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Mandarin Food — 食物

Fourth graders learn food words in Mandarin — 米饭 (mǐfàn), 面条 (miàntiáo), 水 (shuǐ), 茶 (chá), 鸡 (jī) — and discover the importance of rice and tea in Chinese culture.

Grade 4Shíwù40 minutes1 class periodACTFL / CommunicativeExplicit teaching4 StandardsACTFL
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Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Name foods.
  • ✓Say each food word.
  • ✓Learn about rice & tea.
  • ✓Order food in Mandarin.
Essential Question

我饿了! (Wǒ è le — I’m hungry!) What are the words for food in Mandarin?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Explore · Interactive

The Shíwù Explorer

Project this and tap each word. Have students learn Mandarin food vocabulary.

🍽️ Explore food words — tap eachTry it

The Lesson · Communicative Flow (Warm-Up · Present · Practice · Speak · Reflect)

40 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Warm-Up — 我饿了!

4 min

I’m hungry! What are the words for food in Mandarin?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Ask a favorite food.
  • Ask how to say it.
  • Set the goal.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Share.
  • Guess.
  • Get ready.
2

Present — Shíwù

10 min

Students learn.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send students to the Shíwù Explorer.
  • Present each food.
  • Note rice and tea.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Tap each.
  • Repeat.
  • Note it.
3

Practice — Practice

11 min

Students practice.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Match foods to pictures.
  • Name a snack.
  • Say them aloud.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Match.
  • Name it.
  • Say.
4

Speak — Speak

10 min

Students speak.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Say “我喜欢…” (I like…).
  • Name a food.
  • Ask a partner.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Say it.
  • Name it.
  • Ask.
5

Reflect — Reflect

5 min

Students close.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Name a food.
  • Say what it means.
  • Complete the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Name one.
  • Explain it.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the ACTFL World-Readiness Standards for Learning Languages (Novice).

ACTFL
Communication 1.2

Interpretive: understand food words.

ACTFL
Cultures 2.1

Explore Chinese food.

ACTFL
Connections 3.1

Connect to meals.

ACTFL
Communication 1.1

Interpersonal: talk about food.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Food picture cards.
  • Sentence frame: “我喜欢 ___.”
  • Use food images.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with 米饭 and 水.
  • Use pictures.
  • Repeat aloud.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Add 苹果 (apple).
  • Describe a meal.
  • Use chopsticks (筷子).
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Screen / board
  • 🍚Food picture cards
  • 💻The Shíwù Explorer
  • 🗣️Audio
  • ✏️Pencils
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

食物 (shíwù)food米饭 (mǐfàn)rice面条 (miàntiáo)noodles水 (shuǐ)water茶 (chá)tea鸡 (jī)chicken苹果 (píngguǒ)apple面包 (miànbāo)bread
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
What does “米饭 (mǐfàn)” mean?
Rice.
QUESTION 2
What does “茶 (chá)” mean?
Tea.
QUESTION 3
What does “水 (shuǐ)” mean?
Water.

Reflect: 食物.

Have students name two foods in Mandarin at snack time (like 米饭 mǐfàn and 水 shuǐ). A printable food sheet is in the World Languages library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Mandarin Food (Shíwù)Flip
Card 1
Term
Tap to flip →
Meaning
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Nice work!

Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Mandarin Food (Shíwù)Quiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
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Nice work!

Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Mandarin Food (Shíwù)Print
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: 水 (shuǐ), 米饭 (mǐfàn), 苹果 (píngguǒ), 茶 (chá), 面包 (miànbāo), 面条 (miàntiáo), 食物 (shíwù), 鸡 (jī)
  1. tea
  2. noodles
  3. water
  4. apple
  5. bread
  6. food
  7. chicken
  8. rice

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What does “米饭 (mǐfàn)” mean?
  2. What does “茶 (chá)” mean?
  3. What does “水 (shuǐ)” mean?
Answer key — Part A: 1) 茶 (chá) · 2) 面条 (miàntiáo) · 3) 水 (shuǐ) · 4) 苹果 (píngguǒ) · 5) 面包 (miànbāo) · 6) 食物 (shíwù) · 7) 鸡 (jī) · 8) 米饭 (mǐfàn)
Part B: 1) Rice. 2) Tea. 3) Water.