January 22, 2012

Blue Bird

 

Language level: Upper intermediate(B2.1)- Advanced (B2.2)

Learner type: Mature teens; adults

Time: 60 minutes

Activity: Watching a short film; creating a verse of a poem; listening to a poem

Topic: Poetry

Language: Language of drudgery of everyday life

Materials: Short film, video, Wordle and poem

Downloadable materials: Blue Bird lesson plan instructions      Blue Bird Charles Bukowski

Overview

This activity is designed around a short film inspired by a poem by Charles Bukowski. Students watch the short film and write a verse of poetry inspired by the short film. Students then listen and read the poem. For homework they find out information about the life of the poet.

Step 1

Write poetry on the board. Ask your students to name some poets who they like. Ask them if they can recite any lines of poetry in their language.

Step 2

Tell your students that they are going to watch a short film which was inspired by a poem. Show them the film and ask them to say what story they think the film tells. Also ask them to suggest any words which they think might be in the poem.

After watching the film put students in pairs and ask them to discuss the story and come up with vocabulary they think might be in the poem.

Get feedback from your students.

 

Step 3

Show students the Wordle below which has been created using the most frequent words in the poem. Go through the vocabulary.

Step 4

Put your students into small groups and tell them that you would like them to try to write a verse of the poem using some of the words in the Wordle. Give them the first line of the poem:

there’s a bluebird in my heart that
wants to get out

Ask them to continue the first verse. Give them 5 minutes to write the first verse. After 5 minutes ask a spokesperson from each group to read out their verse.

Step 5

Tell your students they are going to listen to the poet reading his poem. Play the video but do not show the images. They should try to understand the poem. After listening to the poem put students into pairs and ask them to discuss the poem for 3 minutes. After 3 minutes get feedback from the whole class.

Step 6

Give the students the poem and ask them to read it. Get them to read the poem and listen to it at the same time. Then ask them what the poem is about.

Blue Bird

there’s a bluebird in my heart that
wants to get out
but I’m too tough for him,
I say, stay in there, I’m not going
to let anybody see
you.
there’s a bluebird in my heart that
wants to get out
but I pour whiskey on him and inhale
cigarette smoke
and the whores and the bartenders
and the grocery clerks
never know that
he’s
in there.
there’s a bluebird in my heart that
wants to get out
but I’m too tough for him,
I say,
stay down, do you want to mess
me up?
you want to screw up the
works?
you want to blow my book sales in
Europe?
there’s a bluebird in my heart that
wants to get out
but I’m too clever, I only let him out
at night sometimes
when everybody’s asleep.
I say, I know that you’re there,
so don’t be
sad.
then I put him back,
but he’s singing a little
in there, I haven’t quite let him
die
and we sleep together like
that
with our
secret pact
and it’s nice enough to
make a man
weep, but I don’t
weep, do
you?

The poem is about our compulsion to hide and stifle our most tender and vulnerable selves underneath tough, controlled exteriors.

Step 7

Now show the video with pictures of Charles Bukowski

From the poem and the pictures they see in the second video ask the students what type of person they think the poet is and what type of life he has led.

Homework

Give your students the name of the poet: Charles Bukowski. Ask them to find out as much information as they can about his life and work. In the following class ask for information about the poet.

Charles Bukowski (1920 –1994) was an American poet, novelist and short story writer. He had a very troubled childhood and became an alcoholic at an early age. He wrote about the life of poor Americans, alcohol, prostitutes and the drudgery of everyday life.

I hope you enjoy the lesson.

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January 11, 2012

Hero

Language level: Intermediate(B1)- Advanced (B2.2)
Learner type: All ages
Time: 90 minutes
Activities: Watching short film and video; speculating; describing works of art; listening; answering comprehension questions; making own hero movie
Topics: Heroes; micro-art; inspiration
Language: Vocabulary related to super heroes; cartoon heroes; film stars etc.
Materials: Short film; TED video; pictures of micro-art; PowerPoint;

 

Downloadable materials: Hero lesson plan instructions     willard wigan micro-art slides     willard wigan comprehension questions

 

Overview

This lesson is designed around an astonishing short film by Miguel Endara in which he records himself painstakingly creating a portrait of his hero using 3.2 million ink dots. The lesson also looks at the smallest works of art in the world by micro-artist Willard Wigan and the theme of heroes. Students also get the chance to make their own movie with themselves as the hero.

Step 1

Put your students into pairs and them to discuss the following questions:

Do you have any heroes?

