Following InstructionsActivities & Teaching Strategies
Active learning works for following instructions because young children acquire oral language best through movement and repetition. Tasks like Simon Says and Partner Directions let students practice listening and doing without pressure, building confidence alongside skills. Active engagement turns abstract ideas about sequence into visible actions they can see, hear, and correct in real time.
Learning Objectives
- 1Identify the first step in a two-step oral instruction.
- 2Demonstrate the correct sequence of actions for a given two-step instruction.
- 3Explain the consequence of performing steps in the incorrect order.
- 4Compare the outcomes of following instructions precisely versus ambiguously.
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Whole Class: Simon Says Steps
Call out two-step instructions like 'Simon says touch your toes, then clap twice.' Students follow only with 'Simon says,' freeze otherwise. After five rounds, pause for whole-class talk on what made steps clear or tricky.
Prepare & details
Can you follow two steps to finish a task?
Facilitation Tip: During Simon Says Steps, stand beside the class and model slow, clear instructions so students match your pacing.
Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging
Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet
Pairs: Partner Directions
Pair students; one gives a two-step direction like 'Hop once and point up.' Partner performs and reports success. Switch roles three times, then pairs share one clear instruction with the class.
Prepare & details
What happens if we do the steps in the wrong order?
Facilitation Tip: For Partner Directions, pair students with similar language levels so they can coach each other without frustration.
Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging
Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet
Small Groups: Block Tower Build
Provide blocks and read steps: first flat base, then two tall ones, top with one small. Groups build, check against steps, rebuild if wrong order causes wobble. Discuss fixes together.
Prepare & details
How do we know what to do first when starting an activity?
Facilitation Tip: While observing Block Tower Build, quietly note which children start with the base layer without prompting.
Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging
Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet
Individual: Sequencing Cards
Give cards showing steps like wash hands, dry, wave. Students order them, act out, then explain first step to a neighbor. Collect and display correct sequences.
Prepare & details
Can you follow two steps to finish a task?
Facilitation Tip: Hand out Sequencing Cards one at a time to prevent rushing and give students time to focus on each step.
Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging
Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet
Teaching This Topic
Start with short, playful whole-class games to build listening stamina, then move to peer practice for social reinforcement. Avoid long verbal explanations; children learn best by doing and seeing immediate outcomes. Research shows that physical errors and social correction are more effective than verbal reminders for this age group, so let them test and revise their own sequences.
What to Expect
Successful learning looks like children completing two-step directions without reminders, using the right objects and order. You will see them checking peers’ work, correcting mistakes, and using words like ‘first’ and ‘then’ to describe their steps. Their actions and talk show they understand that small changes in language lead to different results.
These activities are a starting point. A full mission is the experience.
- Complete facilitation script with teacher dialogue
- Printable student materials, ready for class
- Differentiation strategies for every learner
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Common MisconceptionDuring Block Tower Build, watch for children who stack blocks randomly or skip the base layer.
What to Teach Instead
Pause the activity and ask the group to predict what will happen if they stack the top block first. Have them rebuild while naming each step aloud to reinforce the base-first rule.
Common MisconceptionDuring Partner Directions, watch for children who ignore filler words like ‘quickly’ or ‘carefully’ in instructions.
What to Teach Instead
After the pair activity, ask students to act out two versions of the same instruction: one with and one without filler words. Compare the outcomes and underline the key verbs and objects in the original phrase.
Common MisconceptionDuring Simon Says Steps, watch for children who assume instructions always succeed even when vague.
What to Teach Instead
Give an ambiguous command like ‘Do that’ and ask the class to describe what happened. Compare results to a precise version, then have students revise the instruction together to match the intended action.
Assessment Ideas
After Simon Says Steps, give a two-step instruction such as ‘Touch your shoulder and then jump once.’ Observe if students perform both actions in order and ask one child, ‘What did you do first? What comes next?’
During Partner Directions, present two written scenarios on the board: Scenario A: ‘First, color the apple red. Then, draw a stem.’ Scenario B: ‘First, draw a stem. Then, color the apple red.’ Ask pairs to discuss which scenario works and why, then share their reasoning with the class.
After Sequencing Cards, hand each student a card with a two-step instruction such as ‘Draw a square and then color it blue.’ Ask them to draw the steps on the card in order and write the first word of the instruction at the top.
Extensions & Scaffolding
- Challenge: Give students a three-step direction with a change in the middle, such as ‘Put the bear on the chair, then take a red block, then put the bear on the block.’ Ask them to act it out and remember the change.
- Scaffolding: Provide picture cards with each step drawn for children to match before they perform the action.
- Deeper exploration: Introduce a ‘reverse challenge’ where students give instructions to a partner to undo a tower or drawing they just made, focusing on sequence reversal.
Key Vocabulary
| sequence | The order in which things happen or should be done. For example, putting on socks before shoes is the correct sequence. |
| instruction | A direction or order telling someone what to do. For example, 'Close the door' is an instruction. |
| precise | Exact and accurate. For example, 'Put the red block on the blue mat' is a precise instruction. |
| ambiguous | Unclear or having more than one possible meaning. For example, 'Put it there' is an ambiguous instruction. |
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Planning templates for Foundations of Language and Literacy
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