gaps to fill adjectives
• Sentence starters and support sheets
• Writing materials and character profile templates
• Colouring pencils for illustration

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Notes for Teachers

• Encourage cultural discussion around Italian family structures versus Australian families to develop intercultural understanding (AC9LIT6U04).
• Reinforce grammar rules gently—focus on communication and vocabulary acquisition.
• Use movement or drama to act out personality traits to engage kinaesthetic learners.
• Consider grouping students heterogeneously to optimise peer learning and scaffold oral skills.

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This lesson plan addresses key parts of the Western Australian Curriculum for Languages Italian for Years 5-6, especially focusing on using adjectives with family vocabulary to create descriptive texts both oral and written. It integrates multi-sensory approaches and differentiation to cater for diverse learners including those with dyslexia, while providing extension activities for highly capable students【1:AC9LIT6C05.md】【13:AC9LIT6U02.md】【4:AC9LIT6U04.md】.