What do you admire about your hero?

What qualities does a hero have?

After 5 minutes get feedback.

Step 2

Tell your students they are going to watch a short film in which an artist creates a work of art of his hero using 3,213,000 dots. Ask your students what they think the work of art will look like and who the artist’s hero is.

Here is the final picture Miguel created of his hero, his father.

Step 3

Write up:

Films     Silent films     Boxing     Cartoons     Comics     Children’s films     Children’s books

Put your students in pairs and ask them to think of heroes in each category. Give them 3 minutes and then get feedback from all the class.

Step 4

Tell your students they are going to see heroes from each of the categories in Step 3 created by the artist Willard Wigan. Show them this photo of Willard Wigan, ask them what they think it is he creates and how he does it.

Show them the images below of works of art featuring heroes created by  Willard Wigan and ask your students to identify the heroes and say what is unusual  about Willard’s art.

Willard is a micro-sculptor who creates the smallest works of art in the world.

The heroes are: 1. Betty Boop 2. Marilyn Monroe 3. Barack Obama and his family 4. Elvis Presley 5. Mini Mouse 6. Mohamed Ali 7. Buzz Aldrin 8. Charlie Chaplin(on the end of an eyelash) 9. The Incredible Hulk 10. Peter Pan

You can also view the photos in this PowerPoint presentation:

You can also download the slides: willard wigan micro-art slides

Step 4

Tell your students they are going to watch a video in which Willard Wigan talks about his childhood and his work in a TED conference. Students should watch the video and  answer the comprehension questions in the Scrid document below. Play the video until 9.54 and pause when he shows the Huf Haus in close-up. You may like to show the video with subtitles which you choose on the TED player.

You can also download the compprehension questions: willard wigan comprehension questions

Optional follow up

You can make yourself the hero of a movie  which has become the most successful viral video in the history of the internet. The video is part of a campaign by the Swedish government to encourage people to pay their television license fee. The film is in English with Swedish subtitles. Here is an example of the film.

Here is how to make the movie:

1. Watch the movie which I have made in which I am the hero.

2. At the end of the movie there is a page where you can make your own movies.  Unfortunately the instructions are in Swedish not English, but it’s worth continuing as the results are fantastic. Simply  click on GOR EN EGEN FILM.

3. On the next page you have to choose a photo to use in the film. Click the VÁLJ BILD button to add your own photo from your computer or the ANVÁND WEBBKAMERAN button to add a photo using a webcam.

4. Once you’ve chosen the photo click the VIDARE button,  you see yourself as the hero in the movie.

5. At the end of the movie you can share a link through Facebook, Tweeter or email. You can also cut and paste the link. then you get a link to send to whoever you want.

When you’ve made your own movie you can show it to your students. I do it in the following way.

1. I write on the board:

“I have something to reveal to you.”

2. I ask students to speculate what I am going to reveal.

3. I then show them the movie. They are normally flabbergasted and really amazed.

4. I then explain how I made the movie and show them how they can make their own Hero movie for homework.

My students have really loved it, I’ve had students who’ve made movies of themselves, parents, brother and sisters, and friends.

I hope you enjoy the film, art work and lesson.

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January 2, 2012

Smile

Language level: Intermediate (B1) +

Learner type: Mature teens; Adults

Time: 90 minutes

Activity: Listening; speaking; reading

Topic: Smiling; optimism

Language: Optimistic vocabulary and expressions

Materials: 2 short films and TED video,video transcripts; PowerPoint presentation

Downloable materials: Smile instructions     School portrait dialogue     Smile everything is going to be OK slides     Ron Gutman video transcript

Overview

This lesson practises listening, speaking and reading. This optimistic lesson is designed around  a short film School Portrait by director Nick Scott  which tells the story of a jaded, cynical school photographer who tries to give each child a harsh vision of what their future will really look like, but a little girl with an infectious smile teaches him an important life lesson. The lesson also includes images from  a beautiful book Everything Is Going To Be OK which uses positive artwork from a variety of artists, graphic designers and illustrators.  I discovered the book on Maria Popova‘s wonderful Brainpickings. 

Step 1

Write School Portrait on the board and ask your students if they know what it means. If they don’t know explain that it is a photograph taken at school by a professional photographer. Ask your students if they have had an individual school portrait taken at their school. Ask about their experience. If you have your own school portrait show it to your students.

Ask your students if they can remember what the photographer said to them and how he encouraged them to smile.

