Songs for ELT – Lady in Black

What is a good song for ELT? For me, it has to tick 4 boxes: a) It has to have lots of language;  b) the delivery has to be clear;  c) the music should not be too loud/intrusive;  d) it should not have long interludes without words. If on top of all this the song has something to say, so much the better. This is one of my absolute favourites. With a clear, unambiguous anti-war message, this song is a classic.

Level: B1 – B2  Topic: War / Fighting / Justice. To download a free handout (with activities, the key and the script) just click here.

Songs for ELT – The Lidl Song

You are behind with the rent, you have unpaid bills and on top of this there is nothing in the cupboard. In the past, you might have contemplated suicide; today you just go to Lidl (or is it Laidl?!?) A brilliant song by Andy Conway. Level: B2 – C1  Topic: Shopping / Money / Consumerism

To see the script, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’. To download a free handout (with activities, the key and the script) just click here.

Comedy for ELT – The Essay

Tags

comedy

How do you mark students’ essays? You start by looking at the content – the ideas, right? Then come questions of organization / structure and finally we look at language – systematic errors, careless mistakes etc… In this fantastic clip which I believe should be compulsory viewing for all language teachers, the student (T. Suitor) has found himself in hot water as his progress has been ‘disappointing’… The Headmaster pulls no punches as he gives him a good talking to…  But what is it that infuriates him about Suitor’s writing? [If you like it, feel free to share it!]

To see the SCRIPT, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’.
To download a free handout (with ACTIVITIES, the KEY and the SCRIPT just click here).

 

Comedy for ELT – Job Interview 2

Scott is being considered for promotion and he turns up for the interview. Everything is normal, except that among the three people he has to face there is a guy who is constantly sarcastic and who keeps hurling abuse at him. The bemused interviewee learns that this is done deliberately so that they can see how he copes with ‘Extreme Negative Feedback’. A hilarious little clip from the brilliant comedy duo Mitchell and Webb. Level: C1 – C2 Topic: Business / Work / Interviews.

To see the SCRIPT, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’.
To download a free handout (with ACTIVITIES, the KEY and the SCRIPT just click here).

Comedy for ELT – Mistakes 1

Tags

comedy

Never mind exams – whether we are talking about pronunciation, grammar or vocabulary, mistakes can be a question of life and death! Literally!! 🙂  In this little clip, a typical business presentation has just come to an end and the speaker has thought of a catchy acronym to round off his talk… Reading it out loud turns out to be a fatal mistake… A brilliant sketch – and an excellent introduction to an accuracy-focused lesson… Topic: Mistakes / Pronunciation / Business  Level: C1 – C2

To see the SCRIPT, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’.
To download a free handout (with ACTIVITIES, the KEY and the SCRIPT just click here).

Comedy for ELT – Greatest Invention Yet!

Tags

comedy

Many of what we think of as modern inventions have their origins in the Middle Ages… Here, Barbiarry (a great inventor of mostly useless things) goes to his Lordship in order to show him his latest amazing design… With love from me to all technology buffs – feel free to share!   

To see the SCRIPT, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’.
To download a free handout (with ACTIVITIES, the KEY and the SCRIPT just click here).

Comedy for ELT – Kevin’s ADD

It is the day when parents meet the teachers at school and Kevin’s parents get to meet Ms Baxter.  Let’s see what she has to say about him….  A short, straightforward and easy sketch (which incidentally helps explain a great number of instances of ADD among teenagers!)  – it is the perfect introduction or conclusion to all kinds of talks (Classroom Management / Teaching Teenagers / Teachers and Parents etc.)  Level: B2   Topic: Teenagers

To see the SCRIPT, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’.
To download a free handout (with ACTIVITIES, the KEY and the SCRIPT just click here).

Comedy for ELT – From 29 to 31

Simply amazing!!! 🙂  The woman on the left is 29 – the woman on the right is supposed to be the same one at 31. And what a HUGE difference two years make…

Watch the brilliant Garfunkel and Oates give us the stereotypical perspective of a woman at these two (oh so different) stages of her life. Excellent language and a fantastic springboard for all sorts of role-plays, debates, stereotype dissection etc. etc. – the possibilities are endless!

To see the SCRIPT, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’.
To download a free handout (with ACTIVITIES, the KEY and the SCRIPT just click here).

Comedy for ELT – Men and Women 1

Tags

comedy

What is strange about the term ‘Best Man’? Why do Men wear tuxedos at weddings? Why is Jerry Seinfeld convinced he will never be able to understand Women? What is it that is really going on inside a Man’s head? And (very importantly) why did Men take that little car with them when they went to the moon? Jerry Seinfeld’s stand-up material is exceptionally good for us teachers for three reasons: a) it is funny  b) he speaks very clearly and  c) his jokes are so clean you could use them in a sermon! 🙂   Topic: Men – Women / Relationships  Level: B2 – C1.

To see the SCRIPT, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’.
To download a free handout (with ACTIVITIES, the KEY and the SCRIPT just click here).

