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Pre A1 Starters animals and pets: vocabulary practice

A1-A2Pre A1 Starters40 questionsUpdated

Animals are the friendliest topic in Pre A1 Starters and the one children enjoy most, which makes it a good place to build confidence. This page practises pets, farm animals and zoo animals, together with the simple has got and can sentences children need to describe them.

What this task tests

  • Recognition of common animal words in writing, not just in pictures.
  • Simple descriptions built with has got: it has got a long tail.
  • Plurals, including the irregular ones children meet early: mice, sheep, fish.
  • Yes and no answers about obvious facts: can a bird fly?
  • The difference between a pet, a farm animal and a zoo animal.
  • Can and cannot for animal abilities: swim, fly, jump, climb.
  • Body-part words attached to animals: tail, wing, leg, ear, nose.
  • Where animals live: farm, zoo, water, tree, house.
  • Size and colour adjectives used with animals: a big grey elephant.

How to do it

  1. Step 1:

    Three boxes

    Sort the animal cards into pets, farm and zoo. The sorting talk is the lesson; the cards are only the excuse.

  2. Step 2:

    One fact each

    Every animal gets one sentence: an elephant has got a long nose. One fact is memorable, five are not.

  3. Step 3:

    Play guess the animal

    Describe, do not name. It has got four legs and it says woof. This is exactly what the speaking examiner rewards.

  4. Step 4:

    Collect the odd plurals

    Keep a short list of mouse and mice, sheep and sheep, fish and fish on the wall and add to it as they come up.

  5. Step 5:

    Draw and label

    The child draws an animal and copies the word underneath. Drawing buys you attention; the copying is the practice.

  6. Step 6:

    Build a can chart

    Four columns: fly, swim, jump, climb. The child puts each animal in the right column and says the sentence.

  7. Step 7:

    Use animal noises

    Noises are a free memory hook and children will repeat them a hundred times without complaint.

  8. Step 8:

    Compare two animals

    A mouse is small, an elephant is big. Side-by-side pairs teach the adjective and the animal at once.

  9. Step 9:

    Read one short animal book a week

    Any picture book with animals in it gives the written words in a real context, which no flashcard can.

  10. Step 10:

    Let the child be the teacher

    Ask the child to test you, and get some wrong on purpose. Correcting an adult is the best recall practice there is.

Mistakes that cost marks

  • Not thisI have two dog.

    ThisI have two dogs.

    The plural s disappears in speech first. Count things aloud constantly.

  • Not thisThe elephant have a long nose.

    ThisThe elephant has got a long nose.

    Third person has is worth drilling early, because the speaking test invites descriptions.

  • Not thisthree sheeps

    Thisthree sheep

    Sheep and fish do not change. Teach them as exceptions, with a picture.

  • Not thisIt is a animal.

    ThisIt is an animal.

    An goes before a vowel sound. Practise with an elephant, an apple, an orange.

  • Not thisA bird can to fly.

    ThisA bird can fly.

    After can the verb has no to. Drill can swim, can jump, can climb as set phrases.

  • Not thismouses

    Thismice

    One of the first irregular plurals children meet. A picture of one mouse and three mice fixes it fast.

  • Not thisHe is a cat.

    ThisIt is a cat.

    Children use he for every animal. It is safe for an animal you do not know.

Language this task keeps reusing

pet
An animal that lives with you at home.
tail
The long part at the back of many animals.
wing
Birds use these to fly.
feed
To give an animal its food.
giraffe
A very tall animal with a long neck.
mouse
A small grey animal; more than one are mice.
sheep
A farm animal with a woolly coat; the plural is the same.
goat
A farm animal that eats almost anything.
duck
A bird that swims on a pond.
zoo
A place where you can see animals from other countries.
farm
A place with fields, cows, sheep and hens.
puppy
A baby dog.
kitten
A baby cat.
climb
To go up something, like a tree.
stripes
Long lines of colour, like a zebra has.

Practice: animals and pets

40 original questions. The first 10 are open to everyone. Answers are checked in your browser and never sent to us, so you can share this page with a class as it is.

1Complete the sentence.

A has got a very long neck.
Which animal says woof?

3Complete the sentence.

Birds use their wings to .
Right or wrong?
  • A giraffe has got a long neck.
  • A fish can walk.
  • A cow gives us milk.
3 to go

5Complete the sentence.

A baby dog is called a .
Which animal lives in water?

7Complete the sentence.

A says miaow and likes to sleep.

8Have you got a pet? Tell me about it.

Where can you see a lion and an elephant?

10Complete the sentence.

Mice are small and they are afraid of .

Keep going

30 more questions on this page

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Frequently asked questions

Why are animals such a common exam topic?

They are concrete, children already care about them, and they let an examiner ask about colour, size, number and ability in one picture.

Should I teach zoo animals or pets first?

Pets and farm animals first, because children can talk about their own lives with them. Zoo animals come next and are mostly recognition work.

How do I stop a child answering everything with one word?

Accept the one-word answer, then model the sentence and ask again. Over a few weeks the child starts producing the fuller version without being asked.

How many animal words does a Starters child need?

Around twenty is comfortable. Make sure the very common ones are secure in writing before adding rarer ones the child will only ever meet in a picture.

Is it a problem if a child says he for every animal?

Not in the exam, but it is worth modelling it. Children pick up the pattern quickly if you use it consistently yourself.

My child loves dinosaurs. Is that useful?

Yes, use it. The language around dinosaurs is exactly the language the exam wants: big, small, long tail, it can run fast. The enthusiasm does the work for you.