Following Instructions 跟指示
BasicFollowing instructions.
- Order words are signposts: First → Next → Then.
- Instructions start with action verbs: take out, fold, press, turn.
- Ask at once if you miss something: Could you repeat that, please?
文體小知識：Listen and do.
§Text Passage
1Miss Lee: Good morning, class! Please listen carefully. Today we will make a paper boat. First, take out a piece of paper and put your pencil case away.
Ken: Good morning, Miss Lee! Hello, everyone!
Ben: A piece of paper? Like this, Miss Lee?
Miss Lee: Yes, Ben. Next, fold the paper in half.
Amy: Miss Lee, could you repeat that, please?
Miss Lee: Of course, Amy. Fold the paper in half slowly.
2Amy: Thank you. I have done it.
Miss Lee: Then fold the two corners down, and press them flat.
Ben: My boat looks like a hat!
Miss Lee: Good try, Ben. Turn it inside out and try again.
Ben: Oh! Now it is a boat. Thank you, Miss Lee!
3Miss Lee: Well done, everyone. Put your boats on your desks, tidy up, and speak softly.
Amy: We followed all the instructions. Our boats are ready to sail!
Miss Lee: Goodbye for now, children. Remember to listen well in the next lesson.
All: Goodbye, Miss Lee! We will follow your instructions carefully.
§Sentence-by-sentence translation Sentence-by-sentence translation
Miss Lee: Good morning, class!
李老師：各位同學，早安！
Please listen carefully.
請大家留心聽。
Today we will make a paper boat.
今日我們會整一隻紙船。
First, take out a piece of paper and put your pencil case away.
首先，拿出一張紙，把筆袋放到一邊。
Ken: Good morning, Miss Lee!
Ken：李老師，早安！
Hello, everyone!
大家好！
Ben: A piece of paper?
Ben：一張紙？
Like this, Miss Lee?
是不是這樣呀，李老師？
Miss Lee: Yes, Ben.
李老師：是呀，Ben。
Next, fold the paper in half.
接着把紙對摺。
Amy: Miss Lee, could you repeat that, please?
Amy：李老師，可不可以再說一次呀？
Miss Lee: Of course, Amy.
李老師：當然可以，Amy。
Fold the paper in half slowly.
慢慢地把紙對摺。
Amy: Thank you.
Amy：謝謝。
I have done it.
我做好了。
Miss Lee: Then fold the two corners down, and press them flat.
李老師：然後把兩個角向下摺，再壓平。
Ben: My boat looks like a hat!
Ben：我的船好像一頂帽子呀！
Miss Lee: Good try, Ben.
李老師：做得好，Ben。
Turn it inside out and try again.
把它反過來再試一次。
Ben: Oh!
Ben：哦！
Now it is a boat.
現在變成一艘船了。
Thank you, Miss Lee!
謝謝你，李老師！
Miss Lee: Well done, everyone.
李老師：大家都做得很好。
Put your boats on your desks, tidy up, and speak softly.
把你們的船放在書桌上面，收拾好，說話要低聲。
Amy: We followed all the instructions.
Amy：我們遵循了所有指示。
Our boats are ready to sail!
我們的船準備好可以出海了！
Miss Lee: Goodbye for now, children.
李老師：小朋友，暫時再見。
Remember to listen well in the next lesson.
記住下一節課都要留心聽。
All: Goodbye, Miss Lee!
全班：李老師，再見！
We will follow your instructions carefully.
我們會小心跟着你的指示做。
1Summary 重點摘要
Following instructions.
2Vocabulary cards Vocabulary
Hello.
Good morning.
Goodbye.
Listen.
Follow.
Instruction.
Speak.
Repeat.
3Step by step Steps
- Catch the order wordsFirst, Next, Then, Finally — when you hear these order words, the steps are arriving one by one. In craft or experiment instructions, order words are the most important signposts, and missing one can jumble the whole sequence. Count silently as you listen: First is step one, Next is step two, and the whole flow stays in your hand.
- Listen and do at the same timeWhen you hear take out a piece of paper, take out your paper right away instead of waiting for the whole set to finish. Doing each step as you hear it lightens your memory: step one is done, so your mind is free for step two. Wait for everything and the first steps may already be gone. The trick works in dictation, PE and listening tests too.
- Ask at once if you miss somethingCould you repeat that, please? — that is how Amy politely asks the teacher to repeat in the passage. Never pretend to understand a missed step, or every later step goes wrong. Other polite ways: Sorry, I didn't catch that. Could you say it again, please? Asking is not losing face; it is taking responsibility for your own work.
- Remember the command verbsfold, press, turn, tidy up — instructions usually open with a verb, and that verb is the action to do. Catch the verb at the head of each line and you know what to do even if the rest is fuzzy. Learn craft verbs in advance — fold, cut, stick, colour — and your reaction speed in listening lessons doubles.
- Check your own workBen's boat looks like a hat, so the teacher says Turn it inside out and try again. After finishing, compare your work with the instructions: right shape? all steps done? If something is wrong, adjust and try again instead of giving up. Ben fixed his with one turn — getting it wrong first teaches more than getting it right first time.
- Tidy up after finishingPut your boats on your desks, tidy up, and speak softly. The last step of a set of instructions is usually tidying: place your work, return the tools, keep the noise down. Listen to the very last word — many people do the task well and then miss the tidy-up line and start playing. Finishing what you hear builds trust too.
5Worked example Example
Question: How do we follow a set of English instructions to make a paper boat?
- Step 1: First — take out a piece of paper. Hearing First tells you the sequence has begun.
- Step 2: Next — fold the paper in half. Next signals step two.
- Step 3: Then — fold the two corners down. Then carries the actions on.
- Step 4: press them flat — the verb press at the front names this step's action.
- Step 5: Does it look like a boat? If not, turn it inside out — done! Wrong shape? Adjust and try again.
- Answer: The order: take out a piece of paper, fold it in half, fold the two corners down, press flat, then turn it inside out — and the boat is done. Wrong order gives you a hat, just like Ben, so never miss an order word.
6Common mistakes Mistakes
7Quick check Quick check
Q1Morning?
Q2Bye?
Q3Follow?
Q4How do you ask someone to say it again?
Q5What do you do before following an instruction?
8Recap Recap
- Order words are signposts: First → Next → Then.
- Instructions start with action verbs: take out, fold, press, turn.
- Ask at once if you miss something: Could you repeat that, please?
- Listen and do at the same time, then check your work (boat or hat?).
- Tidy up and speak softly afterwards — that is following ALL the instructions.