Comedy for ELT – Biases and Stereotypes

We have all read the parable of ‘The Good Samaritan’ in the Bible. What is not generally known however is a recording of the original rendition of the story (yes, by Jesus himself!) actually exists! The recently discovered Roman-built i-Scroll IV had a built-in camera and apparently some disciple decided to record this moment for posterity. As you will see however, there are some differences between the Bible version and what happened in reality… 🙂  Yet another brilliant sketch by the great comic duo Mitchell and Webb. Level: B2 – C1  Topic: Racism / Prejudice / Immigration / Nationalism / Religion.

To see the SCRIPT, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’.
To download a free handout (with activities, the key and the script just click here).

Comedy for ELT – Facebook Manners

You didn’t know that Facebook has been around since the 50s, did you? Well, you do now. Young Alice gets back home and checks her account. To her amazement, she finds that her boyfriend is now ‘single’! Ooops – that looks ominous… 🙂

Not only is this fantastic clip excellent for listening comprehension (the delivery is slow and clear) but it a perfect springboard for all kinds of discussions / presentations about what should and should not be allowed in the social media [talk about motivating topics… 🙂 ]

Level: B2 – C1  Topic: Social Media / Relationships / Manners

To see the script, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’. To download a free handout (with activities, the key and the script) just click here.

Comedy for ELT – Gay Marriage or Else…

Why do some straight people still object to gay marriage? Gay guys decided they have had enough, so they have issued the following ultimatum: ‘Either you support our cause or we’ll marry your girlfriends!’ They then go on to explain how this is in fact possible and the thousand and one reasons girls would pick them over their straight boyfriends any day!  🙂

Quite simply the perfect introduction to any discussion of this very topical issue. [Teacher discretion is advised].  Level: B2 – C1  Topic: Homosexuality / Gay marriage / Civil rights / Minority rights.

To see the SCRIPT, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’.
To download a free handout (with ACTIVITIES, the KEY and the SCRIPT just click here).

Comedy for ELT – Kevin becomes a Teenager

What is disquieting about the switch from childhood to adolescence is that it seems to take place overnight!  It is almost like the transformation of a chrysalis into a butterfly (though this metaphor is not really the one which first springs to mind!)  It is almost midnight…Kevin is about to turn 13 and his parents do not even begin to suspect what is in store for them… (My teen students love this sketch as they can recognise themselves in Kevin – my adult students tend to identify with the parents…)

Level: B2 – C1. Topics: Teenagers / Parents – Children
To download a free handout (with ACTIVITIES, the KEY and the SCRIPT) just click here.

Ads for ELT – Apple Watch [Spoof]

Fantastic! Comedian Jack Douglas makes fun of all the hype surrounding each and every new Apple product. In addition, he also points out a number of things which the manufacturers never take the trouble to tell us. One could start a lesson with an authentic Apple Watch ad, have a debate about its usefulness and then round everything off with this short clip. The perfect ‘dessert’ to a lesson on Technology. Level: B2 – C1  Topics: Technology / Shopping / Advertising / Consumerism / Gadgets.

To see the SCRIPT, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’.
To download a free handout (with ACTIVITIES, the KEY and the SCRIPT just click here).

Comedy for ELT – Accents and Dialects

The year: 1916. The place: The trenches on the Western Front. A British private is desperate to get to his battalion and he knows that he is in the British sector. Surely all he has to do is ask someone to tell him the way, right? Well, yes and no. I mean, he can ask alright, but whether he will be able to understand the answer is a different matter altogether… (I suppose he should be only too grateful the Americans hadn’t joined the war at that stage…) A brilliant little clip and the perfect introduction to the tricky issue of ‘Accents and Dialects’. Level: C1 – C2. Topic: Language / Accents / Dialects.

To see the SCRIPT, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’.
To download a free handout (with ACTIVITIES, the KEY and the SCRIPT just click here).

Comedy for ELT – Audiolingualism

‘Learning a language is the simplest thing in the world. The principle is tried and tested: habit formation. You listen to the phrase, you repeat the phrase, you learn the phrase. Easy – peasy’. Methodological objections aside, it helps if you actually repeat the right phrase… 🙂

Another hilarious sketch from the series ‘The Sketch Show UK’.

Level: B2 – C1  Topic: Education / Learning / School / Methods

Comedy for ELT – Homo Devis 3

Scientists have recently discovered a new human (sub-)species. It’s called ‘Homo Devis’. Most of us plebs refer to them as ‘the super posh’ and ‘the filthy rich’, though people have been known to use other names as well… These people live differently, they think differently, they speak differently. They occupy special habitats (usually inaccessible to other members of the Homo genus) but occasionally some of them stray into unfamiliar territory… The third in a series of brilliant sketches by the great Catherine Tate. Level: B2 – C1 Topics: Rich and Poor / Class / Status.

To see the script, just click under the video where it says ‘Show More’ (You may also like Homo Devis 1 & 2). To download a free handout (with activities, the key and the script) just click here.