Plans for Leap Year Day

You are going to

• listen to radio clip about Leap Year Day and answer some questions
• listen to going to and present continuous used for plans and arrangements

1) Discuss

• What is Leap Year Day?
• Why is it special?
• Do you have any traditions connected with Leap Year Day?
• Do you do anything special on Leap Year day?

2) Listen to this radio clip

What are the people going to do?
Listen and do the matching exercise below



From BBC Radio 4 PM http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qskw





3) Discuss
Do the activities seem special to you?
What is special about the people who are doing them?


4) Now answer these questions

5) Discuss

• Are you going to do anything special for Leap Year Day?
• When is the next Leap Year Day?
• How much time have you got to prepare?

6) More on Leap Year Day

http://www.englishblog.com/2012/02/leap-year-day.html

Printable version here

Inspiring People

You are going to

• watch a video and talk about people who inspire others
• practise past simple
• practise some vocabulary connected with occupations and people who try to change the world
• talk about what / who inspires you

1) Discuss

What does inspiring mean?

• What kind of people or things inspire you?
• In what jobs is it necessary to try and inspire people?
• Why do people try to inspire others?

Look at the photos below. 

• How many of them do you know? 
• What do you know about them?

Look at their names

Top left to right - Mother Teresa, Winston Churchill, Muhammad Ali, Che Guevara, Bob Marley,

Rosa Parks, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King, Mohandas Gandhi, Emmeline Pankhurst

 

2) Do the matching exercise
How many do you know? Match the occupation with the name.
You can drag and drop the occupations to the names.

3) Discuss
Who do you think is the most inspiring of the 10?
Why?
Watch the clip. Do you agree with the choice of people?

4) Discuss

• Do you agree with the choice of people in the list? Why / Why not?
• What can you remember about the people in the clip?

5) Do the quiz

Be careful of spelling and punctuation. You can use numbers in some answers.

6) Read

Can you put the correct past forms in the gaps?

7) Do the crossword

The answers are all from the video / reading text.
How many can you remember?

Crossword printable version here
Printable exercises here



8) Speak
Do a balloon debate  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balloon_debate

9) Discuss / Write

Who inspires you?
Write about someone who inspires you.

Plan
1. Introduce the person. Who are they? Why are they important to you?
2. Describe the the person in more detail. Describe their character / personality. Why / How do they inspire you? Do they inspire you because of their beliefs / their actions? What exactly have you learnt from them?
3. Are you a better person because of them? How have they changed you? Give an example of something you do that they inspired.
4. Conclude. How would your life be different without them? Restate why they are important to you in a few words.

10) Read

What inspires you? Try a quiz
http://quizilla.teennick.com/quizzes/1476632/what-inspires-you

http://www.quibblo.com/quiz/1hR2N3l/Who-inspires-you

11) More

Shakira and Beyonce / Writing a biography of someone you admire
http://efllecturer.blogspot.com/2011/10/shakira-and-beyonce-contrasting-writing.html


Occupy Education  http://occupyedu.tumblr.com/

The Icing on the Cake

You are going to

• watch a video about memories and do a listening exercise
• use remember + gerund for talking about memories
• practise would and used to for talking about past habits
• describe and write about memories and past habits

1) Discuss

• What things do you remember from your childhood?
• What are your earliest memories?
• What are your favourite memories?

2) Introduction
You are going to watch a StoryCorps video.
Blanca Alvarez and her husband crossed the border to immigrate into the U.S. and then struggled to make ends meet. They hoped to shelter their children from these harsh realities, but Blanca's daughter Connie reveals how much children can really see of their parents' lives—and the inspiration they draw from their struggles.

A) Watch the video
What does Connie remember from her childhood?
The film is called "The Icing on the Cake" what do you think that means?

B) Answer the questions

3) Grammar

Look again at what Connie says

Remember. If you are remembering things in the past and you use the verb remember, what must you do with the verb which follows?

