RCF EnglishEnglish learning and teaching
RCF Publications
ESL Lesson Plan · CEFR A1

Indefinite Articles A and An ESL Lesson Plan (A1, 60 Minutes)

A complete 60-minute A1 lesson on Indefinite Articles A and An, built round the theme "What's in My Bag? Jobs and Things".

  • CEFR A1
  • 60 minutes
  • Teenagers and adults
  • Grammar
  • Articles
  • Indefinite Articles A and An

About this lesson

Who it is for. Beginners who know some classroom objects and jobs but often leave out the article (She is teacher) or choose a / an by spelling, not sound.

Everything the lesson needs is on this page: the language analysis, the timed stages with the teacher's own words and instruction-checking questions, the differentiation, the printable handouts and the answer key.

At a glance

Level
CEFR A1 (Beginner)
Learners
Teenagers and adults
Length
60 minutes. For 45 minutes, run only "What's in my bag?" of the two tasks in "Freer practice" and cut "Feedback and wrap-up" to board-based error correction.
Skills
Speaking
Language focus
Grammar: A and An
Framework
PPP (presentation, practice, production)
Materials
A bag of real objects (a pen, an apple, an umbrella, a book, an orange, an eraser, a phone, an ID card), Handout 1 (What's in my bag? script), Handout 2 (practice), Handout 3 (jobs guessing game cards).
Preparation
About 10 minutes: print Handouts 1 to 3, one per learner, and read the language analysis. The answer key is for you, not the class.

Aims

Main aim. To present and practise a and an with singular countable nouns, for objects and jobs.

Learning outcome. By the end of the lesson, students can describe 8 objects in their bag and say people's jobs using a / an correctly.

  • Subsidiary aim. To review classroom and personal objects.
  • Subsidiary aim. To practise vowel and consonant sounds at the start of words.
  • Subsidiary aim. To develop speaking through a guessing game.

Language analysis

What to know before the lesson: the meaning, form and pronunciation of the target language, and the problems learners usually have with it.

Form

RuleExamples
abefore a consonant sounda book, a pen, a car, a doctor, a uniform, a university, a one-day trip
anbefore a vowel soundan apple, an egg, an orange, an engineer, an hour, an honest man, an MP3
no articleplural nounsI've got two pens. They're doctors.

Form: notes

Note: It's the sound that matters, not the letter: a uniform /ə ˈjuːnɪfɔːm/ (starts with a /j/ sound); an hour /ən ˈaʊə/ (the h is silent).

Meaning and use

  • a / an = one, any one (not a specific one): I've got a pen.
  • Jobs always need a / an: She's a nurse. He's an engineer. (not She's nurse)

Pronunciation

  • a is weak: /ə/. an is weak: /ən/. They link to the next word: an apple /ə‿ˈnæpl/.

Concept-checking questions

  • an apple Is apple one thing or many? (One.) · What sound does apple start with? (A vowel sound, /æ/.)
  • a uniform Does uniform start with the letter u? (Yes.) What sound? (/j/, like you.) So a or an? (A.)

Anticipated problems and solutions

ProblemSolution
Missing article with jobs (She is teacher).Board: She is a teacher. Use a finger gesture for the missing word.
Choosing by letter (an university).Say the words aloud; ask "What sound?"
a + plural (a two books, a books).Contrast one vs many with real objects.
Not linking an + vowel.Drill an‿apple, an‿egg.

Board plan

Left: vocabularyCentre: grammarRight: sounds
pen · book · phone · apple · orange · umbrella · eraser · ID card · doctor · engineer · teacher · artist
a + consonant sound: a pen, a doctor, a uniform · an + vowel sound: an apple, an engineer, an hour · plural: no a/an: two pens · Jobs: She's a nurse.
a /ə/ · an /ən/ · an‿apple · a uniform /j/ · an hour (silent h)

CEFR A1 · 60 minutes · Teenagers and adults

Procedure: Indefinite Articles A and An, step by step

Warm-up5 minutes · T → Ss, whole class

Aim: To engage students and activate vocabulary.

Show the bag. Say: "What's in my bag? Guess!" Take a few guesses.

Pull objects out one at a time. Students name them. Board the nouns without articles first.

Presentation20 minutes · Individual, pairs, whole class

Aim: To present the language in context. To clarify meaning, form and pronunciation.

Part A: Context (8 minutes)

Give out Handout 1. Say: "Read about Ishara's bag. Tick the things in her bag." (3 minutes.)

ICQs: "Do you tick or write?" (Tick.)

Pairs compare. Check as a class.

Students answer two questions: What is Ishara's mother's job? What is her father's job?

Part B: Language clarification (12 minutes)

Point to the nouns on the board. Ask students to tell you a or an for each from the text. Write a or an in front.

Sort into two columns: a and an. Ask: "What's the same about the an words?" Elicit: they start with a vowel sound.

The sound rule. Write university and umbrella. Say them slowly. Ask: "Same first sound?" (No.) Write a university, an umbrella. Do the same with hour and house.

Jobs. Board She's a doctor. He's an engineer. Ask: "Can I say She's doctor?" (No.)

Plurals. Hold up two pens: "Two pens. A two pens?" (No.)

Pronunciation. Drill weak forms and linking: a pen, an apple, an engineer, an hour.

Controlled practice10 minutes · Individual, then pairs

Aim: To practise the rule accurately.

Students complete Handout 2, Exercises A and B (6 minutes).

Pairs check. Nominate students to read answers aloud, linking an + vowel.

Quick-fire game: say a noun; students shout "A!" or "An!". Include tricky ones: hour, uniform, egg, umbrella, one-day trip.

