talking about STEREOTYPES (again...)

I found the subject of STEREOTYPES not only appealing but also useful for practicing various structures. In the previous lesson concerning this topic I aimed at introducing TEND TO or HAVE A TENDENCY as alternative to unfair and rather harmful straight ahead language in opinion giving, such as "Americans love guns." which I altered with "Americans tend to love guns." This time I decided to focus on STEREOTYPES about my students' nationality (obviously I had my doubts about their reaction but they were more than happy to discuss their own vices and virtues) and a fixed phrase JUST BECAUSE... DOESN'T MEAN THAT... Enjoy.

GRAMMAR

Explain the way we use the expression JUST BECAUSE... DOESN'T MEAN THAT...

Although [A] happened, [B] will not necessarily happen as a result.

• JUST BECAUSE you study hard DOESN’T MEAN THAT you will pass the test.
• JUST BECAUSE we lost this match DOESN’T MEAN THAT we’ll lose the next one.
• JUST BECAUSE I was late yesterday DOESN’T MEAN THAT I'll be late tomorrow.

[A] is true, but [B] is not necessarily true as a result.

• JUST BECAUSE your mother is angry at you DOESN’T MEAN THAT she doesn’t love you.
• JUST BECAUSE I'm a girl DOESN’T MEAN THAT I'm sentimental.
• JUST BECAUSE it’s Saturday DOESN’T MEAN THAT you have to sleep late.

 We may also add NECESSARILY to the sentence.

JUST BECAUSE you think you are a good worker DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN THAT you should be paid more.

GRAMMAR PRACTICE
Change these sentences to JUST BECAUSE... DOESN'T MEAN THAT... (the first one is done for you).

1. Evan had a steak for lunch, but he might not be full.
Just because Evan had a steak for lunch doesn’t mean that he’s full.

2. I didn’t answer my cell phone, but this doesn’t mean that I didn’t want to talk to you.
3. You should quit smoking even if you’re healthy.
4. You think you’re smart but some people may think otherwise.
5. He’s not a criminal even though he’s black and wears a hoodie and baggy jeans.
6. My room may be dirty but I am in fact an organized person.

SPEAKING PRACTICE

Each student receives a sentence representing one of stereotypes others may have about his/her country. The students are to decide if they are true or false, and justify their answer.

My students are Turkish so I've searched the Internet for stereotypes about Turkey. Here's a sample list.

• Turkish people have big families.
• Every Turkish woman wears a headscarf.
• Turkish people all have got black hair and dark skin.
• They buy only Mercedes or BMW.
• Turkey is a strict Muslim country with Islamic law.
• Turkish people are uneducated.
• Men are dominant, women have to listen to their husbands and stay at home.
• Turkish men are lazy.
• Turkish men are allowed  to have many wives.
• The country is unsafe.
• Everyone wears a fez and has a moustache.

VIDEO
The students watch a short video on their motherland and discuss what they've learnt from it. they are free to use the freshly learnt expression JUST BECAUSE... DOESN'T MEAN THAT...

Turkey in 2 minutes

talking about STEREOTYPES

It's been a considerably long time since I shared anything with you. But I'm back with new ideas. This time it's a conversation lesson on STEREOTYPES. Well, I've managed to sneak a little grammar in it as well by introducing an alternative to strong statements typical of expressing STEREOTYPES. Hope you'll enjoy it.

WARM-UP

A STEREOTYPE is a generalized view or popular belief on a particular group of people, usually inaccurate and sometimes offensive.

Look at the statements below. How accurate do you think these stereotypes are?

1. Italian people eat pasta on a daily basis.
2. Germans are hard working and never complain.
3. The French are the most romantic people. 
4. Americans are fat because they love fast food and never exercise.

Explain that the language used in the statements above is rather offensive and too general. Instead of putting those opinions like the above we may use a "softer" version.

Italian people TEND TO eat pasta on a daily basis. 

(Many Italians eat pasta on a daily basis but not all of them.)

Germans TEND TO be hard working and never complain. 

(While some Germans are hard working and never complain, many are lazy and grumpy.)

The French HAVE A TENDENCY to be very romantic. 

(Some French are romantic but some are not.)

Americans HAVE A TENDENCY to be fat because they love fast food and never exercise. 

(It's not true that all Americans are fat, love fast food and never exercise. Many are fit and lead a healthy lifestyle.)

GRAMMAR PRACTICE/SPEAKING
Give your opinion on the nationalities below using TEND TO or HAVE A TENDENCY. Remember about the grammar rule about them.

