Explore Hong Kong!

Overview

Duration: 60 minutes
Grade Level: Year 5 (10–11 years old)
Class Size: 12 students
Subject: English Language Arts (ELA)
US Common Core Strand:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.5.2 – Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.7 – Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, demonstrating the ability to locate an answer or solve a problem efficiently.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.5.1 – Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions with diverse partners on grade 5 topics and texts.

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Objective

By the end of this lesson, students will:

• Collect, organize, and evaluate key details about tourist sites in Hong Kong
• Use descriptive and informative language to create a pretend travel itinerary
• Collaborate in pairs and small groups to simulate a tourist’s experience
• Present and explain their itinerary using engaging, age-appropriate vocabulary

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Materials Needed

• Travel brochures or printable tourist spot info (teacher-prepared handouts, NO real internet access necessary)
• Pre-made “Hong Kong Passport” worksheets
• Colored pencils or markers
• “Plan Your Day in Hong Kong” template (worksheet)
• Visuals of Hong Kong sites (printable or displayed on projector)
• Mini suitcases (optional: small boxes as props)
• Clock or timer for group activities

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Vocabulary Words

• Itinerary
• Destination
• Landmark
• Culture
• Sightseeing
• Transportation

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Hook (5 minutes)

🤔 Mystery Suitcase Challenge
The teacher walks in carrying a small suitcase. Without explaining, they silently lay out mysterious objects: a toy cable car, Chinese coins, a small dragon figurine, a dim sum menu, etc.

Prompt students:
“What do you think connects all of these items?” Write ideas on the board (don’t confirm or deny yet).

Reveal:
“We’re going to pretend we’re tourists visiting... Hong Kong!”

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Introduction (10 minutes)

🗺️ Setting the Scene: What is a Tourist?

• Quick brainstorming: “What do tourists do?” (Write responses on board.)
• Explain that tourists observe, learn, and write about their experiences.
• Introduce Hong Kong through a short 4-slide picture storyboard showing the skyline, food stalls, trams, and cultural festivals.

🧠 Focus Question:
“What would it be like to spend one day exploring Hong Kong?”

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Guided Activity: Travel Planner Challenge (25 minutes)

✈️ Station Set-Up (5 minutes)
Create 4 “Travel Stations” around the room. Students rotate in pairs.

1. Sights & Landmarks Station
   (Materials: Big visuals + short blurbs about Victoria Peak, Big Buddha, Star Ferry)

2. Food & Culture Station
   (Materials: Menus, photos, and short descriptions of local food and Mong Kok markets)

3. Transportation Station
   (Materials: Tram tickets, maps, visuals of ferries, double-decker buses)

4. Festivals & Traditions Station
   (Materials: Descriptions of Chinese New Year, Dragon Boat Festival)

Each pair receives a “Hong Kong Passport” (foldable booklet) where they collect key facts (write or draw one discovery at each station).

⏱️ 3–4 minutes per station, use timer and music for smooth transitions.

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Main Task: Write Your Itinerary (15 minutes)

📝 Using the “Plan Your Day in Hong Kong” worksheet, students independently plan:

• Time-based “Itinerary” (e.g. 9:00 AM - Ride the Peak Tram)
• Descriptions (1–2 sentences per activity using exciting verbs and adjectives)
• Transportation choices and food they’d try

🚨 Challenge Boost (for early finishers): Add fun dialogue or a mini travel journal entry using first-person voice:
"As I glide up Victoria Peak, the city sparkles below me like a sea of stars..."

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Sharing Full-Color Itineraries (5 minutes)

🎤 “Airport Departures!” Class Gallery Walk

• Students place their itineraries on desks.
• Each student gets two “boarding passes” (sticky notes) to leave compliments or reactions on others’ work.
• Optional: Select 2–3 students to "announce" their plans to the class in 30-second mini-presentations.

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Wrap-Up/Ticket Out the Door (5 minutes)

🛄 Suitcase Reflection
As they “pack up,” give each student a paper mini-suitcase on which they write:

• “One thing I’d love to do in Hong Kong is…”
• "One word that describes today’s class..."

Collect suitcases as exit slips.

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Assessment

• Formative: Observation during stations/how well students extract relevant information
• Summative: Completed itinerary must include
  • At least 4 stops with time-based entries
  • Descriptive language (adjectives, action verbs)
  • Logical sequence using transition words
  • Neat and legible format

✅ Rubric (simplified):

Criteria	Exceeds (3)	Meets (2)	Needs Work (1)
Organized itinerary
Use of descriptive language
Complete participation
Creativity/Voice

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Differentiation

ELL Learners / Struggling Writers:

• Provide sentence starters: “At 10 am, I will visit…”
• Have pre-drawn icons for transportation/food to glue in
• Use partner writing if needed

Advanced Learners:

• Design a travel flyer or poster
• Write a dialogue between two tourists
• Add historical facts into itinerary

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Extensions

• Integrate with Geography/Social Studies: Locate Hong Kong on a map, learn about customs
• Follow-up Letter Writing: “Dear Grandma, Guess what I did in Hong Kong today…”
• Creative writing: Write a short fiction story set in one of the places visited

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Reflection for Teacher

• Were students engaged with the travel theme?
• Did they effectively gather and apply information across stations?
• How effectively did students use descriptive language to convey itineraries?
• Consider displaying completed itineraries on a bulletin board titled:
  "Postcards from Hong Kong!"

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Final Thought

This lesson transforms traditional ELA writing into a cultural journey — engaging, standards-aligned, and filled with student voice. With inquiry-based learning and a powerful real-world context, “Explore Hong Kong!” is more than an English lesson… it's a passport to adventure.