Step 2

Tell your students that they are going to watch a short film called School Portrait. Ask them the following question:

How is the photographer different from a normal school photographer?

Step 3

Cut up the sentences which the photographer says in the School Portrait Dialogue Word document. Put students into small groups and give each group one set of sentences. Tell them they are going to watch the film again and that they have to put the photographer’s sentences into the correct order.

Check answers and get feedback.

School portrait dialogue

Check answers and get feedback.

Step 3

Put your students  in small groups and ask them to discuss what the message of the film is.

Step 4

The message of the film is that smiling and being optimistic is extremely important in life. Show students the images below taken from a beautiful book Everything Is Going To Be OK  . Ask them to discuss each image and its message.

You can also show the images using this PowerPoint presentation.

You can also download the slides: Smile everything is going to be OK slides

Follow up

Ask students if they know what an infectious smile is. Ask them if they know anyone with an infectious smile. Show them the photo below.

Ask your students the following questions:

Do you like this woman’s smile?

Does she smile a lot?

What kind of person do you think she is?

What kind of philosophy does she have about life?

What does she do?

Tell your students they are going to watch a short film about this woman. Ask them to watch the film and check their answers.


Homework

For homework give students the link to this TED video in which Ron Gutman talks about empirical research which shows how important smiling is in life.

Ask students to watch the video and make notes about research which shows that smiling has a positive effect on our lives.

Give students the transcript of the talk.

Ron Gutman video transcript

Check answers in the following class.

I hope you enjoy the films and the lesson.

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December 28, 2011

Film English Nominated for Macmillan Award

Film English has been nominated in the Macmillan Dictionary Love English Awards. If you like the site , you might like to vote . Voting closes on January 31st 2012 at midnight GMT.

Thanks for your support.

Kieran

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December 22, 2011

Film English Wins Edublog Award

This is just a short post to announce that Film English was the winner of the Best Individual Blog and runner-up in the Best Use of Media category in the 2011 Edublog Awards. I’d like to thank people who nominated Film English for the awards: Ann Foreman, Steve Muir, David Petrie, Phil Ward, Marga Carreras and Pascal Shaw. Many thanks as well to all the subscribers, fellow bloggers and teachers, and students who voted.

Thanks  for all your support.

Have a great Christmas and a very happy 2012.

Kieran

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December 19, 2011

Symmetry

Learner type: Secondary

Time: 60 minutes

Activity: Vocabulary activities, predicting and storytelling

Topic: Symmetry; parallels and contrasts

Language: Vocabulary (opposites and synonyms)

Materials: 2 short films; vocabulary worksheet

Downloadable materials: Symmetry lesson plan instructions     vocabulary activity 25 words

Overview

This lesson is based on 2 short  films which both reflect the concept of symmetry. The first film Symmetry by Everynone, is a fascinating split-screen short film which explores the poetic parallels and contrasts of our world — birth and death, heart and brain, darkness and light, masculinity and femininity. The second film Split Screen: A Love Story by James W. Griffiths which was shot with a Nokia mobile phone has a simple premise: two lovers wake up in different cities (New York and Paris) and set off on parallel journeys to meet each other. The lesson practises speaking, writing and vocabulary.

Step 1
 Write word dark on the board and ask your students what words they think complement it or oppose it.
Write the following words on the board:
 ketchup     fire     laugh     die     coins     analogical     old man     heart     zero     salt     bride     woman     big          end     paint       key     Pepsi     cookies     popcorn     rain     cop     cat     high tide     short     puddle
You can also show the 25 words using the Scribd document below.
You can also download this vocabulary worksheet: vocabulary activity 25 words
Put your students into pairs and ask them to come up with  words which complement or oppose  them. Get feedback from your students and discuss these opposing or complementary words.
Step 2
Tell students they are going to watch a short film in which the 25 words they have worked with in step 2 are visualised together with an opposing or complementary image.  They should watch the film and identify images which reflect the words and their opposing or complementary form.
Show your students the trailer of the film as an example. Ask them to identify which word is represented and which opposing or complementary form. Students should be able to identify the opposing concepts of light and  dark.
Step 3
Ask them to identify which words are represented and which opposing or complementary forms.
Step 4
Get feedback from your students and then watch again.
The words and their opposing or complementary form are:
the  start – the end
paint – brush
lock – key
milk – cookies
Coca-cola – Pepsi
popcorn – cinema
French fries – ketchup
salt – pepper
bride-groom
small (family) – big (family)
man – woman
girl – boy
cop – robber
cat – mouse
short (hair) – long (hair)
cloud – rain / puddle
low tide – high tide
zero – one
analogical – digital
note – coin
baby – old man
heart – brain
fire – ice
laugh – cry
birth – death
These words are also on the second page of the Scribd document above and in the downloadable vocabulary worksheet.
Step 5
Tell your students they are going to watch another split-screen short film which tells a story. Show them the split-screen image below from the start of the film and ask the following questions:
What can you see in the photos?
Where were the photos taken?
What story is the film going to tell?
Get your students to speculate about what story is going to be told in the film. Put them in small groups and give them 5 minutes to write a short narrative based on the film they’re going to watch. After 5 minutes ask one student from each group to read out their story.
Step 6
Show the film and compare the students’ stories with the narrative of the film.
I hope you enjoy the films and the lesson.

