Lesson Plan: Speaking and Writing about Relationships and Using Indirect Questions

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Today I want to share with you an activity that has worked really well. I did it with my Intermediate students but I bet it’ll be perfect for any level. It all started with a text my students had to read about a Speed Dating Event (click here if you have no idea what I’m talking about). Just the previous week we had been studying Indirect Questions so I thought it could be a good idea to mix speed dating and indirect questions. And I was right ! The smiles on their faces gave them away!
♥These are the steps we followed :
Step 1. We read about a speed dating event (New English File Upper-Intermediate. Unit 1)
Step 2. I gave students slips of paper containing either the beginning of a direct or an indirect question. (Cards here). I encouraged students to write an interesting question ; a question the person talking to them could elaborate on. If the slip of paper begins with I was wondering…. Students shouldn’t go for “ I was wondering what your name is” … but something along the lines of” I was wondering what you do in your free time” or” I was wondering why you are taking this course”.
Step 3. I explained the rules of a speed dating event. Some students remain seated during the whole event ( in real speed dating, women remain seated). When the bell rings , students sit across another student and they use their questions to start a conversation . They need to keep on talking for 3 minutes. Then a bell rings and “men” need to stand up and move to their right to start a new conversation and the whole process is repeated again. I didn’t have a bell so I used a Class Timer (here)

The picture shows some of my students during the speed dating event. A lot of fun, believe me!

♥After the speed dating event, my students were in the right mood to talk about relationships so we worked a bit on some vocabulary they might need to use when talking or writing about Dating, Friendship or Marriage. Photocopy here

♥It was the last lesson of the week and so the right time to set as homework for the weekend  a Writing about the Advantages and Disadvantages of Non-Traditional Dating.

♥Monday will begin with students sharing their ideas about non-traditional dating. I think it will be easier for them to start talking about something they have previously given some thought to. Once they are all warmed-up,…..who’ll dare stop them? I’ve got these two nice handouts to ensure they keep on talking.
Don’t you fear!. I’ll hand them some peppermint drops to prevent hoarseness as they leave the class. They’ll have well deserved them!

Video Lesson: What your Signature Says about You

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It is said that your signature tells a lot about your personality. What do you think?

Try this simple exercise. On a piece of paper write a short note to someone and then sign it. Done??? Let’s now analyze your signature. Ready?

♥If your first name is more prominent than your surname , then you have positive feelings about your childhood and your “private” life is more important than your “public” life.

♥Do you use initial letters in your signature? If it is in your first name , then you want to keep your personal life more secretive

♥If you have a legible signature, then you have clear ideas and objectives. If it is illegible , then you are less confident and tend to avoid conflict.

♥If you have a rising signature, then you are optimistic and ambitious. A descending signature will indicate you lack self-confidence and tend to get depressed. A horizontal signature will suggest you are a well-balanced person.

♥If you sign in capital letters, then you are arrogant.

♥Finally, if your signature is bigger than the rest of the document , it means you have a high opinion of yourself and if it smaller you might be insecure and have low self-esteem.

Well, well…  after learning all these things I might consider changing my signature. What about you? Do you believe in Graphology?

Watch this video where a graphologist analyses the signature of several famous people and try to answer the questions

Question 1. What does the underscore in a signature tell us about this person?
Question 2. What do we learn of Elisabeth I from her signature?
Question 3. According to the expert, what does a rising signature indicate?
Question 4. What does an underscore looking like a dollar sign say about the person?

Answers: Watch the video again in youtube (click here). Activate the subtitles feature  and check your anwers.

Using a Song to Revise Vocab Related to Fashion

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This song will fit like a glove if you are learning/teaching a Fashion- and- Clothes related semantic field.
This song You Look Good on Me is performed by Natasha Bedingfield, one of my favourite singers, and though I don’t think she had English teachers on her mind when she wrote it, the thing is that it is just perfect for teaching fashion and clothes related vocabulary. So, this is how I am planning to use it with my intermediate students- nothing to write home about, really. I intend to play the song as a revision exercise, so my students will already be familiar with most of the words/expressions in the song.

♥First and Second Time– they listen to the song twice without seeing the lyrics and in pairs they will have to write down as many words as they identify, related to the above- mentioned semantic field. Students, in turns, say the words or expressions they’ve jotted down and explain them to the rest of the class while I write them on the board for everybody to see.

♥Once this is done, I’ll write on the board the words/expressions they‘ve missed and ask students to explain the meaning of them.

