🔍 Phase 2 - Encounter
🖼️ Visual
⏱ 5 minutes
Task 2 - Languages Around Us
Every language tells a story. Every language reflects a culture. What do you notice? What surprises you? Which languages can you recognise?
Step 1 - Tap each sign to reveal its language. Identify 3 to become a Language Detective.
مرحبا
Arabic
Street sign
ラーメン
Japanese
Food packaging
Метро
Russian (Cyrillic)
Metro sign
फिल्म
Hindi (Devanagari)
Cinema poster
안녕하세요
Korean (Hangul)
App screenshot
Καλημέρα
Greek
Shop sign
สวัสดี
Thai
Airport board
שלום
Hebrew
Book cover
Ausgang
German
Supermarket sign
Step 2 - Observation notepad
Optional · max 200 characters
What surprised you about the languages you saw?
Step 3 - Quick check
A Most public signs around the world use only English.
B Languages appear in many different scripts, symbols and visual styles.
C All languages use the same alphabet.
D Only spoken languages appear in public spaces.
Bridge to Task 3
"The more languages we discover, the more ways we discover to understand people."
What happens in Task 2
A 5-minute Phase 2 - Encounter activity. Nine multilingual "signs" are shown with hidden labels - tapping reveals the language. Identifying 3 languages earns a Language Detective badge, followed by an optional observation note and a quick formative check.
🎯 Learning objectives
Notice that languages appear in many different scripts, symbols and visual styles. Recognise a language family even before understanding a single word. Build curiosity about the visual diversity of world languages.
♿ SEN Adaptations
- Single-image mode available: one large sign at a time, navigate with arrows
- Language labels can be set always-visible from accessibility settings
- Voice input accepted for the observation notepad
🖨️ No-Tech Format
- Teacher displays printed A3 images of multilingual signage as a gallery walk
- Students circle familiar words and symbols with coloured markers in small groups
- A printed answer card reveals the languages at the end of the activity