A1 Lesson: The Lost Dog

Level: A1 (Beginner)

Content Objective: Students follow a light mystery in which three friends look for a missing dog, and they can describe where things are in a neighborhood.

Language Objective: Students learn to use “there is” and “there are” with prepositions of place (in, on, under, next to, behind, in front of, between) to say where things are.

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1. Reading Section

It is Saturday morning. Priya has a problem. Her dog, Biscuit, is small and brown. There isn’t a dog in the yard. The gate is open.

“Oh no! Where is Biscuit?” Priya says.

Her friends Tom and Lin come to help. “Let’s look in the neighborhood,” Lin says.

“Are there any clues?” Tom asks.

“Yes, there are,” Priya says. “There are paw prints in the yard.”

The paw prints go to the park. There is a bench next to the fountain. There is a red ball under the bench.

“That is Biscuit’s ball!” Priya says.

More paw prints go to the bakery. The friends run to the bakery. There is a woman in front of the shop. Her name is Mrs. Rossi.

“Excuse me,” Priya says. “Is there a small brown dog here?”

“I don’t know,” Mrs. Rossi says. “But there is a strange noise behind my shop.”

They walk behind the bakery. There are three boxes next to the wall. There is a soft noise between the boxes. It is Biscuit! He is asleep. There are cookie crumbs on his nose.

Biscuit opens his eyes. His tail goes up and down. Mrs. Rossi laughs.

“He comes here every Saturday,” she says. “There is a cookie for him.”

Priya takes Biscuit home. The mystery is over. Her dad fixes the gate. Now there is a new lock on the gate.

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2. Vocabulary Section

Word / Phrase	Meaning	Example
neighborhood	the area around your home, with streets, houses, and shops	Priya and her friends look in the neighborhood.
gate	a door in a fence or wall outside	The gate is open.
clue	a small piece of information that helps you find an answer	Paw prints are a clue.
paw print	the mark that an animal’s foot makes	There are paw prints in the yard.
bench	a long seat for two or more people, often outside	There is a red ball under the bench.
bakery	a shop that makes and sells bread and cakes	The friends run to the bakery.
strange	not normal; a little unusual	There is a strange noise behind the shop.
asleep	sleeping	Biscuit is asleep between the boxes.

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3. Example Sentences (Target Grammar in Use)

• There is a red ball under the bench.
• There are paw prints in the yard.
• There is a woman in front of the shop.
• There is a strange noise behind my shop.
• There are three boxes next to the wall.
• There is a soft noise between the boxes.

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4. Grammar Section

There Is / There Are + Prepositions of Place

We use “there is” and “there are” to say that something is in a place. Prepositions of place tell us exactly where it is.

Form	Use	Example
There is	one thing (singular)	There is a red ball under the bench.
There are	two or more things (plural)	There are three boxes next to the wall.
There isn’t / There aren’t	negative (no thing)	There isn’t a dog in the yard.
Is there…? / Are there…?	questions	Is there a small brown dog here?

Prepositions of place:

Preposition	Meaning	Example
in	inside a place	There are paw prints in the yard.
on	on top of a surface	There are cookie crumbs on his nose.
under	below something	There is a red ball under the bench.
next to	right beside something	There is a bench next to the fountain.
behind	at the back of something	There is a strange noise behind my shop.
in front of	at the front of something	There is a woman in front of the shop.
between	in the middle of two things	There is a soft noise between the boxes.

Quick Tip: Look at the noun after “there.” Use “there is” with one thing (a ball, a noise) and “there are” with more than one thing (three boxes, paw prints). Do not use “have” here. Say “There is a ball under the bench,” not “Has a ball under the bench.”

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5. Comprehension Questions

A. True or False

1. Priya, Tom, and Lin look for a lost dog.
2. There is a red ball on the bench.
3. There is a woman in front of the bakery.
4. Biscuit is asleep in front of the bakery.

B. Short Answer

5. Where is the red ball?
6. Where are the three boxes?
7. What is on Biscuit’s nose?
8. What is new on the gate at the end?

C. Fill in the Blank

Word Bank: under / next to / behind / on (use each word once)

9. There ___ (is / are) a red ball ___ the bench.
10. There ___ (is / are) three boxes ___ the wall.
11. There ___ (is / are) a strange noise ___ Mrs. Rossi’s shop.
12. There ___ (is / are) cookie crumbs ___ Biscuit’s nose.

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Next lesson: A1 — “Learning to Skateboard”