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December 11, 2011

Manifesto

This lesson is based on a short film The Holstee Manifesto: Lifecycle Video by Cooper Miller which is a call to action to live a life of creativity, passion, integrity and community. The film was commissioned by Hostee a design company founded on ethical principles. The lesson practises the imperative form, inspiring vocabulary, listening, reading and speaking.

Step 1

Write manifesto on the board, and ask your students what it means. After students have given their definitions give them this dictionary definition:

a written public statement declaring the intentions, motives, or views of   a government, group or individual

Ask your students if they can give any examples of manifestos.

Step 2

Tell your students they are going to watch a short film which explains a manifesto.

Pre-teach the following vocabulary:

to quit, to seize, to hug, to share, a bite

Ask students to answer the following questions:

What is the manifesto?

What values are mentioned in the manifesto?

Who wrote this manifesto?

After watching ask students to compare their answers in pairs and then get feedback from the whole class

Step 3

Tell your students that they are now going to listen and read the manifesto using a kinetic typography video, and they should check anything they didn’t understand while watching the film.

Ask your students the following questions:

What do you think of the manifesto?

What do you identify with personally?

What do you like about the manifesto?

Is there anything you don’t like?

Is it a good guide for life?

Is it too simplistic?

Step 4

Now show this image of the manifesto and ask students to read it.

Step 5

Explain to your students that this is The Holstee Manifesto written by Mike, Fabian and Dave when they set up Holstee an ethical design and clothing company. They sat down on the steps of Union Square in New York and wrote down exactly what they wanted from life and how to create a company that breathed that passion into the world everyday. The result became known as The Holstee Manifesto and has since been shared over 500,000 times and viewed over 60 million times online. The words of the manifesto resonate with many people throughout the world as a call to action to live a life full of creativity, passion and integrity.

Step 6

Tell your students you would like them to write their own manifestos to promote passionate, creative living. Put them into small  groups, and tell them to use The Holstee Manifesto as a model. They should use the imperative form and inspiring vocabulary and expressions. Give them 10 minutes to create drafts of their manifesto. After 10 minutes ask a spokesperson from each group to read out their manifesto. Ask students to comment on the manifestos.

Homework

Ask students to write their own personal manifesto which should be  a call to action to live a life of creativity, passion, integrity and community. Tell them they can use different colours and images in their manifestos.

I hope you enjoy the films and the lesson.

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December 8, 2011

My Favourite Animal

 

This lesson is based on a beautiful animated short film My Favourite Animal by Lara Lee , another short promotional film for the World Wildlife Fund The World is Where we Live. The lesson practises animal vocabulary, listening and speaking. It works particularly well with younger learners, but is also suitable for older learners.

Step 1 Warmer

As a warmer to introduce the theme of animals, tell your students they are going to do an animal A-Z. Ask one student to name an animal which begins with the letter A, then the next student has to name an animal beginning with the letter etc. until you’ve done the whole alphabet. Help students with more difficult letters.

Step 2

Ask your students what vocabulary they know related to different parts of animals. Elicit this vocabulary.

Pre-teach vocabulary which is the same for animals and humans. For example:

skin           leg          arms          head          face           ears          nose          mouth         eyes

Give some vocabulary which is used just for animals. For example:

fur          tail          mane          hoof          udder          fin          trunk          beak         wing         pouch

Step 3

Describe your favourite animal to your students using vocabulary in Step 2 but without naming the animal, they have to guess the animal. Put your students into pairs and tell them to describe their favourite animal without naming it.

Step 4

Tell your students they are going to listen to 3 children describing their favourite animals. Ask them to listen and write down the name of the animal and any words they understand which the child uses to describe the animal. Play the video with no images, so don’t turn the projector on. After listening ask your students to compare their answers.

