TEDTALKS – A 60′ business conversation lesson (projects for your city)

Recently I have been developing business projects for Cultura Inglesa Jundiaí advanced students (that’s why I have been late with my blog posts). Their project is called: “Recommending Public Projects to your city” – it entails input lessons and a business presentation. This will be included on their plan as one of the vocabulary lessons to enrich their presentations (to be held in June).  

The topic of the lesson: How I brought a river and my city back to Life

[Slide 1] Background image below 

1. Setting the scene

• Timing: 10′
• Interaction: S-S (pairs) or S-Ss (trios)
• Monitoring: Teacher walks around the room, listens to ss contributions and take notes on vocabulary and pronunciation (to be used next).
• Feedback: Teacher boards crucial vocabulary and pronunciation.

Ask students the following questions:

• What projects have been implemented in your city so far?
• Any public projects that were successful?
• Which areas need improvement in your opinion?
• What area are you going to focus on in order to help your city?

[Slide 2] Background image below 

2. Introduction to the TED video: 

Aziza Chaouni: How I brought a river, and my city, back to life

Video can be watched here: http://www.ted.com/playlists/342/talks_on_water 

• Timing: 15′
• Interaction: S-S (pairs) or S-Ss (trios)
• Monitoring: Teacher walks around the room, listens to ss contributions and take notes on vocabulary and pronunciation (to be used next).
• Feedback: Teacher boards crucial vocabulary and pronunciation.

Before watching:

Students read the following website with information on Aziza Chaouni’s philosophy.

The keynote speaker who focuses on projects that integrate architecture and landscape, and that ultimately give back to their communities. For years, she has worked to revive the Fez River, which runs through her hometown of Fez, Morocco. https://www.ted.com/speakers/aziza_chaouni 

Ss answer the following questions:

• What does she do?
• What does her design philosophy entail?
• What is her mission?

2.1 Follow-up:

• What happened to our Tietê river? 
• Was it recovered? 
• What do you think should be done in order to save it?

[Slide 3] Background image above

3. Working with the TED video (5’38): 

Aziza Chaouni: How I brought a river, and my city, back to life

Video can be watched here: http://www.ted.com/playlists/342/talks_on_water 

• Timing: 25′
• Interaction: S-S (pairs) or S-Ss (trios)
• Monitoring: Teacher walks around the room, listens to ss contributions and take notes on vocabulary and pronunciation (to be used next).
• Feedback: Teacher boards crucial vocabulary and pronunciation.

Students answer the following questions:

• How was the river known before? How important is it? (the city’s very soul / extensive water network throughout the city)
• What happened to the river because of the pollution? (little by little it was covered by concrete slabs)
• What caused the pollution? ( untreated sewage and chemical dumping)
• Why did she decide to take action? (she couldn’t bear the desecration of the river, especially after she heard the city had received a grant to divert sewage water and to treat it).
• What are some of the material used to reconstruct the area around the river bank? (recycled leather canopies, recycled tyres for the playgrounds, etc)

3.1 Critical Thinking

• Timing: 10′
• Interaction: S-S (pairs) or S-Ss (trios)
• Monitoring: Teacher walks around the room, listens to ss contributions and take notes on vocabulary and pronunciation (to be used next).
• Feedback: Teacher boards crucial vocabulary and pronunciation.

Students think about the presentation itself (to connect it to their project).

• What visual aids were relied on in order to make the presentation clearer? What can you use?
• How did she carry her presentation? Was she prolix or did she go straight to the point?
• How long did it take?
• What type of language did she use?

[Slide 5] Use the first background image

5. Working on their presentations:

Have 5′ so students can pinpoint the main things they can use from this video – vocabulary, techniques, structures, etc.

Go back to the tilte of the lesson. 

Professional Sports (A conversation Lesson)

The latest post on Richmond share blog was about the most frequent question asked: “Teacher, sou fluente?” http://www.richmondshare.com.br/teacher-eu-sou-fluente-faq/ 

Please have a look and feel free to share your ideas (they will be most welcome).

This lesson is adapted from: Dummet, P., Hughes, J. & Stephenson, H. (2016) Life Advanced. National Geographic. Cengage Learning (pages 26-27). And it is planned to be used with Advanced Level students (EF C1) – Adult/young adults.

 

The topic of the lesson: Daring, Defiant and free

[Slide 1]

1. Setting the scene  – background Image below (working with a video)

• Interaction:  S-S / Ss-S (pairs or trios)
• Timing: 7′
• Monitoring: Teacher walks around the room listening to students’ contributions and making note of important points to be discussed in the feedback part of the lesson.
• Feedback: Teacher provides ss with feedback on vocabulary and pronunciation.

