Objectives:
• to present and practise the vocabulary related to television
• to develop students' reading skills
• to develop speaking skill of students through methods of interactive
activity (pair work, group work)
Warm up
Questionnaire Never or Always
Answer the questions. If your answer is never, your mark is 1; if you
say sometimes — 2; often — 3; always — 4.
1. Do you get up early in the morning and make a terrible noise when
somebody in your family wants to sleep? (Well, who can say "never"?)
2. Do you shout: "Mamma, where are my clean socks?" (Do not
forget your marks, please.)
3. Do you wet your toothbrush to make your mother think that you have
cleaned your teeth? (I hope it is "never" for everybody.)
4. Do you wash your hands badly and then wipe off the dirt on the clean
towel? (Why are you laughing, friends?)
5. Do you throw your coat on a chair and "forget" to hang it
up? (You are again laughing, I see.)
6. Do you bring home a pussy (a kitten, a puppy) and then want other to
look after it?
7. Do you say of a new dish "I don't like that" before you
have tasted it?
8. Do you forget to say "please" when you ask for something
and "thank you" when you get it?
9. Do you forget to say "Good morning" or "Good
night" to your parents, brothers and sisters? What mark did you put down?
10. Do you say "Let me finish the computer game" when your
mother tells you it's time to go to bed? (What did you say? Always?)
11. Do you take to pieces clocks, the radio, the calculator and ...
well. Many other things and then "forget" to put them together? (Who
said "never"? The girls? Well, maybe, but I'm not sure.)
12. Do you say "I don't want any porridge or vegetables, I'm not
hungry", and then ask for something very tasty? (Why are you smiling?)
13. Do you forget to wipe your feet when you come in from the street?
14.
Do you promise to be at home at 7 (8, 9,
10) and are always from half an hour to an hour late?
(What did you say? "There's nothing bad in that"? Do you think so?)
If the score is 14—27 — you
are good! If the score is 28—35 — you are not bad! If the score is 36—43 — danger is near!
If the score is 44—50 — I'm
sorry for your parents (and for you too!).
Introducing the Topic
Vocabulary
A) The students give the definition of the following TV programmes and
films:
TV programmes: sports programmes, plays, the news, soap operas, documentaries,
quizzes, game shows, children's programmes.
Films: (animated) cartoon, dubbed film (дублированный
фильм), feature film (художественный фильм),
adventure, western, comedy, historical, romance,
crime.
B) Match these classic Hollywood films with the descriptions.
1.
Casablanca
a) A science fiction film with lots of space bat-
2.
Jaws ties
3.
Back to the Future
b) A romance on a ship with Kate Winslet and
4.
Titanic Leonardo Di Caprio
5.
Braveheart
c) Michael J. Fox travels in time in
this comic
6.
Star Wars sci-fi film
d) A historical film set in Scotland with Mel Gibson fighting the
English
e) Bogard and Bergman in love in Morocco during the Second World War
f) In this thriller everybody is afraid of a big fish ...well, nearly
everybody
Reading
Pre-reading task
Looking at the title of the text try to predict what this text is about.
(The text is based on a real person from Edinburgh.) What kind of lifestyle do
you think this man has?
A COUCH POTATO
Forty-three-year-old Brian Blakey from Birmingham is sitting on his sofa
and telling me about his perfect day.
When I wake up I don't get up immediately. I turn on the television and
watch the children's programmes and old movies until about half past ten.
Then I get up, go downstairs and switch on the telly. For lunch, I have
biscuits and a glass of milk, and I watch the news. In the afternoon, I often
watch another old film — they're showing some good ones at the moment. In the
evenings, I often watch soap operas or sport and the news again. I like the
main news at six o'clock. At nine thirty, if there's a good play on BBC2,1
switch over and watch it. Then at night I watch more films and I usually switch
off the telly at about two o'clock. I never watch TV all night.
I watch TV for sixteen or seventeen hours a day. I also do some
exercises every day. I take Tina, the dog, for a walk every afternoon. I don't
go far, of course. I walk to the wall outside my house. I always take my
portable telly and sit on the wall while the dog walks round the circle.
Of course, I couldn't live this lifestyle without a good wife. She's not
at home now because she's working, but she always makes my meals. We haven't
got much money, you know, but we're happy. Sit down, watch the telly — you've
got the world at your feet. And in your hand. Great!
A) Read the text quickly and check your answer.
B) Read the text more carefully and answer the questions.
1. How many hours of TV does Brian watch?
2. List the programmes he watches in bed, at lunchtime and at night.
3. Find two examples of lazy behavior.
4. What do you think a "couch potato" mean?
C) Ask 6 questions to the text. Work in pairs
Find out if your partner is a couch potato or an active person. Use the
key words to ask questions like these:
What do you do at weekends? Do you often go swimming?
Key words: read, watch TV, play football / tennis, go jogging / cycling
/ swimming / dancing / walking, go to the gym / for a walk / out / to a movie.
Work in groups
A) Discussion
Is it good to spend so much time sitting in front of the TV-set?
B) Television programmes
Plan a good evening of TV, using the words below: sports programme, the
news, film, quiz, game show, cartoon, music programme, chat show.
Homework
Make up a TV programme. | 
