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Mandarin Body — 身体

Fourth graders learn body-part words in Mandarin — 头 (tóu), 眼睛 (yǎnjing), 手 (shǒu), 脚 (jiǎo) — and sort them into parts on the head and parts on the body.

Grade 4Shēntǐ40 minutes1 class periodACTFL / CommunicativeExplicit teaching4 StandardsACTFL
Start the Lesson
Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Name body parts.
  • ✓Tell head from body.
  • ✓Sort the parts.
  • ✓Point in Mandarin.
Essential Question

From head to toe! What are the parts of the 身体 (shēntǐ — body) 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
Sort It · Interactive

Tóu or Shēn? (Head or Body?)

Project this and sort each part into 头 (tóu - head) or 身 (shēn - body).

🧍 Sort each — on the head or on the body?Try it
🧠 头 Tóu (head)
🧍 身 Shēn (body)
Tap a part, then tap a box.
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 — From Head to Toe

4 min

What are the parts of the body in Mandarin?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Point to your head.
  • Ask how to say it.
  • Set the goal.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Point.
  • Guess.
  • Get ready.
2

Present — Shēntǐ

10 min

Students learn.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Present body parts.
  • Say the pinyin.
  • Point to each.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Listen.
  • Repeat.
  • Point.
3

Practice — Sort Them

11 min

Students practice.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send students to Tóu or Shēn?
  • Sort each one.
  • Say them aloud.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Sort.
  • Say.
  • Explain.
4

Speak — Speak

10 min

Students speak.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Point and name a part.
  • Play “Simon says” in Mandarin.
  • Ask a partner.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Point.
  • Play it.
  • Ask.
5

Reflect — Reflect

5 min

Students close.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Name a body part.
  • 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 body words.

ACTFL
Connections 3.1

Connect to the body.

ACTFL
Comparisons 4.1

Compare body words.

ACTFL
Communication 1.1

Interpersonal: name body parts.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Body picture cards.
  • Sentence frame: “这是我的 ___.”
  • Point to parts.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with 头 and 手.
  • Sort one at a time.
  • Point along.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Add 耳朵 (ear).
  • Play 头-肩 (head-shoulders).
  • Label a body.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Screen / board
  • 🧍A body diagram
  • 💻Tóu or Shēn?
  • 🗣️Audio
  • ✏️Pencils
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

身体 (shēntǐ)body头 (tóu)head眼睛 (yǎnjing)eye鼻子 (bízi)nose嘴 (zuǐ)mouth手 (shǒu)hand脚 (jiǎo)foot腿 (tuǐ)leg
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 “头 (tóu)” mean?
Head.
QUESTION 2
What does “手 (shǒu)” mean?
Hand.
QUESTION 3
Is “鼻子 (bízi)” on the head or the body?
On the head.

Reflect: 身体.

Have students point to and name two body parts in Mandarin (like 头 tóu and 手 shǒu). A printable body 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 Body (Shēntǐ)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 Body (Shēntǐ)Quiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
0%

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 Body (Shēntǐ)Print
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: 嘴 (zuǐ), 头 (tóu), 手 (shǒu), 眼睛 (yǎnjing), 脚 (jiǎo), 腿 (tuǐ), 身体 (shēntǐ), 鼻子 (bízi)
  1. foot
  2. nose
  3. leg
  4. mouth
  5. hand
  6. body
  7. eye
  8. head

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What does “头 (tóu)” mean?
  2. What does “手 (shǒu)” mean?
  3. Is “鼻子 (bízi)” on the head or the body?
Answer key — Part A: 1) 脚 (jiǎo) · 2) 鼻子 (bízi) · 3) 腿 (tuǐ) · 4) 嘴 (zuǐ) · 5) 手 (shǒu) · 6) 身体 (shēntǐ) · 7) 眼睛 (yǎnjing) · 8) 头 (tóu)
Part B: 1) Head. 2) Hand. 3) On the head.