Achieve Fluency in Verbal Communication
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SPEAK 2.0
Achieve Fluency in Verbal Communication
Acknowledgements
Academic Authors: Kashika Parnami, Sneha Sharma, Simran Singh, Arpit Agarwal, Laraine O’Connell
Creative Directors: Bhavna Tripathi, Mangal Singh Rana, Satish
Book Production: Rakesh Kumar Singh
Project Lead: Chandani Goyal
VP, Learning: Abhishek Bhatnagar
All products and brand names used in this book are trademarks, registered trademarks or trade names of their respective owners.
© Uolo EdTech Private Limited
First edition 2026
This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior written consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser and without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above-mentioned publisher of this book.
Book Title: Speak 2.0 3
ISBN: 978-93-89057-68-3
Published by Uolo EdTech Private Limited
Corporate Office Address:
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CIN: U74999DL2017PTC322986
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Illustrations and images: www.shutterstock.com, www.stock.adobe.com and www.freepik.com
All suggested use of the internet should be under adult supervision.
Preface
In the age of globalisation and unprecedented technological advancement, English stands as a universally comprehensible medium of communication. It has evolved into one of the essential tools that learners require to thrive in today’s world and secure their future. Studies from across the globe show that English communication skills significantly impact on career prospects and lifelong learning.
Functional and fluent communication skills in English, encompassing the crucial facets of LSRW (Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing), are pivotal to children’s knowledge acquisition, intellectual, socio-emotional development and lifelong learning.
In particular, robust listening and speaking skills not only form the bedrock of the language learning process but also pave the way for enhanced reading and writing capabilities. Yet, the majority of educational efforts prioritise teaching reading and writing from the very outset, sometimes neglecting listening and speaking skills. These foundational skills are often overlooked in educational institutions due to high pupil-teacher ratios, lack of opportunities to express themselves in English, and most significantly, a lack of structured and dedicated class time for honing these skills.
It is within this context that Uolo Speak 2.0 has been introduced as a groundbreaking English program tailored for learners in pre-primary to grade 8, with a special emphasis on English listening and speaking. In alignment with the National Education Policy (NEP) of 2020 and the learning outcomes set forth by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), the books comprise 12 chapters on essential functional skills, with the last three advantage chapters to be used at the teacher’s discretion, depending on learners’ readiness.
The Speak 2.0 book serves as the classroom-based avenue for developing functional speaking skills. The book contains teacher-led English speaking and listening activities that adhere to the highly recommended and research-based teaching-learning method known as the Gradual Release of Responsibility (GRR). This approach systematically guides learners to master the targeted competencies. Through these activities, learners engage in high-quality, age-appropriate and experiential tasks that foster confidence and fluency in English. The accompanying Teacher Manual provides in-depth implementation plans for these activities.
AI lies at the heart of Speak 2.0, powering digital experiences that make learning English speaking dynamic and personalised. The package comes with digital content, provided free of cost, to ensure a seamless and holistic learning experience for children.
The mobile interface ensures consistent practice of functional English skills, while learners participate in speaking tasks enriched with AI-based evaluation and real-time feedback. Acting as a smart companion, AI guides pronunciation, sharpens usage, and enhances accuracy, encouraging learners to practise with confidence. With this seamless blend of AI-driven practice and feedback, learners steadily build fluency and gain the confidence to express themselves effectively in everyday communication.
Uolo Speak 2.0 offers a potent, captivating and unique learning experience for learners. It embodies a pragmatic, results-oriented approach to cultivating indispensable functional English skills required for the 21st century. We extend our warmest wishes to all educators, parents and learners as they embark on this exciting journey with Uolo Speak 2.0, filled with fun and joyful experiences.
Dr Laraine O'Connell
D. Litt., English, North West University, South Africa
I am a veteran English teacher and lecturer, with a great love for English and for teaching. I have taught English and trained teachers over many years. I live in South Africa and it is a wonderful experience working with a company promoting the learning of English in India.