Freer practice18 minutes · Pairs, groups

Aim: To use a / an in personalised speaking.

What's in my bag? (6 minutes): students draw five things from their own bag in a box on Handout 2 (without words), then describe them to a partner, who draws them: "I've got a phone, an eraser and a red pen."

Jobs guessing game (8 minutes): in groups, students take a card from Handout 3 and mime the job. Others ask: "Are you a doctor?" "No, I'm not." "Are you an artist?" "Yes, I am!"

Writing (4 minutes): students write 6 sentences about their bag and their family's jobs.

Feedback and wrap-up7 minutes · Whole class

Aim: To give feedback and consolidate.

Board four sentences heard (two incorrect). Students correct them.

Final quick-fire round with tricky words.

Set homework.

Homework Write 8 sentences about your bag and your family's jobs.

PPP (presentation, practice, production). Stage times add up to 60 minutes.

Differentiation

Support
Highlight vowel letters on the noun cards in a colour. Give weaker students a list of jobs with a / an already written.
Stretch
Add adjectives: an old book, a big apple, an expensive phone. Ask: "Does the article change?" Introduce tricky sounds: an MP3, a European city, an honest boy.

Adapting the lesson

ForWhat to change
A large class (40 or more)Keep the pairwork in "Freer practice" in fixed pairs rather than a mingle, and take feedback from four or five pairs instead of the whole room. Run "What's in my bag?" once, with two pairs reporting, rather than hearing every pair. Monitor one half of the room during "Controlled practice" and the other half during "Freer practice".
A class with no photocopierPut the exercises from Handout 2: Practice on the board for learners to copy into their notebooks, and read any text aloud twice instead of printing it. Handout 3: Jobs Cards (cut up) works read out from the front: learners note what they need rather than holding a card. The board plan above is this lesson's minimum - with that on the board, it runs on no paper at all.
An online classSend Handouts 1 to 3 in the chat before the lesson and put the board plan on a shared slide. Use breakout rooms for "What's in my bag?" and visit each room once. Have learners type the controlled answers in the chat, so you see every answer at once instead of nominating.
A different age groupWith young learners, cut the writing at the end and give that time to the speaking task; keep the drilling short, and let them draw or mime where the plan allows it. With adults, keep the writing and ask for a short spoken summary in place of anything drawn or mimed.

Checking learning

Students use a / an correctly in 8 of 10 items on Handout 2. Students use a / an with jobs in the guessing game.

Teacher's reflection

Did students understand the sound rule, not the letter rule? Did they remember the article with jobs?

Handout 1: What's in My Bag?

Name: ______________________________ Date: ______________

Read about Ishara's bag. Tick (✓) the things in her bag.

Hi, I'm Ishara. I'm 14 and I'm a student. This is my school bag. What's in it? I've got a book, an English dictionary and a pencil case. In my pencil case, I've got a pen, a pencil and an eraser. I've also got a phone, an umbrella (it rains a lot in Kandy!) and an apple for lunch. Oh, and I've got an ID card. My mother is a doctor and my father is an engineer, so they're very busy. I take a bus to school every day.

Answer the questions.

  • What is Ishara's mother's job? ______________________________
  • What is her father's job? ______________________________
Thing✓Thing✓
bookorange
dictionaryumbrella
penapple
rulerID card
eraserwatch

Handout 2: Practice

Name: ______________________________ Date: ______________

A. Write a or an.

B. Write the job. Use a or an.

C. My bag: draw five things (no words!). Then tell your partner.

  • ______ orange · 2. ______ notebook · 3. ______ hour · 4. ______ university · 5. ______ egg · 6. ______ uniform · 7. ______ apple · 8. ______ elephant · 9. ______ house · 10. ______ umbrella
  • She works in a hospital. She's ______________________________
  • He builds bridges. He's ______________________________
  • She paints pictures. She's ______________________________
  • He teaches children. He's ______________________________
  • She flies planes. She's ______________________________

Handout 3: Jobs Cards (cut up)

Write 6 sentences about your bag and your family's jobs.

..........................................................................................

..........................................................................................

..........................................................................................

..........................................................................................

..........................................................................................

..........................................................................................

a doctoran engineera teacher
an artista farmeran actor
a pilota police officera cook
a driveran office workera singer

Answer Key

Handout 1

Handout 2, Exercise A

Handout 2, Exercise B

Common errors to watch for

  • ✓ book, dictionary, pen, eraser, umbrella, apple, ID card · ✗ ruler, orange, watch
  • She's a doctor. · 2. He's an engineer.
  • an · 2. a · 3. an · 4. a · 5. an · 6. a · 7. an · 8. an · 9. a · 10. an
  • a doctor / a nurse · 2. an engineer · 3. an artist · 4. a teacher · 5. a pilot
ErrorCorrection
She is teacher.She is a teacher.
a umbrellaan umbrella
an universitya university
I have a two books.I have two books.

Prints without the site's menus or advertisements.

About this lesson plan

Written by RCF English to the RCF English international standard: levelled by the CEFR, original throughout, and suitable for classrooms in any country. Last reviewed 22 September 2026.

Share this lesson plan

More articles plans

A, An or The? (A2)

PPP, 60 minutes. The same unit at A2.

The Zero Article (B1)

PPP, 60 minutes. The same unit at B1.

Articles with Place Names (B2)

PPP, 60 minutes. The same unit at B2.

All articles plans

Every level on this topic, A1 to C1.

All ESL lesson plans

Every plan, by level.

ESL worksheets

Printable worksheets with answer keys.

Back to Articles