Flat Road Slides The Flat Road
Travelers: Let's find the First Tone!
Meet Robbie!
Robbie the Robot speaks in a high, flat voice.
"Hello... My... name... is... Robbie..."
Imagine a Flat Road
Our voice stays flat and high. No going up! No going down!
mā
Mother
bā
Eight
Use your arm to draw the road!
Can you do it?
Keep it flat! Keep it high!
ā
Open Wide
ē
Smiley
ī
Bee Sound
Flat Road Teacher Guide Teacher Guide
Flat Road First Tone
Duration 20 Min
Goal
Students will recognize and produce the high, steady First Tone by associating it with a straight arm gesture and the "Flat Road" analogy.
Materials
Robbie the Robot puppet/image
Toy car (optional)
First Tone worksheet
The Hook (5 min)
"Friends, we have a visitor! This is Robbie. Robbie comes from a planet where everyone speaks in a very special way. Listen to how he talks."
Teacher Action:
Speak in a high-pitched, monotone robot voice. "Hel-lo... Class... I... am... Rob-bie..."
Direct Instruction (5 min)
Explain that the 1st Tone is like a flat road . Show the gesture: move your hand straight across in front of you at eye level.
Key Concept:
It must be high (like a bird chirping) and steady (like a car on a highway).
Active Practice (10 min)
Activity 1: The Arm Road
Students stretch out their right arm and use their left hand as a "car" to drive along the arm. While driving, they vocalize a long "āāāāāāāā".
Check: Are they dropping their pitch at the end? Encourage them to keep it "floating" in the air.
Activity 2: Robot Mimicry
Say "mā" (mother) in a high, flat tone. Have students repeat while doing the hand gesture. Try "bā" (eight) next.
Pre-K Tip: Use funny exaggerated high voices to make it engaging.
Common Pitfalls
The Question Pitch: Students might raise their pitch at the end like they're asking a question. Remind them Robbie's road doesn't go up!
The Dropping Voice: Students might let their voice fall as they run out of breath. Encourage a short, clear sound if they can't sustain it.
Flat Road Worksheet Flat Road Drawing
Tone Travelers: First Tone Practice
Name:
Date:
Draw a straight line for the car to drive on!
mā
bā
Draw your own long flat roads here:
Keep it Flat!
Rising Question Slides The Rising Question
Travelers: Let's find the Second Tone!
Meet Coco!
Coco the Cat is always confused.
"Meow? Meow? Meow?"
Coco's voice goes from LOW to HIGH!
Like a Plane Taking Off!
Start at the bottom and slide up!
má
Hemp (Rope)
bá
To Pull
Raise your hand up to the sky!
Can you say "HUH?"
That's the 2nd Tone!
?
Má! Má? Má!
Rising Question Teacher Guide Teacher Guide
Rising Question Second Tone
Duration 20 Min
Goal
Students will recognize and produce the rising Second Tone by mimicking the sound of a question and the movement of a plane taking off.
Materials
Coco the Cat puppet/image
Toy airplane (optional)
Plane Take-off worksheet
The Hook (5 min)
"Everyone, Coco the Cat is back, and she is SO confused today. She doesn't know what anything is! Every time she sees something, she says 'Meow?'"
Teacher Action:
Show a pencil. Have the puppet tilt its head and say "Meow?" with a sharp rising inflection. Have kids repeat: "Meow?" "Meow?"
The Gesture (5 min)
The 2nd Tone is like a plane taking off . Start your hand low (near your belly) and slide it quickly UP and AWAY (towards the ceiling diagonal).
Pre-K Trick:
Tell them to raise their eyebrows when they say it. It's almost impossible to say a rising tone with a "flat" face!
Activities (10 min)
Activity 1: The Curious Question
Say "má". Have students repeat. If they struggle, have them say "Huh?" first, then "má". The pitch should be identical.
Activity 2: Tone Contrast
Contrast with the 1st Tone. Show a flat hand (1st Tone) and a rising hand (2nd Tone). Have them guess which one they hear when you say "mā" vs "má".
Common Pitfalls
The Flat Voice: Students might just say "ma" without the rise. Exaggerate the movement of the hand to force the voice to follow.
Too Much Dip: Don't let them go down before they go up. It should be a straight diagonal climb.
Rising Question Worksheet Plane Take-Off
Tone Travelers: Second Tone Practice
Name:
Date:
Help the plane take off! Draw the line UP to the sky.
má
bá
Can you draw 3 rising planes?
Slide it UP!
Dipping Valley Slides The Dipping Valley
Travelers: Let's find the Third Tone!
Going Down and Up!
The 3rd Tone is like a roller coaster in a valley.
Wheeeee!
Get Ready to Squat!
Go Down LOW
Come Back UP
Make your voice go as LOW as your knees!
mǎ
Horse
wǒ
Me / I
A long, dipping sound!
Deep in the Valley
"Is it high? No! Is it flat? No!"
Low
Bottom of the hill
Slow
Longest tone
Dipping Valley Teacher Guide Teacher Guide
Dipping Valley Third Tone
Duration 20 Min
Goal
Students will recognize and produce the dipping Third Tone by using whole-body movement (squatting) and the roller coaster analogy.
Materials
Toy car and U-shaped track
Pictures of a valley or roller coaster
Horse (mǎ) image
The Hook (5 min)
"Look at this car! It's at the top of a big hill. Watch what happens when it goes down into the valley and comes back up."
Teacher Action:
Run the car down a U-track. Make a vocal "Wheeee-ooo!" sound that follows the pitch (high-low-mid). Ask students to make the sound with their voices.
