Grade Levels: 3-5, 6-8, K-3

In the BrainPOP ELL movie, Biggest and Best (L2U5L2), Ben and friends are amazed by what they see in a book of world records, from the world’s heaviest lemon to the longest snake! Inspired, Moby wants to set his own record. In this lesson plan, adaptable for grades K-8, students play games and create presentations that test their knowledge of superlatives.

Lesson Plan Common Core State Standards Alignments

Students will:

  1. Identify examples of the superlative in the movie and use them in a game.
  2. Demonstrate understanding of superlatives by arranging themselves in order according to superlative categories.
  3. Use superlatives in presentations about world records.

Materials:

  • BrainPOP ELL
  • Pennies, buttons, or other markers to play Bingo
  • Large blank cards or sheets of paper

Preparation:

For Activity 1, Superlative Bingo, make a Bingo game card, or have students make their own, with nine squares including a free space in the center. Make copies for every student. Write superlative phrases on small strips of paper, fold them up, and put them in a bag, bowl, or any container. Examples of phrases: the heaviest lemon, the least favorite fruit, the fastest lemonade drinker, the biggest cake, the longest snake, the fastest pizza eater, the worst stomachache, the fastest runner, the highest jumper, the biggest onion, the worst breath.
For Activity 2, Super Superlative Game, make a list of superlative categories. Examples include: the longest hair, the earliest birth date, the tallest, the most siblings, the longest fingernails, the most colorful socks, the biggest shoes.

Lesson Procedure:

  1. Superlative Bingo. As students watch the movie Biggest and Best (L2U5L2) and its Grammar companion movie, have them write down examples of superlatives from the movie. They should include the noun or verb that the superlative modifies, such as the heaviest lemon and runs the fastest.
    After the movie, distribute the blank Bingo sheets (see Preparation). Have students fill in the squares with eight of the superlative phrases they wrote down.
    Put the folded-up superlative phrases (see Preparation) in a bag or other container. When students are ready, ask a volunteer to pull a superlative out of the bag and read it aloud. Students who have it on their game board place a penny or other marker on the space. Tell students to shout “Bingo!” when they have three in a row. As an extra challenge, encourage the student to use a superlative to describe something about him/herself. For example, I’m the slowest eater in my family.
  2. Super Superlative Game. Divide the class into three teams. Explain that you will give a superlative command, such as, Line up in order of the person with the longest hair to the person with the shortest hair. Each team is to quickly line up accordingly. When a team is done, they raise their hands. Ask a volunteer/s from the team to explain how they lined up, using examples in the superlative, as you verify that they are in the proper order for the command. If they are in the correct order, the team is awarded a point. If they are not, they get no points that round, and you check the next team that finished.
  3. World Record Presentation. In small groups, have students create their own world record presentations. Encourage students to research world records that interest them. Then have them describe the world record with images and captions and organize them together in a book or create a multimedia presentation. If necessary, you can assign a theme to each small group, such as animals, athletics, food, rivers, mountains, etc. and have students decide which group they’d like to be in.