introducing and practicing the vocabulary developing basic skills

Equipment: writing paper, pictures, handouts

I.   Warming-up

The teacher divides the class in 2-3 groups and shows the first picture explaining that it is not complete, and that the groups are to guess what is missing by asking "Yes / No" questions. If the answer is "no", another group takes its turn.

After the students have guessed what is missing, the teacher shows them the complete picture and asks the groups to create a title to it.

The titles are shared and explained. The best title may be awarded with a small prize.

II.  Main part

1. Checking on Homework

The teacher collects the papers, chooses one student and asks him / her to randomly read one self-description with the class having to guess who the person is. If the guess is correct, the student takes his / her turn in reading. Five or six papers would be enough, the teacher encouraging the class to guess actively.

2. Listening

Before listening the teacher introduces the words in bold and asks the students to predict the sentences, in which they are used in the text. The predictions are noted down.

Listen to the text and find out if you guessed right. A Quiet Life

Felix Catt is a typical resident of Siberia Avenue, Surbiton. He looks gloomy, but in fact he is quite happy, and he leads a quiet life in this suburb of London. His wife Gertie looks after him carefully; she cleans the house regularly, and feeds him daily on well cooked meat and tinned vegetables. There is always a supply of fresh water for his whisky, and plenty of carpet space for putting practice, so he is very comfortable and content with suburban life.

Felix is very fond of his old dog, Sam. They go for walks together on Sundays. Today he is taking Sam to the local vet, because he is afraid that he is going blind. However, the vet is confident of curing him by means of a small operation. He is giving Sam an injection before oper­ating on him, so that he will sleep peacefully the whole time and not feel any pain. There is even a pretty nurse standing by to comfort Sam in case he feels unhappy and lonely in the strange surroundings.

In general, both Felix and Sam think that they don't have a bad life, and they have no desire to change it for anything more adven­turous.

After the sentences have been discussed, the teacher asks students to reconstruct the text using the key words.

3. Vocabulary practice

Analyze the examples of sentences with active vocabulary and make the ones of your own describing a person you know.

Examples

He said the job was hard, but, in fact, it was easy. Good nurses look after their patients like mothers. Rich people feed their dogs on the best cuts of meat. Zoo keepers are usually content with their jobs. Our cat went deaf when he was very old. Tim is confident of finding the picnic spot. You can do almost anything by means of hard work. A team of surgeons operated on the patient. The police stood by in case of trouble.

The students produce their sentences and share them with the class.

4. Across cultures

The teacher draws students' attention to the word "suburb" and elicits the understanding of the difference between living in the sub­ urbs of a big city in Ukraine and English-speaking countries. The aim — to be able to make conclusions about the people's status based on the area they live in.

5.   Role-play "Tower block" (Present Simple for describing habits)

Essential vocabulary

Biochemistry, chemistry, biology, lit. (literature), geography, warden, philosophy, physics, PhD, architecture, anthropology, sociol­ogy, PE (physical education), engineering, politics, agriculture, ocea­nography, economics, geology, technology, saxophone, violin, guitar, double bass, cello, drums, droning, bleeping, yowling, thumping, vi­bration, grunt, yell, shouting, cheep, whistle, swearing, yapping, scream, barking, fitness freak / fanatic, opera buff, computer buff, folk dancing, unearthly hour, all hours of the day, a whole bunch, get worked up, just as well, keep the noise down, indescribable, get on with.

How to use the game

The game can be played with between 7 and 46 students — the more the merrier! If you have a small class, it's a good idea to combine classes with another teacher for this game. You will need a fairly large space for this game. If you don't have a large classroom or hall, it's best done outside.

Copy one role card for each student. The cards are printed in the or­der of the 'floors' in the tower block (page 1 = ground floor, page 2 = first floor, etc.) so if you have fewer than 46 students, make sure that you copy the cards in the order they are printed in the book (ie. if you have twenty-five students, use the first twenty-five cards). You will also need to prepare up to seven large sheets of paper with the words, GROUND FLOOR, FIRST FLOOR, SECOND FLOOR, etc. written on them (depending how many students, and therefore floors, you have in the 'tower block'). These should be placed on the ground to indicate where the floors of the block are: etc.

SECOND FLOOR

FIRST FLOOR

GROUND FLOOR leaving enough space for students to assemble themselves in rows.

Give each student a role card.

Tell them they are all college students and live in a college hall of residence which is x floors high.

They have information on the card about themselves and their neighbours above and on either side of them. Several of their neigh­bours have annoying habits.

Give them some time to read and absorb the information and ask you about problems.

The object of the game is for the students to use the information they have about their neighbours to arrange themselves in rows cor­responding to the floors of the tower block.

To do this, they will have to get up and move around the class, ask­ing questions and describing themselves and their habits so that they find their neighbours, and then find the right place on the right 'floor'. (On every floor, there are about half the students who know the exact location of their rooms: the others should be able to locate themselves using them as reference points.)

When they are in the right places, ask them to complain to their neighbours about their annoying habits.

GROUND FLOOR

You live on the ground floor. You are a biochemistry student and you play a lot of tennis. No one lives on your left, but in the room on the right there is a history student who plays the saxophone, very of­ten and very noisily. Above you there is a chemistry student who is a fitness fanatic and does early morning exercises at 6 a. m. every morning. With all this noise, it's hard to concentrate on your work!

You live on the ground floor. You are a history student, but you're very interested in jazz and you play the saxophone in a jazz band. To your right there are two art students — you don't know much about them. To your left there's a biochemist, sporty type, plays tennis. Above you there's a philosophy student — there's always a group of them there — you can hear their voices droning on and on late at night — you can't think what they find to talk about for so long.

You study art and share a room with another art student. On one side of you there's a student who plays the saxophone and on the other side of you there's a student who plays the violin. And above you there's a student with a computer — you can hear the wretched thing bleeping away all night.

You study art and share a room with another art student, on the ground floor.

You are a music student (violin) and live on the ground floor. In the room next door on the left there are two art students and on the other side there's an English literature student who has late night par­ties nearly every night. Above you there's a biology student who plays the guitar terribly badly. You're very sensitive about music and you can't bear it. You'd like to move!

You are an English lit. student and live on the ground floor. You hate this place! Next to you there's a music student who is always prac­tising the violin and above you there are two students who are always quarrelling. And the other student next door... you haven't said any­thing, but you're sure there's a cat in there — you can hear it yowling sometimes. It's against college regulations to keep pets.

You study geography and live on the ground floor, in the end room. On your left there's a very noisy English literature student, has parties all the time. And above you there's a physics student. You don't know what goes on in that room, but there are the most extraor­dinary noises coming from it at all hours of the day and night. You don't like to complain though, since you have a secret — although it's against college regulations, you have a pet — a kitten. You don't think anyone knows and you don't want to be found out.

FIRST FLOOR

You're a chemistry student and a fitness freak. You don't know the other students in the college very well, but there's a philosophy student next door — usually a whole bunch of philosophy students ac­tually, up till all hours, working out the meaning of life or whatever. At least there's no one the other side (you have an end room) and above you there's only the warden who's very quiet.

You're a philosophy student and you have a room in between two fanatics. One is a fitness freak and wakes you up at six every morning, bouncing around doing exercises and the other is a computer buff and spends the whole time bleeping away on a stupid machine. As if that weren't enough, the room above you is occupied by someone very strange, judging by the grunts and yells coming from that room. You've never met them, and you wouldn't want to!

You're a computer science student and you have a very noisy room on the first floor. On your right there's a biology student who plays the guitar excruciatingly badly and on the other side there's a philosophy student who has earnest and excitable discussions late at night. You can't think what these philosophy students get so orked up about. And above you there's some kind of amateur jazz musician.

You're a biology student, but spend most of your time learning the guitar. In fact, you'd like to give up biology and study guitar. Your room is very noisy. On the left there's a computer student, spends most of the time playing with a home computer and on the other side there are two French students who spend most of the time quarrelling. Above you there's a fitness fanatic, a PE student who spends the whole time thumping up and down doing aerobic exercises.

You study French and share a room on the first floor with another French student. You wish you didn't as you don't get on well.

You study French and share a room with another French student. You don't get on very well. Next to you on one side there's a guitar player, and on the other there's a physics student. You don't know what goes on in that room but there are some extraordinary noises coming from it sometimes. Above you there's an Italian student who's an opera buff...

You study physics and are doing a PhD in sound and vibration re­search. You have two very noisy neighbours in the room on your left: two very quarrelsome French students — you wish they'd leave each other alone. You have an end room on the first floor so there's no one on your right, but above you there's an architecture student who plays the double bass. Just as well you don't work in your room. Most of your work is done up at the lab, though you do try out the tapes you need for your experiments back in your room occasionally.

SECOND FLOOR

You are the college warden and have an end room on the second floor. It's pretty noisy in this college and you're often having to tell the students to keep the noise down. Above you there are two foreign students from Africa — they play very odd music. And next to you there is an anthropology student — the noises that come from that room are indescribable! You thought there was something very odd go­ing on there until you had a word about it and found out that the noises were tape recordings of grunts and yells of some tribe they're research­ing in the Anthropology Department.

You study anthropology (you're doing research into the war cries of tribes in the Upper Volta) and you have a rather noisy room in hall. On your right is a medical student who plays jazz very loudly late at night and above you is someone who plays the cello. At least your other neighbour is quite quiet — it's the college warden.

You're a medical student and have a room in college. College! It's more like a zoo! Above you are some very noisy sociology students who have late night discussions and on your right there's a PE student who does early morning exercises. Between them they completely ruin your night's sleep. But the worst is the student next door on the left. You don't know what is going on in that room, but you've never heard nois­es like that in your life... At least your interest (jazz) is harmless.

You're a PE student and have a room on the second floor between a jazz freak and an opera buff. And above you there's someone learning Chinese, practises tones all day long... the place is a lunatic asylum!

You study Italian and love Italian opera. You live on the second floor, between an architecture student who plays the double bass and a PE student who wakes you up at six every morning with noisy exer­cises. At least there's no one living in the room above you.

You study architecture and play the double bass. You live in quite a musical corner of the college. Next to you, on the left, there's an Ita­lian student who's an opera buff and above you there is a Russian stu­dent who likes folk dancing. You wish he / she wouldn't practise it on your ceiling though... You have an end room so there's no one the other side, thank goodness.

THIRD FLOOR

You are a Kenyan student and share an end room on the third floor with another African. Next to you there's a maths student who plays the cello and above you there's an engineer who has wild parties. You don't mind the noise though.

You are a Nigerian student and share with another African student.

You study maths and play the cello. You have a rather noisy room and would like to change it. On your left there are two foreign students who play odd music and cook strange things and on your right there's a sociologist who is forever having noisy discussions. You can't under­stand why people get so worked up over ideas. Above you there's some­one who studies Greek and must be a fitness fanatic judging from the early morning thumps and thuds...

You are a sociologist and live in a room on the third floor between a cello player and someone who's always doing strange voice exercises. At least the room above you is fairly quiet.

You study Chinese and are having a lot of trouble with the pronun­ciation. You wish you had a quieter room so you could concentrate. On your left there is a sociologist and above you there's a politics student. Both of these spend the whole time arguing and shouting and having endless heated discussions. The walls are so thin you can hear every word — and a lot of nonsense it all is. You're heartily sick of the words 'parameter', 'situation', and 'viable'. At least the room on your right is empty.

You study Russian and are particularly interested in Russian folk culture. You are learning several Russian dances. You have an end room on the third floor, and the room on your left is empty, so it's fairly quiet.

FOURTH FLOOR

You study mechanical engineering and have the end room on the fourth floor next to someone who studies Greek and wakes you up at six every morning doing aerobic exercises. The two students above you, who study German, are always quarrelling, so it's pretty noisy here.

You study Greek and have a room in college, but you wish you didn't. Your left hand neighbour is a mechanical engineer who has wild parties every night and above you there's a civil engineer who has card parties. Sometimes you can't get to sleep till three or four in the morning and you have to get up at six to do your aerobics and learn your irregular verbs. On the other side there's a nurse who's pretty quiet.

You're doing a nursing degree and are on night duty at the mo­ment. At least most of the people are out during the day so you can get some sleep, but the student above you seems to have a dog: you can hear it barking during the day. It's against the regulations of course, to keep pets. Your other neighbours are a Greek student on your left and a politics student on your right.

You study politics and live on the fourth floor between a nursing student and an education student. Neither of them give you much trouble, but above you there's an agricultural student who gets up at about five every morning, God knows what for, to milk the cows or something probably. You're a late-night person, so object to being woken up so early.

You study education and have a room between a politics student and an oceanographer. The politics student has heated late-night dis­cussions with friends almost every night, keeping you awake till three or four sometimes. Why do politicians always shout so loud? The ocea­nographer is a harmless chap, but has a budgie (strange pet for an oce­anographer) which cheeps and whistles early in the morning. So bet­ween the politics and the budgie, you don't get much sleep. The student upstairs plays the drums every afternoon, so no chance of an afternoon nap either...

