Grade 4 ESL Lesson Plan: Sports — Can You Play Tennis?

About This Resource

A 3-page, minute-by-minute plan for three 45-minute Grade 4 lessons on 12 sports, play / go / do, sports things, action verbs and can / can't, with a board plan, differentiation and a checklist.

Overview

This pack teaches Grade 4 learners the English they need to talk about sports: 12 sports with play, go or do, 8 sports things ("To play tennis, you need a racket."), 8 action verbs (kick, throw, catch, hit, bounce, run, jump, swim) and can / can't for ability ("I can swim, but I can't play tennis!"). Students ask and answer "Can you …?" with short answers, read about Sports Day at a school in Chiang Mai and write about their favourite sport. This listing covers the Lesson Plan only.

Resource Details

Subject: ESL
Topic: Sports
Category: Lesson Plans
File Type: PDF
File Size: 125.8 KB
Published: 26 Sep 2026
Downloads: 0

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Learning Objectives

Name and spell 12 sports (football, basketball, volleyball, badminton, table tennis, tennis, baseball, swimming, running, cycling, gymnastics, taekwondo) and use the correct verb: play, go or do.
Name 8 sports things (a ball, a racket, a bat, a net, goggles, sports shoes, a cap, a stopwatch) and say what you need for a sport ("To play tennis, you need a racket.").
Use 8 action verbs (kick, throw, catch, hit, bounce, run, jump, swim) to explain a sport ("In basketball, you bounce the ball.").
Say what they and other people can and can't do, using can + verb ("Mei can swim. Duc can't swim.").
Ask "Can you …?" and answer "Yes, I can. / No, I can't."
Read a short text about Sports Day, answer questions, and write 5–6 sentences about their favourite sport.

Lesson Procedure

Read the plan once before Lesson 1. Each lesson table shows the time, stage, what the teacher does (with slide and page numbers) and what students do. The table on page 3 shows how every part of the pack fits into the four lessons.

Assessment

The plan shows where to observe with the Grading Rubric (Charades, Find Someone Who Can, information gap) and where to use the Quick Quiz or Test.

Differentiation

Support: Teach 8 sports in Lesson 1 and add the other 4 in Lesson 2. Let students keep the PLAY / GO / DO cards and the word bank on the desk. Give the frames "I can ___." and "I can't ___." For writing, give a frame: "My favourite sport is ___. I ___ it on ___. I need ___. In ___, you ___ the ball. I can ___, but I can't ___."

Extension: Add well, fast and high ("I can run fast. I can't jump high."). Strong students ask the P.E. teacher three "Can you …?" questions and report back, or write about a family member ("My sister can do taekwondo.").

Classroom Activity Ideas

Start every lesson with a 3-minute PLAY / GO / DO card sort.
Keep the thumbs up (can) / thumbs down (can't) gesture the same in every lesson.

Teacher Tips

Watch for "I can swimming." Students learn "go swimming" first and then copy the -ing into can sentences. Put two boxes on the board and leave them up for the whole unit: "go swimming (the sport)" and "can swim (the ability)". Point to the right box when you recast. Also drill the short answers with thumbs — thumbs up = "Yes, I can!", thumbs down = "No, I can't." — so students stop answering with only "Yes."

What's Included

3-page lesson plan (DOCX + PDF): objectives, target language, materials, board plan, 3 lesson tables, optional review lesson, differentiation, assessment, checklist, pack overview