Exploring Rooms at Home

Curriculum Area

Subject: Understanding the World (Early Years & Key Stage 1)
Curriculum Link: National Curriculum (UK) – KS1: Spoken Language, Personal, Social & Emotional Development, Early Learning Goals (ELG) – Understanding the World

Lesson Details

• Duration: 35 minutes
• Class Size: 24 students
• Age Group: Year 1
• Theme: Learning about the different rooms in a house

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Learning Objectives

By the end of the lesson, pupils will be able to:

1. Identify and name the rooms in a typical UK home.
2. Describe the purpose of each room using simple sentences.
3. Engage in speaking and listening activities related to homes and their layout.

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Lesson Structure

Starter Activity (5 minutes) – Mystery Box Game

• Have a covered “mystery box” containing small household objects (e.g., a spoon, a toy bed, a small towel).
• Invite a few students to select an object and describe what it is and which room it belongs to.
• Encourage the class to guess which room each object is associated with.
• Key Vocabulary: kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, living room, dining room, hallway, garden

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Main Activity (20 minutes)

1. Whole-Class Discussion (5 minutes) – House Tour

• Display a large picture of a house with different rooms clearly marked.
• Go through each room one by one, asking “What happens in this room?”
• Model simple sentences: “We eat in the dining room.” “We sleep in the bedroom.”

2. Action Game (5 minutes) – Room Charades

• Explain that you will act out an activity related to a room (e.g., brushing teeth = bathroom, cooking = kitchen).
• Students must guess which room it belongs to.
• Rotate students to take turns acting out activities.

3. Interactive Group Task (10 minutes) – House Puzzle Creation

• Divide the class into small groups and provide each group with a cutout of a house with blank rooms.
• Give them room labels and picture cards (e.g., a bed for the bedroom, a fridge for the kitchen).
• Each group organises and sticks the correct labels and picture cards into the correct rooms.
• Encourage students to verbally explain their choices: “The bath goes in the bathroom.”

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Plenary (10 minutes) – 'My Perfect Room' Drawing

• Each student draws their favourite room in a house and adds a key piece of furniture.
• Encourage them to write at least one word to describe it (e.g., “bed” for bedroom, “sink” for kitchen).
• Students share with a partner or the class, describing their chosen room.

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Differentiation & Support

• For EAL/Lower Ability: Use visual flashcards and model more simple sentences. Encourage oral responses rather than written.
• For Higher Ability: Ask pupils to describe a room using adjectives (e.g., “My kitchen is big.”) or explain what they do in their favourite room in a short sentence.

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Assessment Opportunities

• Listen to student responses in the discussion to check understanding.
• Observe engagement and accuracy in the house puzzle task.
• Assess speaking skills during the 'My Perfect Room' activity.

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Resources Needed

✔ Mystery box & household items
✔ Large poster of a house layout
✔ Room labels & picture cards for sorting activity
✔ Paper & colouring pencils for drawing activity

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Teacher Reflection

• Did the children engage with the hands-on activities?
• Were they able to correctly identify rooms and their functions?
• Would a real-life home visit or virtual tour enhance their understanding in the next lesson?