Answer - Highlight here = Use a gerund -ing. I remember eating, I remember playing...

If we want to talk about past habits and repeated activities what language can we use?

Answer - Highlight here = Would. You can also use Used to

See here - Contrast of Used to and Would

http://www.onestopenglish.com/support/ask-the-experts/grammar-questions/grammar-contrasts-1-used-to-and-would/146344.article

4) Practise

Have a look at this presentation and practise Remember + Gerund, Would and Used to

Remember the Past from David Mainwood

5) Gap-fill

Practise Remember + Gerund, Would and Used to in this gap-fill exercise

Printable version here

6) Writing

Memories

Write about a memory you have of something you did in the past.

It could be a holiday, your first visit to the UK (or another country), a school trip, a memory from your childhood or just somewhere you used to live...

• Talk about what you remember doing
• Use Would and Used to but remember the secret of good writing is variety so try and use both of them with a variety of other past tenses
• Introduce the topic and have a concluding sentence or paragraph
• You can use the ex 5 gap-fill as a model

7) More Practice

Would for Past Habit Jumbled Sentence Games 1 - 10

http://www.englishclub.com/esl-games/grammar/jumbled-past-would-1.htm

Past habits - Used to / Would interative exercises

http://www.tolearnenglish.com/cgi2/myexam/liaison.php?liaison=_use_

More videos from StoryCorps

http://www.youtube.com/storycorps

Whitney Houston - Why do stars fall?

You are going to 

• discuss fame and celebrity
• listen to a radio interview and do a gap-fill

Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American recording artist, actress, producer and model. In 2009, the Guinness World Records cited her as the most-awarded female act of all time. Her awards include two Emmy Awards, six Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, and 22 American Music Awards, among a total of 415 career awards in her lifetime. Houston was also one of the world's best-selling music artists, having sold over 170 million albums, singles and videos worldwide.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitney_Houston




News 11th February 2012
American singer and actress Whitney Houston has died in Los Angeles at the age of 48.
The mother of one died in her room at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, where she had been staying as a guest.
The singer had battled substance abuse in recent years.

Discuss
They have talent, money, looks, fame... everything.

• Why do some stars lose it all? 
• Can you think of any other stars who have come to a tragic end?
• What goes wrong?

Listen
Listen to this interview with music journalist and presenter Paul Gambaccini on the Stephen Nolan Show

• What does Paul think was special about Whitney Houston?
• What does he think went wrong in Whitney's life?

Listen and find out

listen to ‘Music journalist Paul Gambaccini looks back on the life and career of Whitney Houston, who died at the weekend aged 48’ on Audioboo

Listen again and read the summary of the interview below. 
Fill in the gaps with words from the list.
Vocabulary

• Feet on the ground = a realistic understanding of your own ideas, actions, and decisions
• Going south = failing

Discuss
What do you think?

• Are some stars so powerful that no one ever says no to them?
• Would it be better if celebrities kept their problems private?
• Should the media be more responsible when it reports on celebrities?
• Why are we so interested in celebrities' private lives?

Accidental Inventions and Hidden Heroes

You are going to

• practise past simple and past continuous
• watch a video about inventions and do a matching exercise 
• watch a video about a science exhibition and do a quiz
• listen to a radio interview about what motivates inventors and do a gap-fill
• read an interview with inventor Mark Champkins
• discuss and describe inventions
• write about an invention

1) Video 1 - Discuss

• What are the most useful inventions that we use today?
• What couldn't you live without?
• Is it a simple everyday object like a pen or a paper clip or something more complex?

You are going to watch a video called "10 Accidental Inventions"

• What inventions do you think they are?
• Why do you think they are called "accidental"?

Watch and find out

2) Matching exercise

Match the beginnings of the sentences with the ends. Watch the video again if you need to.

