1 - At the Frutería ~5 mins
Picture a busy neighbourhood mercado in Spain. You stop at the frutería counter and nobody speaks English. You need fruit for home. What do you actually need to say: the name of the fruit, how much you want, and a polite please?
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Name eight fruits in Spanish
- Ask for two of something and a kilo of something
- Make a short polite market request
Take three or four quick ideas from the class about what you would need at a Spanish frutería with no English. Do not teach the Spanish yet; the next step puts the fruit words and the two quantity patterns on the board. Keep the focus on buying by amount. Set the scene lightly: a colourful stall, the seller behind the counter, shoppers waiting their turn.
2 - Eight Spanish Fruits ~10 mins
Listen to each fruit on the table, then say it back together with la, el or las. We will meet them in two groups of four.
Buying tip: After dos or un kilo de, drop el/la/las and use the plural fruit word.
Core patterns:
- Quiero dos manzanas, por favor (I want two apples, please)
- Un kilo de naranjas, por favor (A kilo of oranges, please)
Plurals for shopping: manzanas · plátanos · naranjas · fresas · limones · uvas · peras · melocotones
Run the word-table in two passes so the load stays light. First four: la manzana, el plátano, la naranja, la fresa. Class repeats each twice (whole class, then by table). Point at the article every time. Then the second four: el limón, las uvas, la pera, el melocotón. Watch the accents on plátano, limón and melocotón.
Keep a visible board strip of shopping plurals beside the table: manzanas, plátanos, naranjas, fresas, limones, uvas, peras, melocotones. Say clearly: after dos / un kilo de, drop el/la/las.
Model the two core lines slowly with respellings, then swap the fruit so pupils hear the pattern: Quiero dos manzanas, por favor (kee-EH-roh dohs man-THAH-nahs, por fah-BOR); Quiero dos plátanos, por favor (kee-EH-roh dohs PLAH-tah-nohs, por fah-BOR); Un kilo de naranjas, por favor (oon KEE-loh deh nah-RAHN-hahs, por fah-BOR); Un kilo de limones, por favor (oon KEE-loh deh lee-MOH-nehs, por fah-BOR).
Extension once only: real stall shoppers often say Me pone un kilo de naranjas, por favor (meh POH-neh oon KEE-loh deh nah-RAHN-hahs) or Me da dos manzanas, por favor (meh dah dohs man-THAH-nahs). Keep Quiero dos … as the class default; invite confident pupils to try Me pone / Me da later.
Make a fuss of strong articles: “¡Qué bien! la fresa, not just fresa.” All eight stay for listening and bingo; free spoken and written production today can focus on five easier shopping plurals first: manzanas, plátanos, naranjas, peras, limones. Fresas, uvas and melocotones stay on the recognition list and work best on the kilo line.
3 - Fruit Bingo ~10 mins
Listen carefully and mark each fruit as you hear it on your card. First full line calls out. Say the Spanish quietly to yourself each time you mark a square.
How to Play Bingo:
Option 1: Students on Devices (Digital Version)
- Use the digital version where your teacher view of the lesson displays the cards that are being called out.
- Play the pronunciation sound of each word and the children mark it off their unique digital bingo card.
- Each student has a randomised bingo card so winners will vary!
Option 2: Print Out the Bingo Cards
- Print out the Bingo Cards from the attachment above, cut out the cards, and give one to each student.
- You call out the vocabulary words and students mark off their sheets.
- First student to complete a line (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) calls "Bingo!" and wins.
4 - Into Your Copy ~3 mins
Open your copy. Before you write, say both buying lines once more with the class. Then fill the gaps, choosing two different fruits from the plural bank on the board:
- Quiero dos ______, por favor
- Un kilo de ______, por favor
Keep accents careful. Prefer manzanas, plátanos, naranjas, peras or limones for your free choice if you are unsure.
Before pencils up, leave the word-table and the plural strip visible. Choral-build both frames once more with two different fruits, for example: Quiero dos peras, por favor and Un kilo de limones, por favor. Point again: after dos / un kilo de, no article, plural form only.
Pupils write gap-fills, not fully free sentences from memory. Walk the room and check plurals and accents, especially manzanas, naranjas, plátanos, limones and melocotones. If someone wants a harder fruit, model one hard plural together first. Do not collect the copies. Praise a clean accent or a tidy por favor as you pass.
5 - Spin and Buy ~10 mins
First, a quick pair practice: Partner A is the shopper and reads one board frame with a fruit from the plural bank. Partner B is the seller and answers only ¡Aquí tiene! (Here you are!). Swap roles once.
Then spin the wheel. When it lands on a fruit, that pair (or pupil) makes a full polite request using Quiero dos …, por favor or Un kilo de …, por favor. The class listens for a clear plural and a polite ending. Seller replies ¡Aquí tiene!; shopper can add Gracias.
Run 60–90 seconds of pair rehearsal first so nobody’s first spoken turn is a high-stakes cold call. Display both roles: Shopper frame + Seller ¡Aquí tiene! (ah-KEE TYEH-neh). Optional shopper close: Gracias.
Then spin on the board. Prefer pairs performing; cold-call only if needed. Accept either quantity pattern; the point is a full spoken request plus the tiny seller turn.
Steer the fruit: use Quiero dos … for manzanas, peras, naranjas, plátanos, melocotones, limones. Steer fresas and uvas to the kilo line (Un kilo de fresas / uvas, por favor) so the purchase sounds natural.
Cheat-sheet (every spin runnable):
- Quiero dos manzanas, por favor (kee-EH-roh dohs man-THAH-nahs, por fah-BOR)
- Quiero dos plátanos, por favor (kee-EH-roh dohs PLAH-tah-nohs, por fah-BOR)
- Quiero dos naranjas, por favor (kee-EH-roh dohs nah-RAHN-hahs, por fah-BOR)
- Quiero dos peras, por favor (kee-EH-roh dohs PEH-rahs, por fah-BOR)
- Quiero dos limones, por favor (kee-EH-roh dohs lee-MOH-nehs, por fah-BOR)
- Quiero dos melocotones, por favor (kee-EH-roh dohs meh-loh-koh-TOH-nehs, por fah-BOR)
- Un kilo de fresas, por favor (oon KEE-loh deh FREH-sahs, por fah-BOR)
- Un kilo de uvas, por favor (oon KEE-loh deh OO-vahs, por fah-BOR)
- Un kilo de naranjas, por favor (oon KEE-loh deh nah-RAHN-hahs, por fah-BOR)
- Un kilo de limones, por favor (oon KEE-loh deh lee-MOH-nehs, por fah-BOR)
If a pupil freezes, prompt with the English meaning only, then model the full Spanish line once for the class to echo. Extension: confident pupils may swap Quiero for Me pone / Me da. Cheer full polite lines: “That would get you fruit in Madrid.” Aim for several different fruits so the class hears variety.
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