♥Finally I’ll give them the lyrics or display them with OHP ( we need to save the planet, don’t we? – even though it is a small drop in the ocean, it is still something)

Here’s the song

 

Here are the lyrics

Da da da da da da
Oo oo oo
Da da da da da da

Goin’ on a shopping spree
Pick something out to look good on me
I want quality
Not quantity
Want a classic
Not a trend
Casual yet still high end
I know what I want
and I’m not afraid to spend

So if you
Fit me tight but let me breathe
Let me wear your heart on my sleeve
Be the thread that winds the seams
You could look so good on me
Fit me like a second skin
My favourite jeans that I could live in
Wouldn’t need accessories
You would look so good on me

I’m checking out
Goods on display
Don’t play it safe or too risque
I’m done window shopping
I’m ready to pay
I’m going up
Fifth floor
The best stuff’s in store
Cos that’s where they keep
What every girl would die for

So if you
Fit me tight but let me breathe
Let me wear your heart on my sleeve
Be the thread that winds the seams
You could look so good on me
Fit me like a second skin
My favourite jeans that I could live in
Wouldn’t need accessories
You would look so good on me

ahh ahh ahhh
da da da da da da

ahh ahh ooo

Everything’s perfect
When you’re looking through the glass
The colours can fade as seasons pass
This time I wanna, wanna nail them to the mast

Fit me tight but let me breathe
Let me wear your heart on my sleeve
Be the thread that winds the seams
You could look so good on me
Fit me like a second skin
My favourite jeans that I could live in
Wouldn’t need accessories
You would look so good on me

Fit me tight but let me breathe
Let me wear your heart on my sleeve
Be the thread that winds the seams
You could look so good on me
Fit me like a second skin
My favourite jeans that I could live in
Wouldn’t need accessories
You would look so good on me

Learning the Alphabet

A word on Grammar, American Cultural aspects, Audio, Funny Stuff, Games, General, Lesson Plan: Intermediate, , ,

Sometimes I can write three posts in a row; I feel everything I want to convey flows naturally and… some other times I’m at a loss for words. I know what I want to say but I don’t seem to find the right words. I write and cross off, write and cross off and the whole process is repeated all over again until I find myself wondering what the point of writing a lengthy introduction is when I can never be sure if there is anybody out there reading it. And then, this week three teachers from different parts of the world kindly wrote a line to let me know they are on the other side, and paying attention. Thank you, you cannot begin to imagine how motivating your words have been.

Learning the Alphabet is fun but even in Advanced Levels vowels still pose a problem, especially for Spanish students – our “i” /i/ is the English “e”, the English “i” is pronounced /ai/ and our “a” is pronounced /ei/. The letters “g” and “j” are also difficult and students find it difficult to hear the difference between “b” and “v”. That’s why it is important to dedicate some meaningful time to learning something so useful in everyday’s life.

These are the two activities I’m going to use this year to teach/revise the alphabet.

♥The first one is a video. I have found that adults still enjoy- or shall I dare say more than enjoy- clips aimed at little children. If you are an adult, watch the following clip to revise the alphabet and tell me what you think. You might need to remind students of a traditional nursery rhyme that goes like this

Baa baa black sheep, have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full!
One for the master, one for the dame,

before playing the video.

♥The second activity is nothing to write home about. It is the world famous Hangman, but this year, played in groups and instead of displaying words, I’m going to try a short sentence:

Divide the class into two teams. You’ll need a red pen for Group A and a black pen for Group B ( or any different colour 😉 ). On the board write the gaps for two different words of any length ( or a short sentence). Group A and B take it in turns to choose one letter of the alphabet. If the letter is correct, fill in the gap (in red if it’s A’s turn and in black if it is B’s). If the letter is not contained in the selected words, start drawing portions of the hangman (remember red or black). The game continues until all the letters have been guessed or all the parts of the hangman are drawn. If groups manage to guess the words, count the number of red or black letters to announce who the winner is.

You might also want to have a look at what I did to teach the alphabet three years ago. Click here

Word of the Day: maths or math?

Word of the Day, , ,

What’s the short for the word “mathematics“? Is it “maths” or “math”? Is it a “maths exercise” or a “math exercise”? “A maths lesson” or a “math lesson”?

Well, dear reader, the answer is: both are Ok. It all depends on where you are.

♥American English uses the word “math” whereas if you speak British English you should use the form ” maths”. If you have travelled further and are in New Zealand or Australia, then you need to use  the word” maths”.
I work with kids. I tutor them in math (AmE)
I work with kids. I tutor them in maths (BrE)

♥Another thing that might surprise you is the fact that the word “mathematics” is uncountable and therefore takes a singular verb. It has no plural.

Math/ Maths is one of my favourite subjects

There are some other words in English that end in- s but are singular (eg. News, politics, billiards, measles, statistics…)

Politics is a complicated business
The unemployment statistics are worrying

♥Remember that we don’t use capital letters for school subjects but when  we talk about languages, as school subjects, then we need to use a capital letter.

She’s passed with flying colours her Spanish, history and maths exams

So,as you can see there is not just one correct shortened form for the word “mathematics”. If you learned  your English in the US, “math” is correct for you and if you learned it in the UK, then “maths” is the one you should use.