The Product Philosophy
Welcome to the Speak 2.0 journey!
The program is a thoughtfully crafted activities-based learning experience that builds students’ speaking skills in English. The program, with dedicated time and space within the classroom, becomes a platform to practise speaking and listening skills in everyday scenarios. These scenarios are created by way of teacher-led activities, which cater to specific competencies in English.
Coursebook
Speak on the Spot Activities
Prepared-Speaking Activities
Teacher Manual
DIGITAL
Student and Teacher Apps
Talking Books
Listening and Speaking Projects
Interactive Practice Quizzes
The classroom program is augmented by the digital world, which is presented to the students through the UOLO App. The app includes projects that are closely associated with the activities in the coursebook. The projects allow a fear-free practice time to children at home and are AI evaluated. The app also includes quizzes in listening, speaking, reading and writing that can be done at home.
Key NEP Recommendations
The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, introduced by the Government of India, represents a transformative shift in the country’s education system. It aims to create a more holistic, dynamic and multidisciplinary approach to education. NEP 2020 focusses on fostering conceptual understanding, skills, values and competencies that align with the demands of the 21st century, while also preserving India’s rich cultural heritage. UOLO is fully committed to actualising the vision of NEP 2020 by meticulously adhering to its outlined recommendations.
1. Comprehension and understanding
2. 21st-century skills, values and dispositions
CompetencyBased Education
3. Application in real life
4. Holistic and integrated learning
5. Enjoyable and engaging
6. Collaborative and exploratory activities
NEP Pages 12, 17, 22
Teaching and Learning Pedagogy
7. Technology-based solutions
NEP Pages 3, 11, 12, 27
8. Assessment of core concepts and application skills Assessment
NEP Pages 12, 18, 22
NEP Compliance: Features of Our Book
Captivating Texts
Exposure to rich literature, as stories and poems, that demonstrate essential speaking behaviours and competencies.
1 2 3 4 5
Vocabulary and Phonics Support
Build mastery in new words usage, and expression, while also strengthening phonics skills to lay a strong foundation for reading and pronunciation.
1 2 7
Animated Talking Books
Enhanced listening comprehension and elevated English learning experience through animations that bring each text to life.
1 5 7
Project-Based Learning
Digital projects and supportive platforms that present English speaking opportunities in a fear-free environment.
2 3 4 5 7 8
Language Activities and Presentations
Classroom activities and presentations that help build confident expression and language usage in everyday scenarios.
2 3 4 5 6 8
1 Comprehension and understanding
2 21st-century skills, values and dispositions
3 Application in real life
4 Holistic and integrated learning
5 Enjoyable and engaging
6 Collaborative and exploratory activities
7 Technology-based solutions
8 Assessment of core concepts and application skills
Instructional Model
‘In the 21st century, language teaching must go beyond traditional approaches and must aim to enable students to use language skills in real-life contexts for a wide variety of purposes.’ (NEP, 2020)
According to Vygotsky and Krashen’s theory of second language teaching, language acquisition happens best when learners are engaged in purposeful and meaningful tasks in an anxiety-free, non-judgemental, communication-oriented, input-rich, supportive and stress-free environment, along with a lot of scaffolded practice. This approach to secondlanguage teaching is also highlighted by the NIPUN Bharat Mission document and NEP 2020.
In this context, the Speak 2.0 series, along with the learning activities designed in it, can play a crucial role in creating an input-rich environment, employing diverse avenues for speaking practice in a fear-free and non-judgemental setting, coupled with real-time feedback.
The book has been developed based on the ‘Gradual Release of Responsibility’ (GRR) model— a teaching-and-learning model that has been widely recommended by the NEP 2020 and the NCF 2022-23. The GRR has been promoted by educational researchers and practitioners all over the world for its effectiveness in promoting student engagement and a deep understanding of content and skills.
The GRR model includes three steps, each one consecutively shifting the ‘responsibility’ from teachers to learners so that learners become independent users of the language.