• TEND TO + V1
• HAVE A TENDENCY + V1

Russians * Thais * Arabs * Americans * the Chinese

SPEAKING

Stereotypes are not only about nationality but also about race, gender, age or religion. 

Watch the slideshow and and finish the sentences expression your views. Justify your choice. 

talking about past with USED TO

USED TO is not the easiest English structure for the students to understand since is may be absent in their native language. I usually practice this structure talking about childhood memories or habits that changed over the years, and finish off with a discussion about civilisations development. Here is a simple activity the latter.

SPEAKING

Prepare some sentences comparing past and present, cut them into two parts and hand out whichever part you wish to the students. their task is to either start the sentence using USED TO or finish it with PRESENT SIMPLE TENSE (depending which part of the sentence you decide to hand out).

- People used to write letters to each other...

...but now they communicate by social media.  

- People used to count with abacuses...
...but now we have calculators and computers.
- Children used to go to work to earn money for the family...
...but now they go to school.
- We used to grow gardens for food...
...but now we buy fruit and vegetables in supermarkets. 
- People used to travel in horse carriages...
....but now we have cars and motorbikes.
- People used to keep food fresh under ground or in caves...
....but now we have fridges.
- People used to tell each other stories for fun...
...but now they watch TV and movies.
- Women used to wear long dresses...
...but now many women wear jeans.
- People used to tell the time with the sun...
...but now we use watches and clocks.

Next show the students a slidshow with pictures BEFORE and AFTER concerning different aspects of everyday life and ask them to form sentences with USED TO for the past and PRESENT SIMPLE for the present. Here is an example that you may find useful.

using RELATIVE CLAUSES for definitions

Pf, I was away for too long! Time to share some new exercises.

I like lessons that explore areas familiar to students. Their culture, traditions, everyday subject. One such lesson is on RELATIVE CLAUSES. After a detailed grammar introduction I usually ask the students to give some definitions to specific words. Here are 3 of such activities that seem like fun to me.

SPEAKING

Answer the following questions using relative clauses. Give several examples to each questions.

What is a/an/-
smartphone?                corkscrew?          key?            envelope?      tiger?                

canary?                        torch?                  emu?           bear?             summer?

St. Valentine’s Day?    September?         5 o’clock?     Monday?       evening?

Sacrifice Holiday?        Children’s Day?   childhood?   4^th of July?    New York?

Istanbul?                      Beijing?                Paris?

Who is/was 

Mick Jagger?        Charles Darwin?   Albert Einstein?      Barak Obama?     Napoleon

SPEAKING

Ask the students to make definitions to some words you are sure they don't know. They are suppose to use relative clauses as their answers (my examples require the use of which/that). Let them have some fun deducing the meaning. My top examples of the new words are as follows (of course you're free to choose any you like).

a straitjacket

a loony

a mongrel

a mitten

a see-saw

a shortbread

an onlooker 

SPEAKING

Prepare a pile of cards with words connected with the culture and traditions of the country your students are from. Put the cards with words face down. each student takes one card and tries to explain it to the rest of the class using relative clauses. My students are from Turkey so I use words such as:

simit
Atatürka

künefe

arabesk

Zeki Muren

Ramadan

şalgam

Anıtkabir etc.

talking about SAVING ENERGY

On March the 30th an inexplicable and rather annoying event took place in Turkey. Namely, countries' worst BLACKOUT in last 15 years. Believe it or not, it inspired me to prepare a lesson on energy deficiency and ways to save power. I discovered that it would also be a good excuse to practice giving reasons in English. Hope you like it.

WARM UP

What can you do during a blackout? Give some examples.

GRAMMAR

When you give reasons you are simply answering the question WHY? The most popular way to do it, is to use BECAUSE.

e.g. Why did you leave the party so early? I left the party early BECAUSE I felt ill.

BECAUSE + a subject +  verb

I left the party early BECAUSE I (a subject) felt (a verb) ill.

However there are many other ways to give reasons. Look at the examples.

BECAUSE OF + (my, your, his, her, its, our, their) a noun

DUE TO

OWING TO

ON ACCOUNT OF

BECAUSE OF + (my, your, his, her, its, our, their) verb + -ing

DUE TO the fact that

OWING TO the fact that

ON ACCOUNT OF the fact that

e.g. Why did he lose the race?

He lost the race BECAUSE OF (his) having (a verb + -ing) an accident with another bicycle.

He lost the race BECAUSE OF a knee injury (a noun).
He lost the race DUE TO the fact that he was too slow.

In everyday English we may also use:

FOR THE SIMPLE REASON THAT + subject + verb

FOR THE SIMPLE FACT THAT + subject + verb

e.g. Why didn’t you respond to my message?

Sorry, I couldn’t respond to your message FOR THE SIMPLE REASON THAT my phone credit was over.

I didn't respond to your message FOR THE SIMPLE FACT THAT I was busy. 

CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING

The teacher gives each students a problem card. Their task is to give reasons to the problems described. 

• All of the lights in the house went out.
• The tree in my back yard suddenly fell.
• There is no pie left in the fridge.
• A scientist received the Nobel Prize.
• One of my friends broke his leg.
• The dog bit my leg.
• I’ve missed the bus again!
• The taxi driver had an accident.
• The ceiling in my house fell down.
• Panda in our ZOO died yesterday.
• I didn’t understand what he said.
• We don’t feel well.
• The plane crashed to the ground.
• The temperatures this summer hit record high.
• The number of bees is quickly decreasing.
• Shopping gets more expensive every year.
• I lost my job.
• Traffic police stopped me for control. 

SPEAKING

Answer the questions.

• What are the reasons for blackouts?
• What are their consequences?

READING

Read the short text and find the synonyms of the words below in the text. Then use it in the sentences.

BLACKOUT * FIRST * MIXED * OLD * RELAX * STEALING

Do you recall the famous 2003 New York City blackout?

When the lights went out on August 14, 2013 - less than two years after the September 11th attacks - New Yorkers INITIALLY ¹(___________)feared terrorism. Their concerns were however quickly RELIEVED ²(___________)when Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that the blackout was actually caused by a massive power OUTAGE ³(___________)across the Northeast.

Old power lines, summer heat, overgrown trees, OUTDATED ⁴(___________) equipment, and human error had all COMBINED 5(___________) for one of the largest outages in history. 50 million people in the U.S. and Canada were without power. Different than the blackout of 1977, New York City crime and LOOTING ⁶(___________) were not the problem. In fact, police reported less crime during the 2003 blackout than during the same time in 2002.

a.    ______________ I liked the job very much but it soon got boring.

b.    During the last year’s street protest many shops were ______________.

c.    Modern time inventions are getting ______________ very quickly.

d.    The two organizations ______________ to form one company.

e.    This ______________ lasted around 14 hours and was the longest in history.

f.     This pill should ______________ your pain for few hours.

VIDEO

Watch the video and fill in each blank in the text below with TWO words.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhcZQmt6Spo

Each of these balloons represents ¹_______________ of carbon pollution. You can’t see it but we produce carbon pollution ²_______________ we use power. The average New South Wales home produces about 160,000 balloons ³_______________. Finding simple ways to reduce the amount of power we use ⁴_______________turning appliances off at the wall and switching to energy efficient lightning, will not only lower power bills but reduce our impact on the environment. The little things that we can all do, can make a ⁵_______________. What can you do in your world?

Answer the final question of the video: What can you do in your world to save energy?

talking about DISABILITIES

Today's lesson explores the subject of DISABILITIES. It doesn't cover much of grammar content but allows to practice proper words and expressions that should be use when talking about disabled people and provokes a discussion on their rights, difficulties and merits to society. Hope it may prove helpful to you.

WARM UP

What are some types of disabilities that you know?
________________     ________________     ________________
________________     ________________     ________________

Did you ever know someone with a disability?

VOCABULARY

Here are some proper expressions that you should use regarding disabled people.

Fill in the blanks in the sentences with words given.

born * disabled * hear * learning * move * psychic * see * speak

• A person with a disability is ____________.
• People who can’t ____________ are mute or non-vocal.
• People who can’t ____________ are blind or visually-impaired.
• People who can’t ____________ are deaf or hearing-impaired. 
• People who can’t ____________ well have a mobility disability or a physical disability.
• People who have trouble ____________ have a learning disability.
• People who were ____________ with disability have an intellectual disability or are developmentally disabled.
• People with ____________ problems have a psychiatric disability or mental illness.

Now use some of the underlined expressions from the previous exercise in the sentences below.

1.    My neighbour is _______________ so she uses a help of a guide dog.

2.    _______________ people use sign language for communication.

3.    A person who uses a wheelchair likely has a _______________.

4.    Parents of _______________ kids need more support.

5.    Schizophrenia is a type of _______________.

READING

Choose the best option. Then answer the questions about the text.

The International Day of Persons with Disabilities happens every year. It highlights problems for millions of people around the world struggle EVERYDAY / DAYTIME. It started in 1992 and every year it focuses on a DIFFERENCE / DIFFERENT subject. In 2008 for example, the theme was ON / AT dignity and justice for those with disabilities. Organizers act in many ways to increase awareness, including organizing events, workshops and campaigns in support OF / ON the day.

More than 650 million people across the globe live with disabilities. In richer nations, there are very good support systems for the disabled. However, in POVERTY / POORER nations, people with disabilities are further disabled by a LACKING / LACK of help, medicines and rights. There is a very strong link between poverty and disability. The situation is also TRAGICALLY / TRAGIC for children. UNESCO says 90% of children with disabilities in developing countries do not go to school. It is important we RECOGNITION / RECOGNIZE the rights and dignity of people with disabilities.

VIDEO

• What do you feel when you see a disabled person?
• If you see or meet a disabled person, what actions should you take?
• What can you do to help handicapped people?

Watch a short instruction video. What are the advices given by disabled people in the video? Fill in the blanks. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gv1aDEFlXq8

- focus on a ________ not the disability.

- focus on a signing person not the ________ or their ________.

- before you help, please ________ first.

- touch the assisting devices and ________ only with permission.

- if you’re not sure what to do, just ________.

DISCUSSION POINTS

•  What daily problems do you think wheelchair users have in your town?
•  How are disabled people treated in your country?
•   What problems do people with disabilities face in your country?
•  Do disabled people have anything of value to add to society?
• What can disabled people teach those without disabilities?
• What role models with a disability do you know of?
• Do you think science will be able to end disability one day?

talking about MEMORY

How good is your memory? How would you feel if were unable to remember what you've just done? There a plenty of questions that could be asked during a lesson on memory. I've prepared an advanced lesson integrating reading, listening, writing and speaking. It also allows to practice some new vocabulary and introduces idioms connected with the subject of memories and remembering. To make the lesson less serious you may play memory game with the students using any vocabulary previously taught. Enjoy.

READING

Read the article and decide if the sentences below are TRUE or FALSE.

Are cell phones dumbing down the humans? According to a new study out of Britain, the answer is "yes." Too much RELIANCE on technology has reduced our brain power, and we can measure it.

The research REVEALED that most citizens in Britain have to remember five passwords, five pin numbers, two number plates, three security ID numbers, and three bank account numbers--quite a lot to just managed life on a daily basis! To do this, most people use only one or two passwords. This results in POTENTIAL security problems for the average person. Cell phones and other memory devices offer a solution to all the numbers and codes the average person has to remember. Scientists STATED that people are relying too much on devices for their memory. And the less you use your memory, the poorer it becomes.

The study discovered that 1/4 of all Britons couldn't give their home phone number when asked. What's more, only 1/3 of those SURVEYED could remember more than three birthdays of their IMMEDIATE family members.

The study divided the results into groups. About 1/3  under the age of 30 couldn't RECALL their home phone numbers without using a cell phone. In the same group only 40% could provide important dates, such as birthdays or anniversaries, for family members. For those over 50, 87% could remember details on family. The study also showed that 58% believed it impossible to remember numbers and codes they use every day.

T / F     According to the article, cell phones are making humans stupid.

T / F     People can't remember numbers well because they have so many passwords.

T / F     If you don't use your memory, it becomes poor.

T / F     Most people in Britain don't know their home phone number.

T / F     Older people couldn't remember numbers and codes as well as young people.

Match words from the text with their synonyms.

close               ______________           remember        ______________

dependence     ______________           say                  ______________

possible          ______________           show               ______________

question          ______________

Can you remember those?

your boyfriend/girlfriend birthday                      your dad's (or mom's) birthday

your parent's anniversary                                  your sibling’s birthday  

DISCUSSION POINTS

•          How many birthdays, anniversaries, and other important dates can you remember? How about numbers?
•          Has your cell phone helped or harmed your life? Why?
•          What can you do to improve memory?
•          Could you live without your cell phone?

VIDEO

Watch a video about a man who has a thirty second memory and the impact this has upon his life. Answer the questions below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vwigmktix2Y

How long ago did he lose his memory? __________________________

How long does his memory work?        __________________________

What celebration is his wife talking about?__________________________

Which celebration he mixes it with?       __________________________

What is he saying about doctors?         __________________________

Apart from the difficulties shown on the video, what other difficulties do you think Clive would have on a day to day basis?

Why do you think he can play the piano despite his condition?

WRITING

Write about memories your most vivid memories for 10 minutes.

