Lesson Plan | Socioemotional Learning | Vocabulary: False Friends

Objectives

Duration: 15 - 20 minutes

The purpose of this stage is to provide a solid foundation on the topic of false friends, allowing students to understand the importance of recognizing and avoiding these common mistakes. Additionally, this stage aims to raise students' awareness of the need to pay attention to context and the real meaning of words, developing skills of self-awareness and social consciousness by recognizing the emotions and frustrations that may arise from making these language mistakes.

Main Goals

1. Explain and exemplify the concept of false friends in English.

2. Facilitate the recognition of words that, although similar to Portuguese, have different meanings in English.

3. Promote the ability to identify and avoid the incorrect use of false friends in communication contexts.

Introduction

Duration: (15 - 20 minutes)

Emotional Warm-up Activity

Guided Meditation for Focus and Presence

The chosen emotional warm-up activity for this lesson is Guided Meditation. This practice helps promote focus, presence, and concentration among students, emotionally preparing them for learning.

1. Preparation of the Environment: Ask students to sit comfortably, with their backs straight, and close their eyes. Ensure that the environment is quiet and softly lit.

2. Start of the Meditation: Begin the guided meditation with a deep breath. Instruct students to inhale through their noses counting to four, hold their breath for two seconds, and then slowly exhale through their mouths counting to six.

3. Focus on Breathing: Guide students to focus their attention on their breathing, feeling the air entering and leaving their lungs. If a thought arises, ask them to simply acknowledge it and gently return their focus to their breath.

4. Creative Visualization: After a few minutes of focused breathing, guide students to visualize a calm and safe place where they feel happy and relaxed. Ask them to imagine the details of that place: colors, sounds, smells, and sensations.

5. Closing: Gradually ask students to return their focus to the present, gently moving their fingers and toes. Instruct them to slowly open their eyes when they feel ready. End by thanking everyone's participation.

Content Contextualization

False friends are words that seem familiar, but can trick us, leading to misunderstandings and frustrations. Imagine the surprise and sometimes embarrassment of using a word thinking it means one thing, when in fact it means something completely different! For example, 'pretend' seems to mean 'pretender' in Portuguese, but it means 'to pretend'. Understanding and identifying these false friends not only improves communication in English but also develops responsible decision-making skills, avoiding mistakes and misunderstandings. Furthermore, by recognizing the emotions that arise when making these mistakes and learning how to deal with them, students develop self-awareness and self-control. Understanding that everyone goes through these difficulties can increase social consciousness and social skills, promoting a more empathetic and supportive learning environment.

Development

Duration: (60 - 75 minutes)

Theoretical Framework

Duration: (25 - 30 minutes)

1. Concept of False Friends: Explain that false friends are words that look like words in another language but have different meanings. Highlight the importance of recognizing these false friends to avoid misunderstandings.

2. Examples of False Friends: Provide common examples of false friends between English and Portuguese, such as 'actual' (which means 'real' in English, not 'atual'), 'pretend' (which means 'to pretend', not 'pretender'), and 'fabric' (which means 'fabric', not 'fábrica').

3. Difference between True Cognates and False Friends: Explain the difference by giving examples of true cognates like 'hospital' (which means 'hospital' in both languages) and false friends like 'push' (which means 'to push', not 'to pull').

4. Causes and Consequences of False Friends: Discuss how the similarity between words can lead to confusion, communication errors, and even embarrassing situations. Exemplify with everyday situations where the incorrect use of false friends can cause problems.

5. Strategies to Identify False Friends: Offer tips to help students identify and avoid false friends, such as checking the context of the sentence, using bilingual dictionaries, and learning lists of common false friends.

Socioemotional Feedback Activity

Duration: (30 - 35 minutes)

Identification and Correction of False Friends

In this activity, students will work in pairs to identify and correct false friends in provided sentences. They should discuss and justify their corrections, promoting social skills and social awareness.

1. Pair Division: Divide students into pairs and distribute a list of sentences containing false friends.

2. Identification of the False Friends: Ask students to identify the false friends in each sentence. They should underline or circle the words they believe to be false friends.

3. Correction of the Sentences: Request that students correct the sentences, replacing the false friends with the correct words in English.

4. Discussion in Pairs: Guide students to discuss their corrections with each other, justifying their choices and explaining the reasons for the changes.

5. Presentation of Corrections: Ask some pairs to share their corrections with the class, promoting a collective discussion about the identified false friends.

Group Discussion

For the discussion and socio-emotional feedback, use the RULER method:

Recognize: Ask students to recognize the emotions they felt when identifying and correcting false friends. Did they feel frustrated, confused, or satisfied with their corrections?

Understand: Encourage students to understand the causes of those emotions. Why did they feel a certain way? Was it due to the difficulty of the task or the fear of making mistakes?

Label: Help students correctly name those emotions. Explain that it is normal to feel frustrated or confused when learning something new and that these emotions are part of the learning process.

Express: Guide students to express their emotions appropriately, discussing their experiences in groups and listening to their peers empathetically.

Regulate: Discuss strategies to regulate these emotions, such as asking for help when needed, practicing self-compassion, and remembering that mistakes are learning opportunities.

Conclusion

Duration: (15 - 20 minutes)

Emotional Reflection and Regulation

The reflection and emotional regulation activity can be conducted in two ways: a written reflection or a group discussion. For the written reflection, ask students to write a paragraph about the challenges they faced when dealing with false friends and how they managed their emotions during the activity. They should identify strategies they used to overcome difficulties and regulate their emotions. For the group discussion, form small groups and ask them to share their experiences, emphasizing the identification of the emotions felt and the strategies used to cope with them. Encourage active listening and mutual support during the discussion.

Objective: The objective of this subsection is to encourage students' self-assessment and emotional regulation, helping them identify effective strategies to deal with challenging situations. By reflecting on their experiences, students develop greater self-awareness and self-control, essential competencies for continuous learning and personal growth.

Closure and A Look Into The Future

For the closing and looking to the future, the teacher can guide students to set personal and academic goals related to the lesson content. Explain that the goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). Ask students to write their goals on a piece of paper and share them with a classmate, discussing how they plan to achieve them and what resources or support they may need.

Possible Goal Ideas:

1. Recognize and avoid the incorrect use of false friends in communication contexts.

2. Increase vocabulary in English, especially focusing on words that are false friends.

3. Practice reading texts in English, paying attention to false friends.

4. Improve the ability to understand and correctly translate texts in English.

5. Develop self-control strategies and emotional regulation when facing language difficulties. Objective: The objective of this subsection is to strengthen students' autonomy and the practical application of learning, aiming for continuity in academic and personal development. By setting clear and specific goals, students can direct their efforts more effectively, promoting continuous progress in both language mastery and the development of socio-emotional competencies.