I do: The teacher first provides explicit instructions and modelling that initiate the learning process.
We Do: As learners begin to grasp the content and skills, the teacher also begins to shift the responsibility to them, facilitating guided practice where the teacher and the learners participate collaboratively.
You Do: Finally, the learners take full ownership of their learning through independent practice and the application of the skills learnt in the program.
Based on this approach, there are three core instructional models on which the activities work (please refer to lesson plans in the Teachers' Manual for greater clarity). These are:
I do We do You do Listen Echo Express and Repeat (E&R)
Fully guided; Modelled speaking by the teacher
Collaborative; Shared speaking between the learners and the teacher Independent practice and application by the learners
To sum up, the programme has been created to do away with the fear of speaking in English among learners and allowing them to express themselves confidently in English in real-life situations.
Mapping with NCF 2023
The National Curriculum Framework for Foundational Stage (NCF) , released in 2023, is developed based on the vision of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, and to enable its implementation. The NCF provides guidelines for designing school syllabi and textbooks in India. It aims to improve the quality of education by making it more relevant, engaging, inclusive and learner-centric. To achieve this, the NCF has articulated precise Learning Standards through well-defined Curricular Goals and Competency statements. These statements serve to harmonise the syllabus, content, pedagogical practices, and assessment culture, ensuring a cohesive and comprehensive educational experience. Curricular Goals: Curricular Goals are statements that give directions to curriculum development and implementation. They are derived from Aims and are specific to a Stage in education.
Competencies: Competencies are learning achievements that are observable and can be assessed systematically. These Competencies are derived from the Curricular Goals and are expected to be attained by the end of a Stage.
CG-1
C-1.1 Converses fluently and meaningfully in different contexts
Students develop oral language skills using complex sentence structures to understand and communicate abstract ideas.
C-1.2 Describes an outline of the material that has been read out and answers questions related to it
C-1.3 Summarises core ideas from the material that was read out
C-1.4 Demonstrates the ability to speak their reasoning coherently
C-1.5 Makes oral presentations (class debates, short welcome notes, anchoring of small events, short speech, and so on)
C-4.1 Uses knowledge of homophones, word roots, affixes, suffixes, synonyms, and antonyms
C-4.2 Discusses meanings of words and develops vocabulary by listening and reading a variety of texts or other content areas
CG-4
Students acquire a more comprehensive range of words in various contexts (of home and school experience) and through different sources.
1
2
3
4
5
6
Chapter Outcomes
Sharing Date, Time and Place
Sharing One’s Daily Routine
Sharing Feelings with Others
Conversations in Daily Life
Sharing Likes and Dislikes
Talking About Rules
7
Describing Something
Identify key details about date, time and place Give the date, day, time and place correctly, using simple sentences
Share one’s daily routine, including all key activities
Talk about one’s daily routine with action and expression
Answer questions related to one’s feelings
Share feelings with others
Ask questions during a conversation
Respond politely during a conversation
Identify others’ likes and dislikes
Share one’s likes and dislikes
Identify dos and don’ts of doing simple tasks Say the dos and don’ts in a simple task
Identify key details from the given descriptions
Describe a person, place, animal or thing in a few lines 8
Sharing a Personal Experience
9
Talking About Future Plans
Giving and Following Directions
Advantages and Disadvantages
Reporting an Incident or Event
Answer simple questions about a personal experience
Talk about a personal experience in a few lines
Share one’s plans to do something using simple future expressions Answer questions about future plans using short and clear sentences
Follow simple directions Give simple directions
Identify advantages and disadvantages of certain things
Talk about a few advantages and disadvantages of something
Share details of a local incident or event
Answer questions about a local incident or event
Chapter at a Glance Walkthrough of Key Elements
Talking Book: Animated video of the text
Keywords: Keywords from the text with meaning and pronunciation
Talk Toolkit: learners with essential vocabulary and language structures for the targeted speaking competency
E-Speak 1: A series of three guided speaking projects on the mobile app
Gaming Zone 1 and 2: Fun activities aligned with the big skill
Speak on the Spot: Impromptu speaking activity to be done in the classroom
E-Speak 2: A short, open-ended, assessment-type project on the mobile app
Speaking prompts with no expectation of writing
Practise: Guidance on how to practise at home
Tips: Helpful points for better speaking
A classroom presentation to be made after thorough planning and preparation
Template for drafting the presentation,
Reflection Journal: A template for reflecting on the achievement of the targeted outcome
Sharing Date, Time and Place
What time is it?