Students will watch the following video from Nat Geo channel (up to  1’10”).

World’s Hardest Climb goal of Yosemite Wall Climber | Nat Geo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_lZc7nATT4

And answer the following students: 

• What professional sports can you think of that are particularly dangerous?
• Are you prone to practicing extreme sports? 
• In your viewpoint, what motivates people to do this kind of thing?

[Slide 2]

1.1 Working with vocabulary from the video – detailed information – Use the same background image above.

• Interaction:  S-S / Ss-S (pairs or trios)
• Timing: 20′
• Monitoring: Teacher walks around the room listening to students’ contributions and making note of important points to be discussed in the feedback part of the lesson.
• Feedback: Teacher provides ss with feedback on vocabulary and pronunciation.

Students watch the whole video and work on the following vocabulary. They will make notes, re-watch the video and pay attention to the use of these words in context. After, they have to decide what these words mean. 

• daunting
• humbling and inspiring
• follow sb’s bliss
• subordinate (verb)
• prior to
• a party (to his vision) 5’20”
• pitch-worthy
• (that was) a sharp (one)

[Slide 3]

1.2 Using the vocabulary in context (from the video)  – Use the same background image above.

• Interaction:  S-S / Ss-S (pairs or trios)
• Timing: 15′
• Monitoring: Teacher walks around the room listening to students’ contributions and making note of important points to be discussed in the feedback part of the lesson.
• Feedback: Teacher provides ss with feedback on vocabulary and pronunciation.

Students discuss the following questions:

• Are there any sports you find daunting? Generally speaking, what else do you find daunting?
• What places in Brazil can be called humbling and inspiring, in your opinion? What about other off the beaten track places in the world?
• When you chose (or will choose) your degree, did/will you follow your bliss or did/will you choose what showed/s fast results?
• Prior to studying English did you study any other languages? 
• Do you have any professional or personal projects that are going to be pitch-worthy?

[Slide 4]

2. Introduction to the reading task  – use the same background Image above

2.1 Reading for general information: skimming.

• Interaction:  S-S / Ss-S (pairs or trios)
• Timing: 10′
• Monitoring: Teacher walks around the room listening to students’ contributions and making note of important points to be discussed in the feedback part of the lesson.
• Feedback: Teacher provides ss with feedback on vocabulary and pronunciation.

Ask students:

• How do you think this man is able to do this?
• How was this picture taken?

After students discuss these questions, they will read the article on page 27 and check their answers.

Check with the whole group.

Find the article here: Daring, Defiant and Free

  2.2  Reading for detailed information – scanning (working with vocabulary).

• Interaction:  S-S / Ss-S (pairs or trios)
• Timing: 20′
• Monitoring: Teacher walks around the room listening to students’ contributions and making note of important points to be discussed in the feedback part of the lesson.
• Feedback: Teacher provides ss with feedback on vocabulary and pronunciation.

Have the following words on the board. Students will do as they did with the video, but now going back and re-reading the article. They have to find these words in context and decide what they mean.

• clinging to
• as thin as a coin
• ripples
• free soloing
• glass-slick slab
• smear (verb)
• stunned
• dangling (like a spider)

2.3  Using the vocabulary in context. 

• Interaction:  S-S / Ss-S (pairs or trios)
• Timing: 15′
• Monitoring: Teacher walks around the room listening to students’ contributions and making note of important points to be discussed in the feedback part of the lesson.
• Feedback: Teacher provides ss with feedback on vocabulary and pronunciation.

After you checked the meaning of each word and their use, students can have a freer practice. Here they can create the questions they are going to ask their peers. Just remind them it should the around the topic of the lesson, when possible.

Or, you can have more questions for them:

• If it were you dangling from a rock, who would be the first person you would think of? 
• Do you prefer reading books as thin as a coin or the biggest ones?
• How would you describe the feeling of free soloing?
• When was the last time you felt stunned?

[Slide 5] Have the last 3 minutes to round-off, check the vocabulary they have acquired and re-visit the topic of the lesson.

 

 

The Oscars fiasco (a conversation lesson) 90′

Today’s lesson will focus on the Oscars major ‘best picture’ goof-up. I will be using an article and videos from The Guardian/youtube. This is a 90′ minute conversation lesson for upper-advanced students (EF: C1). Targeted age: 17 – on.

The topic of the lesson: The Oscars goof-up!

[Slide 1] The picture below can be used as a background image to incite students to what is to come. 

