DEVELOPINGTEACHERS.COM - WEEKLY TEACHING TIP - 28th April 2008
BOOKS RECOMMENDATIONS - a few listening skills books
Practical English Usage M.Swan (Oxford)
Amazon.com:
Amazon.co.uk:
Amazon.ca:
Common Errors in English Usage - P.Brians (William James & Company)
Amazon.com:
Amazon.co.uk:
Amazon.ca:
Working With Words - R.Gairns & S.Redman (CUP)
Amazon.com:
Amazon.co.uk:
Amazon.ca:
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Excellent software from Tony Buzan, the inventor of the mind map.
To download the trial version of the excellent mind mapping
software & to find out more:
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TEACHING TIP
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Kiss me, Hardy
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You have surely got the idea that we really like lessons that are
relevant to what's going on in the world at large, one reason for
the emphasis on the special Days, apart from making what to put
in the Tip a little easier! But this last one that HM sent me
does seem to be pushing the limits a bit. It's National Kissing
Day in the UK on 28th April. This was dreamed up by a dental
insurance company, & seems to work, in that it is known & gains
more publicity for the company.
So it seems as if anyone can start a Day. What would you choose?
National Nosepicking Day?
But should we take this Kissing Day on? I presume you've got to
go round actually kissing people. Apart from not really wanting
to get within half a metre of 99% of the people I meet, let alone
kiss them, it would be a fairly unhygienic way to spend the day,
depending on the type of kiss of course, or maybe not.
Anyway, why not, it's as good any other theme & gets us away from
the staple diet of travel, shopping, describing people etc... the
usual stuff in coursebooks. So, in the interests of world harmony
(!) here are some lesson ideas.
- To get the ball rolling with some visuals - do a quick search
in Google Images:
'The Kiss by the Hotel de Ville', by Robert Doisneau, which has
been described as the most famous photograph of all time.
'The Kiss', the famous Rodin sculpture. 'The Kiss' by Man Ray.
The famous Life Magazine photograph taken by Alfred Eisenstaedt
on V-Day in Times Square. Show the students & get reactions.
Give one to each student & their partner guesses the content, or
the holder describes to their partner.
- I'm sure you diidn't want to know - the longest recorded kiss
took place in New York City on December 5, 2001, between Louisa
Almedovar and Rich Langley. It lasted 30 hours, 59 minutes and 27
seconds. Yuck!
- Start with some aspect of kissing - the photos above, introduce
the idea of the Day, see what they think, & then move on to
different nationality customs when greeting. e.g.which cheek do
you begin with when giving the two-cheek kiss?
And then on to other gestures used, comparing them to other
nationalities.
- Related vocab: kiss, kiss of life/death, air kiss, blow a kiss,
kiss better, kiss & tell, kiss goodbye etc...
- Little did Nelson know that amongst his victories, he would
also be remembered for his famous line 'Kiss me, Hardy'. For the
attempted cover up & explanation:
- For the younger learner 'Sleeping Beauty' is the obvious choice
for that famous kiss.
Wikipedia's page on kissing:
- In the film 'Casablanca', the song 'As Time Goes By', sung by
Dooley Wilson (the only person in the film to have actually been
to Casablanca & purportedly ripped off for his performance,
receiving only $150 of the agreed $500) talks of the kiss. The
content's even more relevant today & if you've got the film to
use all the better. Should go down well in class.
As Time Goes By...
This day and age we're living in
Gives cause for apprehension
With speed and new invention
And things like fourth dimension
Yet we get a trifle weary
With Mr. Einstein's theory
So we must get down to earth at times
Relax relieve the tension
And no matter what the progress
Or what may yet be proved
The simple facts of life are such
They cannot be removed
You must remember this
A kiss is still a kiss, a sigh is just a sigh
The fundamental things apply
As time goes by
And when two lovers woo
They still say, "I love you"
On that you can rely
No matter what the future brings
As time goes by
Moonlight and love songs
Never out of date
Hearts full of passion
Jealousy and hate
Woman needs man
And man must have his mate
That no one can deny
Well, it's still the same old story
A fight for love and glory
A case of do or die
The world will always welcome lovers
As time goes by
Oh yes, the world will always welcome lovers
As time goes by
Ideas on using the song - anything but a gap fill!
- look at the vocab - is there any crucial vocab you need to pre-
teach? Would it be too much for lower levels or could they get
the general idea?
- simply play for pleasure - what did they think? Could be
connected with a viewing over several lessons of the film.
- put eight key words on the board, students predict & then
listen to verify.
- straightforward listening procedure - give a simple extensive
task: what's it about > play > compare in pairs > feedback > more
intensive task: What's the attitude to the present? What does the
singer feel we need? etc.. > play > compare in pairs>
feedback....
- cut up every 3/4 lines, students put in order & listen to
verify.
- Kissing tips & facts from About.com - stuff for your teenagers: