Objectives: To learn vocabulary words.

Materials: Irish story books, Irish dictionary, desktop publishing, Internet, online dictionary: The Merriam-Webster Dictionary,  and local newspapers, such as the Irish Independent Online Newspaper
*If selecting another country, use its online resources

Procedure: 

1) The students will search through both Irish and fictional stories found in the United States. Online sources: Irish Myths and Legends and The Blarney Stone

2) They will look for expressions local to each region.

3) The boys and girls will then email the key pals located at Epals.com  and ask them for additional expressions that can only be found in Ireland.

4) The students will compile a mini-booklet of the new words learned.

5) Students will use desktop publishing to type mini-booklet and add clipart.

6) Proofread, spell check and publish.

A variation of this would be to discover expressions that mean the same thing in the United States, England and Ireland, then exchange them with key pals. Example: 

Irish:

Dia linn!

USA:

"God bless!" (when someone  sneezes)

Visit The Word of the Day in Irish, click on Features, then click on Divine Expressions and Terms of Endearment.

Evaluation: Look up meaning of the words discovered in lessons in the dictionary to determine origins of these words. Students will then be asked to write sentences using vocabulary words in correct context in sentences. Students will share sentences with class and be evaluated based on peer understanding of words in context.

Extension: Poetry

• Visit a school in Ireland and read some of their poems at Rossport N.S.
• Their poems are limericks. What is a limerick? A limerick is a short, often humorous, sometimes ribald poem. The origin of the term is unknown. The rhyme scheme is usually aabba, with a very rigid meter.
  
  There was an old lady from Leeds,
  Who swallowed a packet of seeds,
  Then she said pardon
  And they blew to the garden
  and now in her garden grows weeds.
  
  
• After reading some limericks, get in a group and write a limerick.
• Exchange it with other students living in the UK at The Limerick Exchange 

• You can also create an online limerick at Poetry Teacher
   

Homework: Students will continue the same classroom activity at home, only using English stories, the online dictionary: The Merriam-Webster Dictionary, and local newspapers, such as The London Times. They will research English stories to locate vocabulary and expressions unique to England and compare to US vocabulary and sayings.

Field Trip: Set up a field trip to a library. In advance, ask librarian to pre-select books, poetry and stories about the selected country. Librarian will then share stories, books and poetry about that country during the field trip.

Guest Speaker: Do any of the students know someone from a different country? Invite that person to class to talk about his countries' culture, education, sports, currency, famous people, food, attractions, family life, geography, and so on.