An old topic using a new methodology: THE STONE AGE

Prehistory is really a very old topic in Social Science. Different students around the world study the way of life of our first ancestors every single year. Consequently, it has been taught in many different ways. However, what would be the best way to teach something like that in a L2 language? Here you have an example of CLIL didactic unit for first year of Secondary Education in which you can find diffferent activities and resources focusing not only in contents but also in language learning. This is a new way to teach today. 

Our first ancestors

The learning outcomes of this didactic unit, which is title THE STONE AGE are: 

1. Differentiate the different periods in Prehistory.
2. Learn about the evolution of hominids up until the appearance of today´s human beings.
3. Distinguish the different periods of the Stone Age and learn about the skills, way of life, socioeconomic structure and artistic expressions in each of them.
4. Explain the consequences of changes in the climate, flora and fauna that occurred at the end of the Palaeolithic Age and the start of the Neolithic Age.
5. Describe the changes that took place in the economy and way of life, which defined the Neolithic Revolution, and understand the importance of these changes.
6. Recognise and appreciate the artistic and cultural manifestations of the Stone Age.  
7. Learn about the main features of the Palaeolithic and Neolithic Ages in Spain.

The different tasks and activities for this unit will be: 

A Prehistoric family in a cave

• Introduction activity includes different exercises to introduce new vocabulary comparing prehistoric societies with our customs and habits today.
• Practicing new vocabulary using Quizlet.
• Students textbook and the worksheets provided by the teacher include a wide range of activities: filling gaps in simple sentences, matching words and definitions, true or false sentences, short texts and listenings with questions, drawings and blank maps to label specific vocabulary or questions to answer with simple sentences.
• Cooperative listening: video “Human origins: Evidence of Human Evolution”.
• Describing a picture orally using specific vocabulary from the unit: Images of a Palaeolithic camp and a Neolithic settlement.
• Vocabulary organizer of the unit with all the new words included in the vocabulary sheets.

We will use the following resources in order to carry out the activities mentioned before: 

Prehistoric set in Quizlet

• Textbook, worksheets and vocabulary sheets 1 and 2 (Glossary).
• Power point made by the teacher about the Stone Age with a lot of images, maps and diagrams. (It will be available for the students in the Moodle platform of the secondary school: http://moodle.iesdelicias.com/login/index.php)
• Introduction activity to Prehistory units from One Stop clil webpage: (The assistant teacher will be a valuable resource in order to carry out this activity) http://www.onestopenglish.com/clil/young-learners/history-culture-and-the-arts/history/prehistory/551004.article
• A set created with “Quizlet” about Prehistory: http://quizlet.com/_zs0rw   
• Video: “Human origins: Evidence of Human Evolution”. This video is a short introduction to some of the evidence for human evolution, in the form of fossils and artifacts. The author is Dr. Rick Potts, who works for the Smithsonian´s National Museum of Natural History. The video is currently available in youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQ7VUZHwbEk  
• Two images about a Palaeolithic Camp and a Neolithic settlement taken from the teacher resources pack that comes with textbook and posted in a digital board in order to do an oral activity

There will be necessary seven sesions to complete this unit: 

• 1^st session: Introduction activity and explanation about the different periods that we can distinguish in the prehistoric era. Later, the students will practice new vocabulary in the computer´s room using a set created by the teacher with “Quizlet”. Some activities will be required as homework too. 
• 2^nd session:  After checking the activities ordered the day before, the origin and evolution of human beings will be explained. Later, they will watch the video about “Human origins” and they will do an activity in pairs. Some activities from their textbook or the worksheets will be ordered as homework.  
• 3^rd session:  After checking the activities ordered the day before, the teacher will explain the most important aspects of the Palaeolithic Age. Later, they will have to identify the most important activities carried out in this period over an image of a Palaeolithic camp posted in the digital board and they will have to explain some of them orally to their classmates.
• 4^th session: We will finish with the Palaeolithic Age and the most important vocabulary will be revised with a “hot seat activity”. Some activities form their textbook and worksheets will be required as homework.  

  

  Hot seat activity

• 5^th session: After checking the activities ordered the day before, the Neolithic Age will be explained in class. Later, they will have to identify the most important activities carried out in this period over an image of a Neolithic settlement posted in the digital board and they will have to explain some of them orally to their classmates.
• 6^th session: We will finish with the Neolithic Age and we will revise contents and vocabulary with a “hot seat activity” or with a hangman game.
• 7^th session: the students will have to do the exam of this unit.

 Eventually, the evaluation criteria and instruments for this unit will be the following ones: 

 Evaluation criteria:

1.   Name the changes which took places in hominids during their evolution until they became human.

2.   Describe the main characteristics of the Stone Age, its different stages and the technical, socioeconomic and artistic innovations that take place in each of them.

3.   Explain the importance of the appearance of the first religious beliefs in the Palaeolithic Age.

4.   Identify the factors which led to the discovery of agriculture and the domestication of animals, and analyse the consequences of these achievements.

5.   Recognise the differences between Paleolithic Art and Neolithic Art.

6.   Explain the features of the Palaeolithic and Neolithic Ages in Spain.

Evaluation instruments:

1. Continuous assessment of each student with different oral  questions every day and checking their notebooks. 
2. At the end of the unit, the students will do an exam about the different contents explained in the unit.