The Whole Body (5 min)
The 3rd Tone is special because it takes a long time . We need our whole bodies for this one!
Practice:
Stand tall (start of sound).
Squat down low (the deep dip).
Stand halfway back up (the end rise).
Activities (10 min)
Activity 1: The Giant Mǎ
Say "mǎ" (horse) while doing the squat movement. Emphasize how low the voice gets at the bottom of the squat. Tell them to imagine they are pushing their voice into the floor.
Activity 2: Slow Motion Race
Who can say "mǎ" the slowest? Since the 3rd tone has the most movement, it is naturally the longest tone. This helps them distinguish it from the short 4th tone (coming next lesson).
Teacher Tips
The "Gravel" Voice: At the bottom of the 3rd tone, voices might sound a bit "gravelly" or "creaky" (vocal fry). This is actually a good sign that they are reaching the low register!
Focus on the LOW: For beginners, the most important part of the 3rd tone is the low dip . If they forget to rise at the end, that's okay for now—just make sure they don't stay high!
Dipping Valley Worksheet The Dipping Valley
Tone Travelers: Third Tone Practice
Name:
Date:
Go deep into the valley! Trace the "U" shape.
mǎ
wǒ
Color the valley horse!
"The 3rd tone is long and low!"
Dip Down Low!
Falling Slide Slides The Falling Slide
Travelers: Let's find the Fourth Tone!
Fast and Strong!
The 4th Tone is like a Karate Chop.
"HI-YA! NO! STOP!"
It starts HIGH and drops FAST!
Whoosh Down the Slide!
Don't be slow! Drop your voice like a heavy beanbag!
mà
Scold
bà
Dad
A sharp, quick chop down!
Can you say "NO!"
When we say "No" firmly, we use the 4th Tone!
Mà! Bà! Nà!
Falling Slide Teacher Guide Teacher Guide
Falling Slide Fourth Tone
Duration 20 Min
Goal
Students will recognize and produce the falling Fourth Tone by using sharp movements (karate chop) and a firm, energetic voice.
Materials
Beanbag or heavy ball
Stop sign visual
Karate chop worksheet
The Hook (5 min)
"I have a beanbag. When I drop it, I want you to make a sound that drops just as fast! READY?"
Teacher Action:
Drop the beanbag. As it hits the floor, make a sharp "Mà!" sound. Encourage students to time their "Mà!" with the thud on the floor.
The Karate Chop (5 min)
The 4th Tone is angry and fast (like a karate master). Show the gesture: a sharp, downward hand chop.
Key Concept:
This is a "No!" voice. It starts very high and slams down to the bottom instantly.
Activities (10 min)
Activity 1: The Stop Sign Game
Students walk in a circle. When the teacher holds up a stop sign, they must stop instantly and yell "Mà!" (not shouting, just firm) with a karate chop.
Activity 2: Tone Match
Compare "mā" (flat/robot) vs "mà" (chop/firm). Have students jump when they hear the "chopping" tone.
Teaching Notes
Not Shouting: Pre-K students often think "strong" means "loud". Remind them it's about the direction of the sound (falling), not the volume.
The Sharp Start: Make sure they start high enough. If they start mid-range, it won't have enough room to "fall".
Falling Slide Worksheet Karate Chop Drop
Tone Travelers: Fourth Tone Practice
Name:
Date:
Chop down fast! Trace the sharp line DOWN.
mà
bà
Can you draw 4 sharp karate chops?
Fast and Strong!
Ma Game Slides The "Ma" Game
Travelers: It's time for our Tone Challenge!
Our 4 Big Sounds
mā
Mother
má
Hemp
mǎ
Horse
mà
Scold
Listen and Guess!
1. Listen to the sound
2. Do the gesture
3. Point to the picture
Which "Ma" is it?
Horse
Mom
Is it a mǎ or a mā?
YOU ARE THE CONDUCTOR!
Follow the hand and sing the tone!
Great Job, Tone Travelers!
Ma Game Teacher Guide Teacher Guide
The Ma Game Tone Mastery
Duration 20 Min
Goal
Students will demonstrate auditory discrimination of the four tones using the syllable "ma" and perform the correct corresponding physical gestures.
Materials
Picture cards: Mom (mā), Hemp (má), Horse (mǎ), Scold (mà)
Gesture summary sheet
Final assessment matching sheet
The Hook (5 min)
"Travelers, we have found all four secret sounds! But they all have the same name: 'Ma'. How will we know which one is which? We need our Tone Detective skills!"
Teacher Action:
Show the four pictures (Mom, Hemp, Horse, Angry Person). Say "Ma" in four different ways and point to the pictures to show that the sound changes the meaning .
The Gesture Review (5 min)
1st Tone
Flat Road
2nd Tone
Rising Plane
3rd Tone
Dipping Valley
4th Tone
Karate Chop
The Main Game (10 min)
Activity 1: Tone Detective
Say a "ma" word. Students must quickly perform the gesture. Start slow, then go faster. If they do it right, give them a "Tone Star" (verbal praise or sticker).
Activity 2: The Conductor
One student (or the teacher) is the "Conductor". They move their arm in one of the 4 patterns (flat, up, dip, or chop). The rest of the class must "sing" the "ma" sound that matches that movement.
Pre-K Assessment Checklist
Can differentiate between High (1st) and Low (3rd) pitch.
Associates rising gesture with rising pitch.
Uses physical energy to produce the sharp 4th tone.
Ma Game Final Map Worksheet Tone Traveler Map
Final Challenge: Match the Sounds!
Draw a line to match the Meaning to the Shape!
mā
má
mǎ
mà
You Did It!
You are a Mandarin Tone Master!