What is the date today?
Talking Book
Sharing One’s Daily Routine
Let me tell you all about my day — from waking up to going to bed!
Talking Book
Reflection Journal
In this chapter, I learnt to . New words I learnt:
Write 3–4 sentences about your routine on a day when you are unwell and resting at home.
How confident do I feel while sharing my routine in simple sentences? 1 I need help.
I think I can do it. 3 I feel confident.
Sharing Feelings with Others
What’s wrong, Meera? You look scared.
Yes, Mama. I am too scared to go on the escalator.
Talking Book
I won the race my cousins visited me my sister lost my colours my brother broke my bat my best friend was absent my father was sick I left my notebook at home I got full marks in the test I was going on a trip
3
Practise: Practise your lines in front of an elder.
4
Present: Share your feelings in the class.
Speak confidently and clearly. You can give your own answers. Speak with correct expression. Look at your friends and your teacher when you speak.
Reflection Journal
In this chapter, I learnt to . New words I learnt:
Think about a time you tried something new—like joining a new class, learning a new game or speaking on stage. Write about it in 3–4 sentences. 1.
How confident do I feel when sharing my feelings with others? 1 I need help. 2 I think I can do it. 3 I feel confident.
Chapter 4
Conversations in Daily Life
Uncle, what’s the price of these tomatoes?
They are thirty rupees per kilo.
Talking Book
In this chapter, I learnt to . New words I learnt:
Your friend is upset because he/she lost his/her favourite colour pencils. What will you say? Write about it in 3–4 sentences.
How confident do I feel asking questions and responding politely to them during daily conversations?
I need help.
I think I can do it.
3 I feel confident.
Sharing Likes and Dislikes
What would you like to order from the menu?
I don’t want a banana. I’d like to have juice.
I like bananas! I’ll have one.
Talking Book
Talking About Rules
Use colourful sheets of paper and fold them neatly.
Yes, ma’am. We will do it carefully.
Talking Book
Let's Visit the Zoo!
Read the rules that should be followed in a zoo. Colour in the boxes green for dos and red for don’ts.
1. Stay close to your parents or teacher.
2. Follow the signs and walk carefully.
3. Throw stones or food at the animals.
4. Watch the animals quietly.
5. Shout loudly near the animals.
6. Throw paper or garbage on the ground.
Practise: Practise saying the dos and don’ts at home, with an elder. 2
Present: Say the dos and don’ts in the class. 3
Speak confidently and clearly. You can add your own answers. Look at your friends and teacher when you speak.
Describing Something Chapter 7
This is a white puppy with brown spots. He has big black eyes.
This puppy looks so cute.
2
3
Present: Talk about your favourite place in the classroom.
Speak with expression. Look at your friends when you speak. You can add your own answers. One thing I always do there is . I love going to this place.
Reflection Journal
Practise: Practise saying these lines aloud in front of your family members.
How confident do I feel describing a person, animal, place or thing in a few lines? 1 I need help. 2 I think I can do it. 3 I feel confident. (activity you do there)
In this chapter, I learnt to New words I learnt: Write 3–4 lines to describe your school playground and what you do there.
Sharing a Personal Experience
Last Sunday, I went to a fair. It was fun.
That’s interesting! I went to the zoo with my family.
Talking Book
2 It was of/in my life. Thank you. the best day the happiest moment a memorable day the most wonderful time
Practise: Practise saying these lines aloud in front of an elder.