3) Grammar

Look at the sentences again. How many tenses are there?
Which phrases are Past Simple?
Which are Past Continuous?
What's the difference between the Past Simple and Continuous?
Not sure? Look here

4) Video 2 - Discuss

You are going to watch a clip about an exhibition called the "Hidden Heroes Exhibition."

• Who do you think are the "Hidden Heroes?
• Why do you think they have called them "hidden"?
• What kind of objects do you think are in the exhibition?

Watch the clip




Now answer these questions. Watch the video again if you need to.

5) Discuss - Listen

Rawlplugs and screws

• Do you agree that the objects in the Hidden Heroes exhibition are very important?
• Why do inventors invent things?
• What do you think is the main motivation for inventing? 

Listen to an interview with inventor Mark Champkins on BBC World Tonight and find out.





Fill in the gaps in the summary with the verbs from the list. Choose them from the drop-down menu.

Printable version available here

6) Reading

Interview with Mark Champkins. Look at the questions.

• What inspired you to become an inventor?
• What is your favourite invention ever?
• What invention could you not live without?
• Which object in the museum is the most inspirational or influenced your time here so far?

Go here to read Mark's answers
http://sciencemuseumdiscovery.com/blogs/insight/inventor-in-residence/

7) Discuss

• What would you invent if you could?
• What inventions does the world need now? Why?

8) Writing / Discussion

What invention couldn't you live without?

Describe it.

• Is it a simple everyday object or something more complex?
• What's it for?
• What kind of design has it got?
• Has the design changed much since it was invented?

Look on the internet. Find out some history

• Who invented it?
• Where was it invented?
• Was it invented by accident?
• Why and how was it invented?
• What were they trying to do when they invented it (what else were they working on)?

What do you think about it?

• Why is it important?
• What did it change or make better for people?
• What couldn't we do without it?
• Why couldn't you live without it?

Write about your invention
Write it using 3 - 4 paragraphs (see above)
Don't forget to have an introduction (say what it is and why you are choosing it)
and a conclusion (your opinion of it / why couldn't you live without it and why you think it's important)

More practice

More reading
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/hiddenheroes


More past continuous and past simple
http://efllecturer.blogspot.com/2011/04/past-continuous-with-gifs_12.html
http://efllecturer.blogspot.com/2011/04/past-simple-past-continuous-with-gif.html


More inventions http://efllecturer.blogspot.com/2011/12/what-would-have-happened-if-10.html

What are the worst branding gaffes?

You are going to 

• discuss gaffes, advertising and translating
• listen to a radio interview and do a true / false quiz
• practise the passive
• give advice about how to avoid making gaffes when speaking another language or visiting another country

Discuss

• What's a gaffe?

gaffe  /gaf/  Noun: An accidental act or remark causing embarrassment to its maker; a blunder: "an unforgivable social gaffe".

Synonyms: faux pas - blunder - mistake

• Have you ever made any gaffes? Describe one
• Do you ever make any gaffes when you are speaking in a foreign laguage?
• Do you know of any translations from your language into English which may cause a gaffe?
• Do you know of any translations from English into your language which may cause a gaffe?
• Why should we be very careful when we translate into another language?
• What are "false friends"
• What's an advertising or branding gaffe?
• Can you give any examples of advertising or branding gaffes?

Listen

Listen to a radio interview from BBC Radio 4 Today.  The interview is about branding gaffes.

The carmaker BMW launched a Mini Cooper marketing campaign in Germany to try to take advantage of the cold weather.  Unfortunately the Mini Cooper's name was attached to a cold weather front which killed many across Europe. BMW is embarrassed and a spokesman said that "it took on catastrophic proportions and left so many victims... we do regret it very much."

In this interview Allyson Stewart-Allen, a marketing expert who runs International Marketing Partners, explains how to avoid a branding mistake.

Listen to the interview
What other examples of branding gaffes do they give?




Listen again and do the exercise below

Grammar - Passive

What's the difference between these sentences?

