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Famous for a Day
This unit should take 1-2 hours, depending on time, interest, and extension activities. This unit is designed for beginner level students ages 14 and up.
Objectives
Students will:
Learn the present tense of the verb to be
Learn vocabulary to describe people
Learn to use words that modify adjectives
Ask and answer questions
Write about a celebrity
Materials to Print
- Who are they?
- Vocabulary
- Grammar activity
- Game: Famous for a Day!
Activities
Activity I: Who are they? (10 minutes)
Hand out the celebrity list to students so they can take notes. Bring pictures of the celebrities if you can. As you read the list, write the names on the board, one by one. Divide them in two columns: Those that students know and those that they don't know. Work with the names students know. If you like, you can add other names to the list. Write their occupation and country of origin next to each name. Have students try to guess the information first. Then present the information in a sentence: "Julia Roberts is an actress. She is from the United States." Ask students to help you do so. If other students have more information, such as where they live, projects they have worked on, etc. ask them to share it with the class.
Julia Roberts - actress - United States
Robert Redford - actor, director - United States
Arnold Schwarzenegger - actor - Austria/United States
Madonna - singer - Unites States
Pavarotti - opera singer - Italy
Claudia Schiffer - model - Germany
Michael Jordan - former NBA player - United States
Bill Clinton - president - United States
Stephen King - writer - United States
Bart Simpson - cartoon character - United States
Activity II: Vocabulary (10 minutes)
Hand out the list of vocabulary and introduce the new words to the class. You can use pantomime or gestures to explain the words. Say a sentence using each word in context. Use a celebrity as reference. For instance: "Julia Roberts is attractive." If students know or would like to know other words that describe the celebrity, add them to the list. The more known words you have to work with, the better. Explain the usage of the words: very, really, quite and a bit. Again, use examples with the celebrities: "Julia Robert is very attractive. Robert Redford is quite attractive." Explain that sometimes we use the words "quite" and "a bit" to modify adjectives that express a "negative" quality: "Robert Redford is quite old" instead of "Robert Redford is very old." In order to encourage students to talk, write the following expressions on the board for them to use: He/She seems..., I think he/she is..., I have read/heard that he/she is...
Activity III: Grammar Activity (15 minutes)
After introducing the new words, review the names on the list again and indicate to whom each adjective could refer. Aways start with a question. For instance, "Is Julia Roberts attractive?" (Student responds) "Yes, Julia Roberts is attractive." Then add, "Are Julia Roberts and Robert Redford attractive?" (Students responds) "Yes, Julia Roberts and Robert Redford are attractive." Review the verb to be (is, are) and make sure students notice that the verb changes when it refers to two people. Point out that the adjective does not change. Finally, hand out the grammar activity to students. When they have finished, check the answers together.
Activity IV: Game: Famous for a Day! (20 minutes)
Print the list of names and cut them out to make cards. You may add more cards with other names that have come up during class. Attach a card to the back of each student. They should not be able to see the name on it! Explain that they are celebrities and that they have to guess who they are by asking each other yes and no questions. For instance: "Am I a singer? Am I old? Am I attractive?"
Activity V: Writing Activity (15 minutes)
Ask students to write five sentences about their celebrity. If you have more time, you may want to find out more about him/her using the Internet.
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