FIRST MEMORY ______________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

SCARY MEMORY _____________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

HAPPY MEMORY _____________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

IDIOMS, EXPRESSIONS AND PHRASES

a trip down memory lane – to remember some of the happy things that you did in the past

commit something to memory – to memorise something

if my memory serves me correctly – if I have remembered correctly

to jog someone’s memory – to stimulate someone’s memory to recall something

to have a memory/mind like a sieve – to be very bad at remembering things

to refresh your memory – to help you remember something

asking INDIRECT QUESTIONS

Personally, I really enjoy teaching INDIRECT QUESTIONS since they lift students proficiency into a whole new level. However, this grammar structure may cause some troubles to students who are used to a typical word order in English questions. I'd like to share two activities on INDIRECT QUESTIONS: one is matching the questions to answers, and another a question asking game which is also good for practising WORK vocabulary

SPEAKING
The students are divided into two teams. In each round the teacher is giving an answer to one team and one member of the team must come up with a correct question. Then with the help of his team fellows transform it into an indirect question. For each correct question the team gets 1 point so they can earn 2 points in each round - one for a wh-question and a second one for the indirect question. 

Some examples of possible answers:

• I usually arrive home from school at 6 p.m.
• I wear sunglasses and shorts in summer.
• I never stay up late.
• My family lives in a bungalow.
• My favourite day of the week is Saturday.
• My neighbour always says "Good morning" to me.
• I lost my wallet on the bus.
• My dog ate my homework.
• Police gave me a ticket for speeding.
• I can speak Russian.
• I graduated from university two years ago.
• She is my sister.
• I used to work in a 5-star hotel.
• I was watering the garden when you called me.
• You should buy her some flowers.
• It's $20.
• I will visit Australia next July.
• He failed an Geography exam.
• I have won a lottery twice this year.
• I don’t eat strawberries because of my allergy.
• I think football is boring.
• I didn’t go to school yesterday because I was unwell.
• I’m a nanny because I love children.
• The station is right behind you.
• I read books in my spare time.
• I’m a fan of rock music.

SPEAKING 

The teacher prepares cards with names of different occupations and put them on a table words down. One student draws a card and keeps it a secret. Other students should ask INDIRECT YES/NO QUESTIONS in order to guess the occupation, e.g. 

Can you tell me if you work inside? 

I wonder if you are a woman. 

Would you mind telling me if you earn much?

I can't remember if you travel a great deal.

Some examples of occupations:

• A BAKER
• A POLICE OFFICER
• A SHOP ASSISTANT
• A TEACHER
• A MECHANIC
• A DENTIST
• A CHEF
• A WAITER
• A FLIGHT ATTENDANT
• A PHOTOGRAPHER
• A SECRETARY
• A DRIVER
• A MUSICIAN
• A MAIL CARRIER
• A MINER
• A CARPENTER

asking WHAT IF...? questions

Practising SECOND CONDITIONAL structure is a good excuse to talk with your students about their dreams and wishes but also to ask some most ridiculous WHAT IF...? questions which is always fun for me. Here is a short lesson plan how to do that. You start up with a simple grammar revision to make sure the students understand the structure and its usage. Then you follow to the speaking part. Enjoy.

WARM UP

Finish the sentences.

1. If we had an umbrella, ……………………………………………..
2. If I were taller, ……………………………………………………..
3. We would win the championship …………………………………..
4. She would buy herself a castle ……………………………………..
5. I would go on a diet ………………………………………………...
6. If you found a wallet plenty of money in the street, ……………….
7. The teacher would explain the lesson again, ……………………….
8. Would he speak English better …………………………………….?
9. I'd send you a postcard …………………………………………......
10. If I weren't so shy, …………………………………………………..             

DISCUSSION POINTS

You may start by asking some question to the whole group, gathering some answers and discussing them, e.g. 

• What would you do if a policeman arrested you?
• What would you do if you saw an elephant at your door?
• What would you do if you woke up as an old person?
• What would you do if you were the president of your country?

Then you may ask individual students to answer each one a different questions. You may also prepare the questions on separate pieces of paper and ask students to draw lots.

• What would you do if you could be invisible for a day?
• What would you do if you had 1 million dollars?
• What would you do if you could fly?
• What would you do if you saw a ghost in your bedroom?
• What would you do if you had a spaceship?
• What would you do if you saw a bear in the forest?
• What would you do if you could go anywhere you want?
• What would you do if you could be as small as an ant?
• What would you do if you were a superhero?
• What would you do if you were in an earthquake?
• What would you do if you could speak fluent English?
• What would you do if you had just one day to live?
• What would you do if you could hear other people's thoughts?
• What would you do if a stranger asked you to marry him/her?
• What would you do if you were very fat?
• What would you do if you could live forever?
• What would you do if you saw a building on fire?
• What would you do if you had one extra hour everyday?
• What would you do if there were no mobile phones in the world?
• What would you do if there were no electricity in the world?
• What would you do if a snake came out of your toilet?
• What would you do if you were bald?