• They translated the text into Chinese
• The text was translated into Chinese

Which one uses the passive?
When do we use the passive?

Not sure how to use the passive? Look here  http://efllecturer.blogspot.com/2011/04/passive-present-simple.html
or here http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/grammar/passive.htm

Try this exercise to practise the passive using phrases from the interview.

Printable version here

More practice

Passive
http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/active_passive/sentences_gaps.htm
http://esl.about.com/library/quiz/blgrquiz_passive1.htm

Other activities
Things that happen on the internet every 60 seconds
http://efllecturer.blogspot.com/2011/08/60-seconds-things-that-happen-on.html
Making Potato chips
http://efllecturer.blogspot.com/2011/05/making-potato-chips-ielts-describing.html


Reading
More funny gaffes
http://k3hamilton.com/cb/cbgaffes.html

http://www.learnenglish.de/mistakes/HorrorMistakes.htm

Writing / Discussion

What advice would you give to an English speaking person who was learning your language or coming to visit your country?
How could he / she avoid making any gaffes?

Discussion / Listening / Writing - Is smacking a child ever justified?

You are going to

• listen to a discussion and do a gap-filling exercise
• practise verbs used to report speech
• discuss parenting and children's behaviour
• prepare and write an IELTS task 2 question on this theme

Discuss

• What's the best way to educate children?
• What's the best way to teach children about right and wrong?
• How should parents discipline children when they do wrong?
• Do you think it is ever right to smack a child who has done wrong?
• What is the law in the UK with regard to smacking?
• What is the law in your country?
• How does the education of children affect society? 
• How did your parents raise you?
• Are you a parent? How do you / will you raise your children?

Listen
You are going to listen to a short discussion from the BBC Radio 4 Today programme
http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/default.stm

David Lammy, the Labour MP for Tottenham and former minister, sparked controversy when he said parents in his constituency were confused about the law on smacking.
Cindy Butts, adviser on the Metropolitan Police's Operation Trident, and Sunny Hundal, Guardian writer and editor of left wing blog Liberal Conspiracy, discuss whether smacking is ever justified.


Listen to the discussion

1) Who says the following? Cindy Butts or Sunny Hundal?

• some families don't understand the law
• was beaten as a child
• people are more willing to ignore authority nowadays

Click play to listen





2) Listen again and fill in the gaps with a verb from the drop-down menu.

Printable version available here

Grammar - Reported Speech

Look at the text again.
The verbs in the gaps in the summary can all be used to report speech. We can also use Say and Tell but the test of good English is being able to use varied vocabulary.
What other verbs in the text are used to report speech?
Highlight for answers = dispute, maintain, claim, consider

Practise reported speech here
http://www.englishcafe.com/blog/reported-speech-reporting-verbs-27093



Discuss

• The law in the UK states that a parent can smack a child without reddening the skin. Do you agree that the law is fair and sensible?
• What are the alternatives to smacking?
• Do you think parents should have training to raise children?
• Are people more willing to ignore authority nowadays? Is this good or bad? What are the causes?
• Do you agree there has been a breakdown in discipline in young teenagers?
• How much are parents responsible for the actions of their children?

Writing

Choose one of the following IELTS questions

• Some people think it would be a good idea for schools to teach every young person how to be a good parent. Do you agree or disagree with this opinion? Describe the skills a person needs to be a good parent.
• Firm discipline is a necessary part of teaching children. To what extent do you agree or disagree
• In some countries children have very strict rules of behavior, while in other countries they are allowed to do almost anything they want. To what extent should children have to follow rules? Give Reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
• Behaviour in schools is getting worse. Explain the causes and effects of this problem, and suggest some possible solutions.

