Activity 01
Circle Time: Family Words Share
Gather children in a circle. Each child shares one special family word and what it means, passing a talking stick. Record words on chart paper for a class word wall. Discuss how words connect us to home.
Have you ever heard someone speak in a different way or use different words from you?
Facilitation TipDuring Family Words Share, start by sharing your own family word to model vulnerability and normalize differences.
What to look forShow pictures of children from different regions of Ireland. Ask students: 'What might this child's accent sound like?' and 'Can you think of a special word their family might use?' Record their answers.
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Activity 02
Listening Pairs: Accent Hunt
Play short audio clips of Irish accents saying simple phrases like 'Hello, how are you?' Pairs listen, repeat what they hear, and draw a picture of the speaker. Switch clips for Dublin and Cork accents.
How do we show we are being friendly and kind when we speak to someone?
Facilitation TipFor Accent Hunt, play short audio clips twice so children focus on sounds, not just repeating words.
What to look forRead a short story featuring characters with different ways of speaking. Ask: 'How did the characters speak differently?' and 'How did they show they were being friendly to each other?' Encourage students to use examples from the story.
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Activity 03
Role-Play Stations: Kind Talk
Set up stations with puppets or props. At each, children practice friendly greetings in different voices: happy, gentle, excited. Rotate stations, noting kind words used. Share favorites with group.
What special words does your family use that other people might not know?
Facilitation TipSet up Kind Talk stations with props like toy phones or puppets to make role-play feel safe and playful.
What to look forGive each student a card with a picture of a smiling face. Ask them to draw or write one way to use 'friendly talk' when speaking to someone new.
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Activity 04
Story Echo: Dialect Read-Aloud
Read a picture book with varied speech, like Irish folktales. Pause for children to echo lines in their own voices or mimic characters. Create a class chant from repeated friendly phrases.
Have you ever heard someone speak in a different way or use different words from you?
What to look forShow pictures of children from different regions of Ireland. Ask students: 'What might this child's accent sound like?' and 'Can you think of a special word their family might use?' Record their answers.
UnderstandApplyAnalyzeSelf-AwarenessRelationship Skills
Generate Complete Lesson→A few notes on teaching this unit
Teachers should approach this topic by first validating children’s home language to build trust. Avoid correcting accents or words directly; instead, model curiosity and comparison. Research shows young children learn social norms through repetition and guided reflection, so revisit kindness and diversity daily in short bursts rather than one long lesson.
Successful learning looks like children confidently sharing family words, identifying familiar accents in recordings, and using polite phrases in role-play without prompting. They should demonstrate curiosity about how others speak and show kindness through tone and words during activities.
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
During Family Words Share, watch for children assuming all families use the same words for family members.
Use this circle to highlight differences by asking, 'Does anyone else have a special word for mum or dad?' Encourage children to clap or nod when they hear a word that matches their family, normalizing variation.
During Accent Hunt, watch for children labeling certain accents as 'silly' or 'wrong'.
Play recordings of accents side by side and ask, 'Which sounds closest to ours?' Then ask, 'Do you think the speaker is happy or sad?' This shifts focus from correctness to tone and context.
During Kind Talk, watch for children thinking only one way of speaking is polite.
Provide sentence stems like 'May I have a turn?' and 'Thank you' in different accents during role-play. Afterward, ask the group, 'Which phrases felt friendly? Why?' to show politeness is flexible.
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