You study oceanography and have an end room on the fourth floor, next to an education student. Above you there's an economics student who belongs to a morris dancing society and practises the steps, bells and all, right over your head.

FIFTH FLOOR

You study German and share a room on the fifth floor with an­other German student. Pity you don't get on...

You study German and share with another German student. You quarrel a lot. You have an end room, but your neighbour on the right, an engineering student, is very fond of cards and has card parties most evenings. There's an engineering student below you too, who also has noisy late night parties. And above you there's a Spanish student with a parrot. Worse than an alarm clock, that parrot, wakes you up at half past five every morning by swearing in Spanish.

You are a civil engineer and have a room between two bickering Ger­man students and an Arabic student with a noisy dog. It's against the rules to keep pets. You're surprised the warden hasn't found out about it — it's always yapping. But your worst neighbour is the one above you. You play cards till late most nights, so you like to lie in, but the student above you does early morning exercises, and thumps around on the floor for about an hour between six and seven every day.

You study classical Arabic and have a room between a civil engi­neer, on the left, who has noisy late night parties and an agriculture student, on the right, who gets up at half past five every day. The stu­dent above you has late night parties too. You never get any sleep. But you don't like to complain because they might protest about your dog. It's strictly against the rules to keep pets in the college and you don't want the warden to find out.

You study agriculture and have a very noisy room on the fifth floor between a student who plays the drums and a student with a yap-py dog. You like to get up early and the student upstairs has a baby which cries at night and keeps you awake so you never get enough sleep. You know pets aren't allowed in the college, surely babies aren't either.

You study electrical engineering and play the drums in a local rock group. You have a room between an agricultural student and an eco­nomics student. Neither give you much trouble — anyway you're usu­ally too busy practising drums to hear anything. There are two ac­countancy students upstairs, but they're very quiet.

You study economics and have an end room on the fifth floor. Your next door neighbour is an engineer who plays the drums very loudly in the afternoons — just when you want to put some folk music on and practise your morris dancing steps. Upstairs are some very noisy dra­ma students.

SIXTH FLOOR

You study Spanish and have an end room on the top floor which you share with your parrot. You're very proud of Pedro because you've taught him to swear in Spanish — he has a perfect accent. You like your room, the only problem is the food technologist next door who leaps around doing exercises at some unearthly hour in the morning and of course wakes the parrot who starts swearing in Spanish...

You study food technology and have a room between a Spanish student and a pharmacist. The Spanish student has a rather rude par­rot, but that's no problem compared to the pharmacist's late night par­ties. You like to get up early in the morning to do your fitness train­ing, so resent being kept awake late at night...

You study pharmacy and have a room on the top floor between a food technology student (on the left) and a geologist (on the right). Neither are ideal neighbours — you go to bed late so you like to lie in in the mornings, but the food technologist gets up at about five and crashes around doing exercises, and the geologist has a baby which yells and screams all night and early in the morning. You've had a word with them, but all they do is moan about your parties.

You study geology and are having a hard time since you have a six month old baby. She shouldn't be in college with you, but what else can you do? Just hope the warden doesn't find out. Your right hand neigh­bours are two very quiet accountants but your left hand neighbour is a pharmacist who has noisy late night parties that keep the baby — and you awake.

You are an accountant and share a room on the top floor with an­other accountancy student.

You study accountancy and share a room with another account­ant. You have noisy neighbours — a student with a screaming baby, on the left, and a group of hysterical drama students, on the right. You're fed up.

You are a drama student and have an end room on the top floor next to a pair of dozy accountants. It's so quiet in there you reckon they've probably sent each other to sleep! You're working hard on a play at the moment and a group of you often have rehearsals in your room.

III. Summary

IV. Homework

Complete the sentences.

1) Felix Catt is_of Siberia Avenue, Surbiton.

2) He looks_, but in fact he is quite_, and he_in this suburb of London.

3) His wife Gertie_; she_, and_well cooked meat and tinned vegetables.

4) There is always_for his whisky, and plenty of_for putting practice, so he is_with suburban life.

5) Felix is very_Sam.

6) They_on Sundays.

7) Today he is taking Sam to_, because he is afraid that_.

8) However, the vet is_curing him_a small operation.

9) He is giving Sam_before operating on him, so that he will_the whole time and not feel any_. There is even a pretty nurse_to comfort Sam in case he_and lonely in _

10) In general, both Felix and Sam think that they_, and they have _ to change it for anything more__.