Town Changes Practice

Overview

This 60-minute engaging session aims to enable Year 9 Set 2 students (ages 13-14) to confidently speak about how a town or city has changed over the years using the imperfect tense in Spanish. The lesson specifically focuses on regular imperfect tense endings, reinforcing previously learned irregular verbs (era, tenía, había, estaba), and expanding students’ ability to describe their town’s past using vocabulary from their provided sheet. Activities are designed to be dynamic yet focused on learning outcomes, with attention to ensuring participation and progression of all students, especially addressing engagement of girls in the group.

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National Curriculum Links

This lesson aligns with the Languages Programme of Study for Key Stage 3 in England by developing the following skills:

• Communicative competence: Engage in spoken interactions and present information clearly and confidently, using past tenses appropriately.
• Grammatical understanding: Recognise and apply the imperfect tense to describe habitual actions or states in the past.
• Vocabulary building: Consolidate and apply thematic vocabulary related to town and city life.
• Cultural awareness: Reflect on historical changes in Spanish-speaking towns and relate them to their own experiences.

Specifically, this lesson addresses:

• Understanding and using present and past tenses (imperfect) in spoken Spanish to describe people, places, and situations (National Curriculum 2014 MFL KS3).
• Engage in meaningful and authentic speaking tasks using appropriate language structures.
• Respectful participation and collaborative work to develop communication skills.

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Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson, all students will be able to:

1. Recall and pronounce the regular imperfect tense endings for -ar, -er, and -ir verbs.
2. Use the imperfect tense (regular and known irregular verbs era, tenía, había, estaba) to describe how their town/city was in the past.
3. Incorporate key vocabulary from the town changes vocabulary sheet to enhance their descriptions.
4. Engage confidently in oral activities, producing 3-5 sentences describing past town conditions.

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Resources Needed

• Whiteboard and markers
• Printed imperfect tense endings chart (highlighting -ar, -er, -ir endings)
• Individual mini whiteboards or paper and pens for students
• Flashcards with vocabulary from the vocab sheet
• Audio clips of native pronunciation (optional)
• Projector to display images of towns/cities - past vs present (Spanish-speaking and UK examples)
• Timer/stopwatch
• Small prizes or positive reinforcement stickers (to motivate participation)

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Lesson Structure

1. Starter (10 minutes)

Activity: Town Before & Now Quick Chat

• Show contrasting images of a town/city ‘before and after’ (e.g., old photo vs modern photo). Hold up 2 different sets.
• Ask students in pairs (gender-balanced) to discuss quickly in English what differences they see, e.g. "What might have changed?"
• Prompt them with phrases: "Antes…", "Ahora…", "Había…", "Hay…".
• Bring ideas back to class, noting some vocabulary on board, linking to vocab sheet.

Purpose: Activate prior knowledge, access vocabulary and set context.

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2. Explicit Teaching (10 minutes)

Activity: Imperfect Tense Explanation & Mini-Whiteboard Practice

• Present the regular imperfect tense endings clearly on board/charts:

Ending type	-ar verbs	-er / -ir verbs
yo	-aba	-ía
tú	-abas	-ías
él/ella/usted	-aba	-ía
nosotros/as	-ábamos	-íamos
vosotros/as	-abais	-íais
ellos/ellas/ustedes	-aban	-ían

• Model pronunciation carefully, asking students to repeat chorally and individually.
• Write three infinitive verbs relevant to the vocab sheet (e.g. ser, estar, haber, and maybe trabajar or vivir) and ask students to conjugate the first person singular and third person singular aloud.
• Using mini-whiteboards, call out a pronoun and verb, and students write the correct imperfect form then hold up their boards for instant formative feedback.

Purpose: Secure understanding and recall of imperfect tense forms.

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3. Vocabulary and Oral Fluency Practice (15 minutes)

Activity 1: Flashcard Speed Round

• Using vocab flashcards (phrases from the vocab sheet), students work in small groups. One student shows the card, the others form and say aloud a sentence in Spanish using the imperfect tense and the phrase.
• E.g. Card: “había mucha basura” → Student says: "Antes, en mi ciudad, había mucha basura en las calles."
• Rotate roles quickly to keep it dynamic.

Activity 2: Role-Play Pair Interview

• Students pair up and take turns asking and answering the question: ¿Cómo era tu ciudad antes?
• Provide sentence starters on board:
  • Antes, mi ciudad...
  • Había...
  • Era...
• Encourage use of imperfect tense endings and vocabulary from sheet.
• Teacher circulates, offers phrases/support, and monitors pronunciation and grammar.

Purpose: Build confidence in speaking, using new grammar and vocab.

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4. Creative Task & Speaking Assessment (20 minutes)

Activity: "Then and Now Town Poster" (Group Task)

• Divide class into groups of 5-6 mixed abilities and genders. Provide large paper or A3 sheets.
• Each group draws or pastes printed images/photos representing their idea of a town “antes” (before) and “ahora” (now).
• Below each image, groups write 3-5 sentences describing the town before using imperfect tense and vocabulary, e.g., "Antes, mi ciudad era muy peligrosa y había mucha contaminación."
• Groups must orally present their posters in Spanish to the class (2-3 mins max). Encourage speakers to be girls, supporting with key phrases on prompt cards if needed.
• Teacher uses a simple assessment grid focusing on: use of imperfect tense, vocabulary, pronunciation, and fluency.

Purpose: Consolidate learning in a creative, collaborative way and assess spoken production.

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5. Plenary & Reflection (5 minutes)

Activity: Exit Ticket - Imperfect Tense Quiz

• On mini whiteboards or paper, students write down:
  1. One regular -ar verb conjugated in the imperfect tense (any person)
  2. One vocabulary phrase from the lesson with an imperfect verb
• Quickly share aloud or submit to teacher.
• End with positive reinforcement and highlighting progress made.

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Differentiation

• Support: Sentence starters provided, modelling throughout, pair work to scaffold speaking.
• Challenge: More able can create more complex sentences using multiple imperfect verbs and additional vocabulary beyond the sheet.
• Encourage all students, especially girls, by assigning clear speaking roles and using positive reinforcement.

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Assessment

Ongoing informal assessment through:

• Mini whiteboard conjugation quiz
• Observation of oral participation and use of imperfect tense during pair and group activities
• Speaking presentation assessed with a simple rubric (accuracy, fluency, vocabulary use)

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Extension Ideas (Homework or next lesson)

• Write a short paragraph or diary entry describing their own town ‘antes’ using the imperfect tense.
• Research and present (orally or in writing) a Spanish-speaking city and how it has changed over time using similar vocabulary and grammar.

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This lesson plan uses active learning approaches and formative assessment to meet key KS3 National Curriculum goals, supports language acquisition with engaging tasks, and applies scaffolding that boosts confidence and participation, particularly ensuring girls are engaged and motivated.