brightlivesenglish.com/lessons/mary-anning-sea-monster/
45-minute lesson plan
| Time | Stage | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 0–3′ | Warm-up | Ask the class: “Do you like the beach? What can you find on a beach?” Let a few students answer. |
| 3–13′ | Words | Pre-teach the 5 words with the flashcards: stone, beach, find, bone, sea. Say each word, show the meaning, and ask for a quick example. |
| 13–20′ | Video | Play the video (3:17). Students follow the transcript. Play it a second time if needed. |
| 20–28′ | Comprehension | Worksheet C (or the online Story Challenge): check answers together. Ask “How do you know?” |
| 28–35′ | Grammar | a lot of + noun / many + plural noun: to talk about a big number of things. Show “She found a lot of bones.”, then do worksheet E together. |
| 35–43′ | Worksheet | Students do worksheet A, B and D alone or in pairs. Check with the answer key. |
| 43–45′ | Speaking | In pairs: “Mary looked carefully at stones that other people did not see. What can you find if you look carefully?” |
Homework: students finish the lesson online (flashcards + Story Challenge). With your class link, you see who finished.
Words and grammar
- stone (noun): a small rock. “She looked for strange stones.”
- beach (noun): sand or small stones next to the sea. “She walked on the beach every day.”
- find (verb): to see something you are looking for. “What would she find?”
- bone (noun): a hard white part inside the body. “The bones were in the rock.”
- sea (noun): the big salty water. “The animal lived in the sea long ago.”
Grammar: a lot of + noun / many + plural noun — to talk about a big number of things. “She found a lot of bones.”
Discussion questions
- Mary looked carefully at stones that other people did not see. What can you find if you look carefully?
- What was the hardest moment in Mary Anning's story? What did Mary Anning do?
- Make two sentences about your own life with “a lot of + noun / many + plural noun”. (From the story: “She found a lot of bones.”)
Student worksheet
A Match the words to their meanings
- stone (noun)
- beach (noun)
- find (verb)
- bone (noun)
- sea (noun)
- fossil (noun)
- museum (noun)
- hammer (noun)
- the big salty water
- to see something you are looking for
- a very old animal or plant that has become stone
- a small rock
- a building where you can see old and interesting things
- a tool for hitting things
- a hard white part inside the body
- sand or small stones next to the sea
B Complete the sentences from the story
find · sea · hammer · bones · beach · stones · museum · fossils
- The animal lived in the long ago.
- She looked for strange .
- She found many .
- Her sea animal is in a today.
- What would she ?
- The were in the rock.
- She walked on the every day.
- She used a small .
C Did you understand?
- Mary's family was very rich.True / False
- Who found the big head?
- Her dog
- Her brother
- A scientist
- Her mother
- How long was the animal?
- About five centimetres
- About fifty metres
- About five metres
- About one metre
- Her dog Tray went everywhere with her.True / False
D Put the words in order
- She / lot / bones / a / found / of
E Grammar: a lot of + noun / many + plural noun
We use it for to talk about a big number of things. She found a lot of bones. · Many scientists visited her small shop.
Example from the story: She found a lot of bones.
- She found a lot bones. (of / to / for)
- scientists visited her small shop. (Many / Much / A lot)
- There are a lot of on the beach. (stones / stone / a stone)
F Your turn
Retell Mary Anning's story in 5–6 sentences. Use at least three words from exercise A.
Answer key
A. 1d 2h 3b 4g 5a 6c 7e 8f
B. 1 sea · 2 stones · 3 fossils · 4 museum · 5 find · 6 bones · 7 beach · 8 hammer
C. 1 False · 2 b · 3 c · 4 True
D. 1 She found a lot of bones.
E. 1 of · 2 Many · 3 stones
Transcript
A poor girl walked on the beach after storms.
One day, she found a monster.
This is the story of Mary Anning.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life stories.
Stone. A stone is a small rock.
She looked for strange stones.
Beach. A beach is sand or stones next to the sea.
She walked on the beach every day.
Find. To find is to see what you look for.
What would she find?
Bone. Bones are hard and white, inside your body.
The bones were in the rock.
Sea. The sea is the big salty water.
The animal lived in the sea long ago.
Now, one pattern: a lot of, and many.
She found a lot of bones.
Ready? Let's begin.
Mary Anning was born in England in 1799.
Her family lived by the sea.
Her father showed her old animals in the rock.
She looked for strange stones.
She walked on the beach every day.
In 1811, her brother found a big head in the rock.
What would she find?
A year later, Mary found the body.
It was about five metres long!
The bones were in the rock.
She found a lot of bones.
The animal lived in the sea long ago.
She found many more animals.
Many scientists visited her small shop.
Her dog Tray went everywhere with her.
Let's review. She looked for strange stones.
She walked on the beach every day.
What would she find?
The bones were in the rock.
The animal lived in the sea long ago.
And remember: she found a lot of bones.
Mary Anning's story teaches us: keep looking.
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