Get feedback from your students. Students should mention some of the following information:

1. Nadia- a horse: a long nose, different colours, hoofs, mane, tail

2. Mia – a cow: black, white, brown, thin and round udders

3. Johnny- a kangaroo: does karate, hops, big ears, nose

Step 5

Now show the video to your students and ask them what they think of the children’s descriptions and the artist’s illustrations.

Step 6

Write  the following  question on the board:

If you could be an animal, which animal would you be?

Tell them to work in pairs and discuss the questions giving reasons for their choice.

Step 7

Ask your students the following question:

What have humans and animals got in common?

Put them in small groups and give them 5 minutes to discuss the question. After 5 minutes get feedback .

Step 8

Tell your students they are going to watch a short film which illustrates the similarity between humans and animals. Ask them to notice the connections between humans, animals and their environment in each of the clips.

Step 9

Get feedback, and then watch the film again, but this time pausing to show each of the 11 clips. Ask students to describe each clip and discuss its meaning.

Alternatively, you could show them 8 screen captures in the PowerPoint presentation below.

Get feedback and ask what the message of the film is.

I hope you enjoy the films and the lesson.

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December 5, 2011

Vote for Film English in The Edublog Awards

I’ve been nominated for Best Individual Blog and Best Use of Audio, Video and Podcast in the 2011 Edublog Awards the most prestigious education blog awards on the internet. If you use the site and find the lessons and material useful, you might like to vote for me. You can vote in both categories once a day until 13th Decemeber.

You can vote by going to the  Vote Here page and choosing the 2 categories I’ve been nominated in:

Best Individual Blog

Just click on the Category drop-down Menu and choose this category, another drop-down menu will appear and just choose

Kieran Donaghy – Film English

Best Use of Audio, Video and Podcast

Again just click on the Category drop-down Menu and choose this category, another drop-down menu will appear and just choose

Film English

Thanks very much for your support.

 

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December 2, 2011

Procrastination and Happiness

This lesson is based on an award-winning short film by John Kelly called Procrastination which explores the universal problem of procrastination. The lesson practises listening and reading, and using the gerund. The lesson also looks at how  avoiding procrastination can make you happier.

Step 1

Write Procrastination on the board and ask your students if they know what it means. Give this definition:

Procrastination is avoiding doing something.

Step 2

Ask students to say what Procrastination is for them using this structure:

Procrastination is checking my email account in the morning.

Put students into small groups and ask them to explain how they procrastinate.

After 5 minutes get feedback from the groups.

Step 3

Tell your students they are going to watch a short film called Procrastination in which a man explains how he procrastinates. Show them this image from the film and tell them that it represents ways in which the man puts things off. Put your students in pairs and ask them to speculate about what the activities may be.

Step 4

Show the film and ask students to check if any of the activities they do to put of doing something which they talked about Step 2. Also ask them to check what activities are presented by the image in Step 3.

Step 5

Ask students the following questions:

What advice would you give to a person to help them procrastinate less?

Put students in pairs and give them 5 minutes to come up with their Top 7 tips for beating procrastination using should and shouldn’t.

After 5 minutes get feedback from your students.

Step 6

Put your students in pairs and tell them them are both going to read half of an  7 Tips for Avoiding Procrastination. Give student A Tips 1-3 and Student B Tips 4-7. Give them 5 minutes to read their text and then get to explain their tips to their partner. Here are the texts in a Word document. Student A and Student B reading texts

You can read the 2 parts of the article in the Scribd document below.

Go can ask them to compare their tips with those in the article. Discuss the article with your students.

Step 7

Explain to your students that the article comes from a website called The Happiness Project which promotes a book of the same name in which Gretchen Rubin describes the year she spent test-driving studies and theories about how to be happier. In her book and on her website she shares her insights to help people create their own happiness project. One her insights is that avoiding procrastinations helps people become happier.

Write happiness is on the board, then complete it using the gerund, for example,

Happiness is being with people I love.

Happiness is having a lie-in at the weekend.

Happiness is listening to my favourite songs.

Happiness is helping another person.

Ask your students to write 10 true sentences about what happiness is for them.

Next they should explain what makes them happy to a partner.

Follow up

You might like to show them Things To Be Happy About a site which has 14,000 reasons to be happy

Homework

Give students the address of the The Happiness Project video page and ask them to watch some of the videos about how to become happier. In the following class they should report back on the videos they watched.

I hope you enjoy the lesson.

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