1 - Something Changes Past Ten ~5 mins
Count to twenty in English together. Easy. Now picture a busy German bakery: trays of fresh Brötchen (bread rolls) and a queue that keeps climbing past ten. German does not build every teen the way English does, and at twenty-one the order even flips to "one-and-twenty". Today you will hear why that flip starts earlier than you think, spot the pattern in the teens, and count from eleven to twenty out loud.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Count and recognise German numbers from eleven to twenty
- Spot which numbers are built from two smaller ones
- Join a spoken counting round from eleven to twenty
Ask the class to count to twenty in English once, quickly, then pause. Paint the bakery picture briefly (trays of rolls, a queue past ten) so the numbers feel useful, not abstract. Tell them German will sound different past ten and that they should listen for which numbers sound stitched together. Drop in the curiosity hook: in German, twenty-one literally says "one-and-twenty", and today they will hear how that building habit already shows up in the teens. Do not teach the words yet; the flashcards in the next step do that. Keep the mood curious rather than testing.
2 - Numbers to Twenty ~10 mins
English on the front. Listen to the German, then the whole class repeats it twice before anyone guesses alone. Flip to check the spelling. After a few teens, listen for the ones that end like zehn (tsayn): they are built from a smaller number plus ten.
Run this as whole-class flashcards on the board. Listen-first loop every time: show English, you say (or play) the German clearly, class choruses twice, then flip to confirm the spelling. Only invite a volunteer guess after the class has already chorused that word at least once. Pronunciation guides: elf (elf), zwölf (tsvohlf), dreizehn (DRY-tsayn), vierzehn (FEER-tsayn), fünfzehn (FUENF-tsayn), sechzehn (ZEKH-tsayn), siebzehn (ZEEB-tsayn), achtzehn (AKHT-tsayn), neunzehn (NOYN-tsayn), zwanzig (TSVAN-tsikh). Warm coaching for the hard sounds: zwölf has that ö — purse your lips like you are saying "oo" then try "eh" in the middle; it is a fun face. The zw- / ts- cluster and the -ch in sechzehn and zwanzig need a slow model and a grin, not a test. Point out that dreizehn to neunzehn mostly follow unit-plus-zehn, while elf, zwölf and zwanzig stand alone. Celebrate the first clean zwanzig as a class win before moving on.
3 - Bingo Above Ten ~10 mins
Use the bingo card on your desk (your teacher will hand out printables) or open Bingo on the class devices if you have them. Listen for each German number and mark it. When you complete a line, call Bingo and read your line aloud in German with the class. Stay sharp: the calls are the teens and twenty, not the small numbers you already know.
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
Copy the German words for 11 to 20 from the list on the board into your copy. Circle the ones that end with zehn. Watch the umlaut on zwölf and the short stems sech- and sieb-.
Pause the board and leave a clear look-and-copy list of eleven to twenty in German on screen the whole time. Do not hide the list; this is copy practice after oral work, not a spelling test from memory. Walk the room and check spellings, especially the umlaut in zwölf and the shortened stems in sechzehn and siebzehn. Pupils should circle the compound teens: dreizehn, vierzehn, fünfzehn, sechzehn, siebzehn, achtzehn and neunzehn. Flag those three spelling traps once more on the board before pens go down. Do not collect the copies.
5 - Count on from the Wheel ~10 mins
Imagine the bakery counter: rolls left on the tray. Spin the wheel. We all say the German number it lands on together. Then your teacher picks a volunteer or table to count on toward zwanzig, saying up to three more numbers and stopping at twenty. A mini number line from eleven to twenty stays on the board to help.
Keep a clear mini number line elf–zwanzig on the IWB for the whole activity. Model two full chains chorally before any solo turn: spin, class says the landed German number together, then count on up to three steps toward zwanzig, stopping if you reach it (so from achtzehn you only need neunzehn, zwanzig; from zwanzig the class cheers "top of the tray!" and spins again). Then invite volunteers or tables. If a pupil stalls, the class may whisper the next word once, then the pupil repeats it alone. Warm line if the wheel feels scary: whisper with a neighbour once, then own it — wrong guesses still get a high-five. Keep the pace brisk so many pupils get a turn. This checks production inside the taught range only; do not ask for twenty-one or beyond here. Optional flavour: "Die Bäckerei has fifteen rolls left — count on toward twenty in German."
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