More Practice
More reported speech
http://www.englishcafe.com/blog/reported-speech-reporting-verbs-27093

Reporting verbs lists
http://www.edufind.com/english/grammar/rep7.cfm
http://academicenglishcafe.com/ReportedandQuotedSpeechVerbs.aspx

Game  http://academicenglishcafe.com/HotChocolateCoolQuotesBetaRV.aspx

Reading
Daily Mail - Labour MP: Smacking ban led to riots because parents fear children will be taken away if they discipline them
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2093223/Labour-MP-David-Lammy-Smacking-ban-led-riots.html

More BBC Radio 4 Today stories on Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/thetodayprogramme

What Britain Loves

You are going to

• discuss countries and stereotypes
• watch and listen to a TV ad.
• listen and order words and expressions
• talk about what your country / region / city loves

 


1) Discuss

• What is the British stereotype?
• What do the British love?
• Think of some things we love

2) Watch the clip

What  does Britain love?
Can you guess before you watch?

3) Put the words and expressions in order
Look at the list of words and expressions in the exercise below
Do you understand all of them?
Watch the youtube clip again. While you listen, use your mouse to drag the expressions into the right order on the lines.

4) Discuss / Writing

• Do you think the ad is true?
• What do you love doing?
• What do people in your country love doing?

What does your country love?
Make a list of things
Read them out to the class or make a poster.

Grammar
Don't forget -  "... loves + a NOUN or VERB +ing"
eg Britain loves a celebration 
or
Britain loves gardening

The Beatles

You are going to

• revise the past simple
• listen to a video about the Beatles and do a matching exercise
• read a text about the Beatles and do a gap-fill exercise
• do a quiz based on the information in the lesson

  

1) Discuss

2012 is the 50th anniversary of the Beatles' first hit single.

• Who were the Beatles?
• What were their names?
• What did they do?

Watch the video to find out.

2) Do the matching exercise

Look at the exercise below. The information in the boxes on the right is in a different order to the film. Use your mouse to drag the information in the boxes on the right to the correct heading on the left.
Watch the film again if you need to.

Listen to this Beatles concert from 1964 while you do the gap fill exercise below.

3) Gap-fill

Read the text and fill in the gaps.

You can choose the correct answer from the drop-down menu.

Sgt Pepper

Abbey Road

4) Beatles Quiz

How much can you remember?

Do this quiz. There are 12 questions.

5) Writing

Choose someone famous that you like. Write about them.

• When was he / she born?
• Where was he / she from?
• What did he / she do?
• How did he / she become famous?
• Did he / she make films?
• Did he / she get married?
• Why do you like him / her?

6) More

Printable worksheet here

More Beatles http://efllecturer.blogspot.com.es/2013/03/whats-so-special-about-beatles.html

More past simple practice

http://efllecturer.blogspot.com/2011/04/past-simple-forms.html 

More practice with the Beatles  http://www.esllistening.org/beatles/home.html

More Beatles info and music  http://www.beatles.com/

And in the end...

Willpower - How can you improve it?

You are going to 

• discuss willpower
• listen to a radio programme about willpower and do a gap-fill exercise.
• do a quiz to find out how much willpower you have

Discuss

• Do you have willpower?
• What is willpower?
• When do you need it?
• When you decide to do something do you always finish it?
• Oscar Wilde said "I can resist everything but temptation". Can you resist everything?
• How can you improve your willpower?

Listening

1. Read the summary below of the BBC Radio 4 interview with Roy Baumeister about willpower. Can you guess any of the words which go in the gaps?
2. Listen to the recording below and fill in the gaps with the word you hear.

Be careful of your spelling!


According to a new book, the most important thing to make a person successful is willpower and not self-esteem as is sometimes thought.

Professor Roy Baumeister, author of Willpower: Rediscovering Our Greatest Strength, talks to the Today programme

 Click play to listen. Fill in the gaps.

More
Listen to a debate on this subject BBC's The Forum here  http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00mxby8

Printable version here

Reading

How much willpower do you have?
Find out in this quiz  http://www.youthink.com/quiz.cfm?obj_id=80878

Why willpower matters – and how to get it
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/feb/07/why-willpower-matters