This is a lesson plan designed for C2 students in which they read a text about a man and his impulsive friend Kevin. It’s designed for students preparing for Cambridge C2 Proficiency exam as it offers some exam practice for reading part 7 and introduces some expressions that may appear in use of English part 4. Download the student handout and answer key below:
Pre-reading: students are introduced to the characters and predict what might happen in the story.
Gist reading: students read the text quickly to check if their predictions were correct.
Detailed reading/exam practice: students read again and complete the reading part 7 task.
Vocabulary focus: students discuss the meaning of the expressions in bold, make a note of them and then test each other.
Recall: students turn the handout over and attempt to recall the expressions using version 2 as a prompt. This replicates what they’re required to do in use of English part 4.
Part 4 practice: students cover the text and attempt the key word transformation questions. Alternatively, these could be set for homework.
React & Extend: students react to the text and attempt to continue it with their ideas about what Kevin and the narrator got up to next.
It’s that time of year again! No, not Thanksgiving or Christmas, time for Collins Dictionary to choose its word of the year for 2023! And time for Suzy Ratcliff to write another great guest post on the topic! Download the student handout and teacher’s notes below:
While you’re here, check out Suzy’s company English Boost and follow her on Linkedin for more teaching materials.
Did you worry quite so much about a robot takeover before the advent of ChatGPT?
The revolutionary AI-powered language model burst into the public consciousness in late 2022, wowing us with its ability to mimic natural human speech. It could do much more than that, actually – need copy for a presentation tomorrow morning? No problem. A recipe for dinner using only what you’ve got left in the cupboard? Done. And while people were understandably fascinated, they also started to get a bit anxious. If computers were suddenly experts in that most human of domains, language, what next? Cue an explosion of debate, scrutiny, and prediction, and more than enough justification for Collins’ 2023 Word of the Year: AI.
Collins defines artificial intelligence, for which AI is the now-familiar abbreviation, as “the modelling of human mental functions by computer programs”. This rather captures the profound nature of challenge facing us. Can machines really become human-like? And how will that pan out for our species?
Until we find out the answer to that question, though, life carries on. And, as the Collins shortlisted words show, it carries on in often peculiar and fascinating ways. Take digital culture. We’re all familiar with the influencer: a person who leverages their popularity on social media to spark new trends and earn money from endorsements. The word has its own family of variants: mega-influencer, micro-influencer, even nano-influencer. To which we can now add de-influencing – when one of these oracles uses their power “to warn followers to avoid certain commercial products, lifestyle choices, etc”, as the dictionary definition puts it.
One recent attempt at de-influencing concerns another of the shortlist’s highlights, the deliciously waspishnepo baby, a label applied to someone “whose career is believed to have been advanced by having famous parents”. The would-be de-influencer in this case was film star Gwyneth Paltrow, who last month judged the phrase an “ugly moniker”. Paltrow’s mum and dad? Actress Blythe Danner and producer Bruce Paltrow. We can only assume that seeing her parents make their way in the industry was something of a canon event for the young Paltrow – an experience “essential to the formation of an individual’s character or identity”.
As well as obsessing over the lifestyles of the rich and famous, we’ve been increasingly focused on our own health and wellbeing. Scientists and public health experts have warned of the dangers of ultra-processed foods, which are “prepared using complex industrial methods” and frequently made up of “ingredients with little or no nutritional value”. These empty calories can lead to multiple problems, including diabetes and obesity. One potential treatment for both of those conditions is the apparent “wonderdrug” semaglutide, also known by its tradename, Ozempic. Semaglutide seems to be effective at suppressing people’s appetites, allowing them to lose weight – but it simply hasn’t been around long enough for us to know quite what the long-term effects might be. Incidentally, the prefix “ultra” – Latin for “beyond” – forms part of another shortlisted word. ULEZ, the acronym for ultra-low emission zone, will be familiar to Londoners, who have to pay a charge if they drive a polluting vehicle into the city.
ULEZ became particularly contentious in 2023 as a result of the Uxbridge and South Ruislip by-election, in which voters seemed to reject plans for its expansion. It isn’t the only political hot potato in the shortlist, though. The UK’s cost of living crisis has been driven by inflation – rising prices – with some convinced that businesses are making excessive hikes in order to boost their profits, so-called greedflation.
A different type of financial problem, debanking, also makes the list, after populist politician Nigel Farage claimed his bank, Coutts, tried to close his account because of his political views. The issue was thrust into the spotlight and many others subsequently came forward to complain of having been debanked without explanation.
After all that heavy stuff you might like to sit back and enjoy watching a sedate game of cricket. Except that Bazball – the newly energetic (some say aggressive) form of the game named for England Test coach Brendon “Baz” McCullum – is currently in vogue. Perhaps 2024 will prove more relaxing? We can only hope.
Written by David Shariatmadari, author of Don’t Believe A Word: From Myths to Misunderstandings – How Language Really Works
Ex 1. Complete the sentences with your own ideas, then compare and discuss with your partner.
