Table of Contents
Introduction
Understanding the relationship between cause and effect is a fundamental skill that helps students improve their reading comprehension, writing, and communication abilities. This lesson plan is designed to teach students how to identify cause-and-effect relationships in texts, use appropriate expressions, and apply these concepts in their writing and speaking activities.
Before diving into the lesson activities, let’s first review the details of the lesson plan.
Cause and Effect Lesson Plan: Lesson Details
Cause and Effect Lesson Plan
- Level: Intermediate
- Duration: 60 minutes
- Materials: Short story (provided by teacher), chart paper, matching worksheet, gap-fill worksheet, survey sheet
- Objectives:
- Recognize cause and effect relationships in a text.
- Identify and use expressions of cause and effect.
- Practice creating cause-and-effect sentences.
The Procedures of the Cause and Effect Lesson Plan
1. Awareness Stage – Short Story & Comprehension:
- Introduction to Cause and Effect: Start by introducing the concept of cause and effect. Explain that causes are reasons why things happen, and effects are the results of those causes.
- Read the Short Story: To contextualize the target structures, students read the following short story and answer the comprehension questions below:
On Saturday, Emma went to the park. She forgot to bring her umbrella, and as a result, she got soaked when it started raining. Her friend John was also there, but he remembered to bring his umbrella, so he stayed dry. They both went home afterward. Emma caught a cold because she was wet, but John was fine.
- Comprehension Questions: Ask the students questions like:
- Why did Emma get soaked?
- What happened to Emma after getting wet?
- Why did John stay dry?
- Identifying Cause and Effect: Ask students to underline expressions in the story that show cause and effect (e.g., “because,” “as a result,” etc.).
- Completing a Chart: Students complete the following chart with causes and effects from the text:
| Causes | Effects |
|---|---|
- Identifying Cause and Effect Expressions: Students work in small groups to identify cause and effect expressions:
| Cause and Effect Expressions |
|---|
| as a reslut |
| … |
| … |
- Adding More Expressions: Students work in groups to add more expressions
2. Practice Stage – Chart and Exercises:
- Matching Exercise: Provide a worksheet with two columns—one for causes and one for effects. Students must match the causes with the correct effects. Example:
- Causes:
- Emma forgot her umbrella.
- It rained suddenly.
- John brought his umbrella.
- Effects:
- Emma got soaked.
- John stayed dry.
- Emma caught a cold.
- Causes:
- Gap Fill Exercise: Have students complete sentences by filling in the blanks with the appropriate cause or effect words. Example:
- Emma got soaked ____ she forgot her umbrella.
- John stayed dry ____ he brought his umbrella.
- He exercises regularly ____ he wants to keep fit.
- She didn’t prepare enough for the test, ____ she failed.
- We were late, ____ we missed the train.
3. Production Stage – Survey:
- Pair Activity – Cause and Effect Survey: In pairs, students ask each other questions related to cause and effect in their personal lives.
For example
- Why do you exercise?
- Why do you study English?
- Why did you choose your favorite hobby?
- Why do you wake up early?
- Why do you spend time with your friends?
- Each student completes a survey sheet based on their partner’s answers, using cause-and-effect structures
Conclusion
Teaching cause-and-effect relationships not only enhances students’ understanding of how events are interconnected but also sharpens their critical thinking and communication skills.
Through this lesson, students will gain confidence in identifying, analyzing, and applying cause-and-effect expressions in both spoken and written contexts. By the end, they will have a deeper understanding of how cause and effect function in language and everyday life.