1. Introducing the main topic

• Interaction: (s-s) Pairs or (s-ss) trios
• Timing: 10′
• Monitoring: T walks around the room giving support to the groups of students, helping with what is needed and making notes of important language or language to improve to be used at the next stage.
• Feedback: Board important language items.

Ask students the following questions:

• Are you a regular Oscar fan?
• Have you watched all the films presented at the Oscars 2017?
• Are you more bound to watch the films or read the books?
• Did you become acquainted with what happened at the Oscars 2017 (that took place this last Sunday, Feb, 26th)

[Slide 2] Use the same picture (above) as the background image.

2. Developing the main topic 1 (video task)

• Interaction: (s-s) Pairs or (s-ss) trios
• Timing: 20′
• Monitoring: T walks around the room giving support to the groups of students, helping with what is needed and making notes of important language or language to improve to be used at the next stage.
• Feedback: Board important language items.

Ss watch the video of what happened (even if they saw it on Sunday or afterwards) to gain vocabulary:

Vocabulary to be focused on from video:

• goof-up
• unfolded
• handle (a situation)
• cue card
• Twitterati (which, btw, can be already found in the oxford dictionaries: https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/twitterati)

Questions to be asked to ss about the video: 

• If it had been you getting the wrong prize, how would you have reacted to that terrible goof-up? 
• How has the ‘La La Land’ cast handled the situation?
• What happened to the cue card?
• What have you gathered from the last Twitterati‘s post shown on the video?

[Slide 3] Use the same picture (above) as the background image.

3. Developing the main topic 2 (video task)

• Interaction: (s-s) Pairs or (s-ss) trios
• Timing: 10′
• Monitoring: T walks around the room giving support to the groups of students, helping with what is needed and making notes of important language or language to improve to be used at the next stage.
• Feedback: Board important language items.

Next ss watch a video of Jimmy Kimmel (this year’s presenter) explaining the mix-up. Include this image to the slide: 

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/video/2017/feb/28/who-had-the-card-jimmy-kimmel-explains-oscars-mix-up-video

Basically, it goes: Jimmy Kimmel, the host of one of the most eventful Oscars ceremonies in History, explains how the best film fiasco took place. One day after the debacle at the Dolby Theatre that resulted in La La Land being awarded Moonlight’s best picture Oscar, Kimmel told the audience of his own show that ‘the accountants gave Warren the wrong card and they apologised for it today, so it wasn’t Warren Beatty’s fault.’ Kimmel explained that Beatty was given the best actress envelope, and that is how the epic confusion arose.

Work with:

• debacle
• take lace

[Slide 4] Use the same picture (above) as the background image.

4. Reading task 1 – reading for gist (skimming)

Text can be found here:

the-guardian-on-the-oscars-2017

• Interaction: Reading = individually / discussion = (s-s) Pairs or (s-ss) trios
• Timing: 20′
• Monitoring: T walks around the room giving support to the groups of students, helping with what is needed and making notes of important language or language to improve to be used at the next stage.
• Feedback: Board important language items.

Gist questions:

• Whose mistake was it really?
• Who is PwC? For how long have they been working with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science? 

5. Reading task 2 – reading for specific purposes (scanning)

• Interaction: Re-reading = individually / discussion = (s-s) Pairs or (s-ss) trios
• Timing: 15′
• Monitoring: T walks around the room giving support to the groups of students, helping with what is needed and making notes of important language or language to improve to be used at the next stage.
• Feedback: Board important language items.

Ask ss to re-read the article and work on the bold lexis. They can either use a dictionary. You can give the meanings for them to match. It’s your decision.

• apologised (call ss attention to the BrE with “s”)
• debacle (has already been discussed)
• breaches
• unprecedented
• squarely
• wings (of the stage)
• rectified 
• gaffe
• punchlines
• probe
• under a bus
• prank
• Bed Bath and Beyond 

6. Reading task 3 – Follow-up

• Interaction: Re-reading = individually / discussion = (s-s) Pairs or (s-ss) trios
• Timing: 5′
• Monitoring: T walks around the room giving support to the groups of students, helping with what is needed and making notes of important language or language to improve to be used at the next stage.
• Feedback: Board important language items.

Ask ss:

• After the mistake had been made, what would you have done to correct it (if you were working or PwC?)
•  If you were Dunaway and Beatty (a.k.a Bonny and Clyde) how would you have reacted at that time?

6. Wrap-up (5′):

Revisit the topic of the lesson and the vocabulary acquired.

The Oscars goof-up!