….. really wowed me in 2023.
This year, …. was thrust into the spotlight.
…. was a canon event in my life because …
Ex 2. Discuss these questions:
Can machines really become human-like? How do you think that will pan out for our species?
What is it exactly that sparks our obsession over the lives of the rich and the famous?
What were the top political hot potatoes this year? Why were they so contentious?
Are there any ULEZs where you live? Do you think they are a good idea? Why (not)?
What potential problems could arise from semaglutide and other new drugs and medicine which burst into the market?
In what ways have you noticed greedflation where you live? How have the hikes in prices impacted you?
Have you ever had to deal with someone waspish? Have you ever felt waspish yourself?
Ex 3. Can we learn from AI?
Work in pairs. Type this prompt into ChatGPT (edit it to include the language you want to use):
Write a short dialogue using the phrases ‘a hot potato’, ‘to pan out’, and ‘to burst into’.
Read the dialogue out loud and look up any new vocab.
Now ask it to change the dialogue in some way and read it again.
(Make it more formal/informal/jokey/fun…)
Compare both texts. What changes did ChatGPT make? What do you notice is different and why?
This is my C2 version of a great activity I’ve seen on some other blogs. It’s a great way of giving exam prep students an engaging way to do some practice for the use of English part 4 task.
Students work in pairs or groups of 4.
Each group gets 5 cards with 5 key word transformations on them.
They place their cards on the table to form a “ladder”
Student A goes first and attempts to complete the bottom “rung”
They flip the card over to check their answer.
If they’re right they go up the ladder one rung and continue until they make a mistake.
When/if they make a mistake they must flip over all the cards and go back to the bottom.
Student B then has a go.
First to reach the top of the ladder wins.
The answer they give must be the exact words on the back of the card; no “más o menos”
The successful operation on his bad foot gave my dog a new lease of life.
The council gave the old theatre a new lease of life by converting it into a youth centre for local teenagers.
Lead students to the meaning: “Give a new lease of life” means to revitalize or rejuvenate something or someone, providing a fresh start or renewed energy after a period of decline or stagnation.
Discussion:
Can you think of a change that really helped someone you know feel better or discover a new energy?
Are there any areas of your city that renovated or rejuvenated recently?
Think of an old, run-down building or area in your city. Think of a proposal to transform or rejuvenate it. What would is be used for? How much work would be needed to give it a new lease of life?
All of a sudden, the power went out and we were left in complete darkness.
We were driving along the highway when all of a sudden a deer ran out in front of us.
Lead students to the meaning: suddenly/unexpectedly.
Discussion:
Have you ever had a near miss while travelling in a car/bus/other vehicle? What happened?
Have you ever been shocked, scared or surprised by a sudden unexpected event? What happened?
Are you a fan of horror films? Can you remember any particularly good jump scares?
Invent the perfect jump scare from a horror film. The ingredients are: a spooky situation, tension building, a distraction or misdirect, the sudden appearance of something horrifying.
This is a training lesson plan to help students preparing for the C2 Cambridge Proficiency exam tackle part 6 of the reading and use of English paper. Students tend to struggle with this part of the exam and need a lot of guidance.
I’ve based this lesson plan around an example task from the CUP Proficiency Testbook 1 on the topic of expedition rafting. Download the PowerPoint, student handout and a scanned annotated copy of the text below:
First have students activate their schemata on the topic of rafting with the 3 conversation questions in the first slide.
In slide 3 students will look for the ways in which paragraph B fits into the first gap. By giving them the answer to the first gap, we can provide them with an opportunity to analyse the text and find the vocabulary, grammar and story connections that link the paragraph to text on either side. Reveal the answers on slide 4.
Go through the exam strategy on slide 5, then have students complete the clue hunt on slide 6. Reveal the answers to them and remind them to bear the clues in mind while they complete the task.
Negotiate a time limit for the students to complete the rest of the task individually. In the official exam they should dedicate 20 minutes to this part of the exam, however, as you’ve already done some prep work on this text, negotiate a time between 10 and 15 minutes.
Once they’ve completed the task, have them compare their answers in pairs. Make sure they refer back to the clue hunt and explain how each of the clues connect the paragraphs to the text.
Use the final few slides to reveal the answers and annotations.
Set them another part 6 task for homework and share the PowerPoint with them to refer to at home.
I had a dinner party last week with loads of old friends from university, I love telling jokes and old anecdotes about our uni days I was in my element.
There was a lot to get done before the wedding but my uncle was in his element; he was giving out orders, making phone calls and making sure everyone was involved.
Lead students to the meaning: to be in a situation where you feel comfortable and perform well.
Put students in pairs or small groups and have them discuss the following questions:
When are you in your element?
How do you feel in the following situations?:
When people are looking to you to make decisions.
In a group of people cracking jokes and making fun of each other.
In a large crowd at a concert or festival with loud music.
In the sales in a busy shopping centre hunting for bargains.