3
Present: In the class, tell your friends about that day.
Speak confidently and clearly. Bring a picture of that day if you have one.
Reflection Journal
Talking About Future Plans
Let’s practise again next week.
Talking Book
Beach
My Village Hill Station
Great! Is there anything new you want to learn during the vacation?
Wonderful! I wish you lots of joy and fun on your trip!
Yes, I want to learn . Thank you!
Practise: Practise your lines with an elder at home. 3
Present: Present your conversation in the class. 4
Speak politely and with excitement. Look at your teacher when you speak.
Reflection Journal
In this chapter, I learnt to . New words/phrases I learnt: Imagine you have a school picnic planned for next week. Write 3–4 lines to share your plans for the picnic.
SCHOOL SHOPPING MALL PARK
Giving and Following Directions
Which way is the school?
It’s to the right.
Talking Book
2
Practise: Practise giving these directions to your family members.
3
Present: Name the place you chose. Give directions to reach that place.
Speak clearly and confidently. You can use hand gestures when giving directions. You can look at the map when you give directions. take a left-hand turn just opposite take a right-hand turn continue straight go straight until right beside next to take a U-turn
Reflection Journal
In this chapter, I learnt to . New words/phrases I learnt: You must help your friend to find the nearest stationery shop. Write the directions in 3–4 sentences.
How do I feel while giving and following directions?
Advantages and Disadvantages
Should I play video games or go outside and play?
Pick the Object!
Read each sentence. Choose the correct object from the box, write its name and circle for advantage or for disadvantage.
1. It is used to carry things to school.
2. It can break easily if you drop it.
3. It keeps food fresh for long.
4. Too much of this can cause a toothache.
Talking
Book
ceremony (seh.ruh.muh.nee): an event
pleasant (pleh.znt): good or nice recycled (ree.sai.kld): waste that can be used again
facilities (fuh.si.luh.teez): services given by a place memories (meh.muh.reez): things that we remember from the past
Let me tell you… Let me tell you about the magic show we watched./ Let me tell you about the film we saw.
The event happened/took place on…
The event/incident took place at…
The incident happened on Sunday morning./ The event took place on a special holiday.
The incident took place at the park near my house./ The event took place at a stadium.
The main reason… The main reason for the gathering was to clean the park./ The main reason we celebrated Earth Day was to save Earth.
My favourite part was…
The event started…, and ended…
My favourite part was eating tasty sandwiches./ My favourite part was the magic show.
The event started at 9 a.m. and ended at 1 p.m./ The event started when the chief guest arrived and ended at 2 p.m.
Talk Toolkit
About the Book
This SPEAK 2.0 book aims to systematically build English language skills in learners and enable them to verbally express themselves in real-world situations. Each chapter focusses on building specific English language competencies and weaves together activities that are research-based, age-appropriate, contextual, experiential and joyful. The activities adhere to the highly recommended and research-based teaching-learning method known as the Gradual Release of Responsibility (GRR), which has been endorsed by the NEP 2020 and the NCF 2022–23. Through the series, learners receive dedicated time and space within the classroom to express themselves in English which helps them in becoming confident speakers of the language.
Special Features
• Activity-Based Learning: The book offers joyful experiential activities that build English communication competencies.
• Texts per the NEP 2020 Themes: The book has exciting and stimulating texts that pave the way for English communication activities.
• Tech Integration: The book works in sync with our digital component, where various other activities and projects are undertaken. Learner outputs are evaluated through an AI-based speech recognition engine.
• Teachers’ Manual: The book is complemented by the Teachers’ Manual that enables teachers to conduct each session effectively.
About Uolo
Uolo partners with K-12 schools to provide technology-enabled learning programs. We believe that pedagogy and technology must come together to deliver scalable learning experiences that generate measurable outcomes. Uolo is trusted by over 15,000+ schools across India, Southeast Asia and the Middle East.
ISBN 978-93-89057-68-3
