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Parent guide · Grade 1 Russian · Unit 4

Lesson 4.1 Хлеб, молоко́, вода́, чай

Written for the parent. The Read aloud parts are written to your child; read them as they are. Do this parts are for you. Answers for you are marked Listen for.

At a glance

Time
3 sessions of 15–20 minutes
Goal
Name bread, milk, water and tea in Russian. Point at food and say Э́то хлеб. Find food in a Russian painting.
You need
  • A simple bread or roll recipe
  • Flour, water, yeast, salt (and milk if the recipe uses it)
  • A grown-up in the kitchen
  • A sketchbook or plain paper, and crayons
  • A King James Bible
Print
Worksheet A · the lesson page (it also has a short video (2:04))

Steps

  1. Do this together: What did you eat for breakfast? What did you drink? Today you learn bread, milk, water and tea in Russian.

  2. Read aloud: The story. The painter Boris Kustodiev loved the bright colors of old Russian towns. In this painting a woman sits at a table outdoors, having tea. Beside her is a samovar, a tall shining metal pot that keeps water hot for tea. The table is full: a big watermelon, apples, grapes and a basket of sweet bread. A cat rubs against her shoulder, hoping for a treat, and behind her are the white churches of the town.

    Read aloud: How Russian sounds. Хлеб is khlyep, with a breathy kh at the start. Молоко́ is muh-lah-KOH, loud at the end. Вода́ is vah-DAH. Чай is chai, like the English word for spiced tea.

    Read aloud: Say it and move. Break a pretend loaf: хлеб! Pretend to milk a cow: молоко́! Drink a big glass: вода́! Blow on a hot cup: чай!

  3. Do this: Say each word clearly; your child says it back twice. Point to a picture or the real thing when you can.

    • хлеб [khlyehp]: bread
    • молоко́ [muh-lah-KOH]: milk
    • вода́ [vah-DAH]: water
    • чай [chahy]: tea
  4. A woman in a dark dress and head scarf sits at an outdoor table holding a saucer of tea; beside her a shining samovar, a watermelon cut open, apples, grapes and a basket of pastries; a striped cat rubs against her shoulder; white churches and a town stand behind her under a pink-clouded sky.
    Merchant’s Wife at Tea, Boris Kustodiev, 1918. Image: Wikimedia Commons, public domain

    Do this: Look at the picture together for a quiet minute before anyone talks.

    Read aloud: In old Russia, families drank tea from a saucer, the way she does here. Kustodiev filled the picture with things to find. How many foods can you see?

    Point and find:

    • Find the samovar. What is it for?
    • Find the watermelon. What color is it inside?
    • What is the cat doing?
    • What is she drinking?

    Ask:

    • “What would you like to eat from this table?”
    • “Who makes the meals at your house? How can you thank them?”

  5. Show: You are thirsty. What do you ask for in Russian?

    Say this: “When you are thirsty, you drink water.”

    Say this: “Water is вода́.”

    Answer: Вода́, пожа́луйста!

    Show: Point to a loaf and say “This is bread.”

    Say this: “This is: э́то.”

    Say this: “Bread: хлеб.”

    Answer: Э́то хлеб.

  6. Do this: Ask out loud. Let your child try first; help only after a real try.

    Ask: Say bread in Russian.

    Listen for: Хлеб.

    Ask: Say milk in Russian.

    Listen for: Молоко́.

    Ask: Say water in Russian.

    Listen for: Вода́.

    3 more on the lesson page.

  7. Read aloud: Help a parent bake simple bread or rolls, and name each ingredient in Russian.

    Steps:

    1. Before you start, point to the water and milk and say вода́ and молоко́.
    2. Help measure and stir.
    3. When the bread is baked, say: Э́то хлеб!
    4. Share it with your family with a cup of tea: чай!

    Tips for you:

    • If you cannot bake, make a play bread with play dough and name it.

    Done when your child can say:

    • I helped make bread.
    • I can name bread, milk, water and tea in Russian.

  8. Do this: Your child picks one or more; you write the date.

    1. Draw bread, a glass of milk, a glass of water and a cup of tea in your picture dictionary. A parent writes хлеб, молоко́, вода́ and чай.

  9. Read aloud: Bread is so important in Russia that guests are welcomed with a big round loaf called a карава́й, with a little dish of salt on top. The guest breaks off a piece, dips it in the salt, and eats it.

    • Saying moh-loh-koh with every o round. Only the last o is round: muh-lah-KOH.
    • Saying the х in хлеб like an English h. Make it breathy, from the back of the throat: khlyep.

  11. Put a slice of bread, a cup and a tea bag in a bag. The child reaches in, feels one, and guesses in Russian before pulling it out.

  12. Say this: “Tell me what you learned today.”

    Listen for: Name bread, milk, water and tea in Russian.; Point at food and say Э́то хлеб.; Find food in a Russian painting.

  13. Give us this day our daily bread.

    Matthew 6:11 (KJV)

    In the Russian Bible (Synodal translation), this verse reads: <i class="ru-bible" lang="ru">хлеб наш насущный дай нам на сей день</i> Jesus taught us to ask our Father in heaven for our daily bread. Every meal is a gift from God.

Spread over the week

3 sessions of 15–20 minutes. Stop while it is still going well.

  1. Session 1. Warm-up, then read and teach the new idea and the new words. Picture study and show how.
  2. Session 2. Practice together, then start the project. Finish the project, then the sketchbook.
  3. Session 3. Narration, the game and the Scripture.