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| 3/15/2010 |  | |||||
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What's on TV?
This unit should take 1-2 hours, depending on time, interest, and extension activities. It is designed for intermediate level students age 14 and above. Objectives Students will: Materials to Print
Activities Activity I: The World of Television (5 minutes) Have students discuss what role television plays in their life. Why do they watch television? How often do they watch television? Do they feel they watch too much television? Have students guess how many hours a month the average American watches TV (120 hours or the equivalent of five full days). Encourage students to discuss whether or not that seems like a normal amount. How does that compare to the amount of television they watch? Activity II: Vocabulary (10 minutes) Have students think about what types of programs people can watch on TV. Are some programs more informative than others? (news programs, documentaries, biographies) What are some types of programs that mostly provide entertainment? (soap operas, sitcoms, comedies, cartoons, talk shows, dramas, movies). Give examples of each category to convey the meanings. What are some reasons people watch TV? (to learn, to relax, to laugh) If students need help coming up with ideas, encourage them to use their own experiences watching TV as a reference. Then hand out copies of Printout I and go through the words on the list. Activity III: How to Find Out What's on TV? (20 minutes) Read the title of the first reading and ask students what they think the text is going to be about. Then, introduce the words and phrases that they may be unfamiliar with, such as resource, channel surf, rely, quick reflexes, prefer, to quickly flip, the best of both worlds and list. Hand out copies of Printout II and have students read the article. After they have read the text and understood all the words, encourage them to discuss how they find programs to watch on TV. Then divide the class into groups. Have each group come up with a list of pros and cons for each method. (using a TV guide and channel surfing). Have a spokesperson from each group present the information to the class. Activity IV: Learning How to Form Gerunds (20 minutes) Introduce gerunds by first listing the following verbs on the chalkboard: watch, listen, eat, sleep and go. Then explain that when the verb ends in a consonant or an -o, in most cases, the gerund form of that verb is created by adding -ing to the end of the verb. Provide the gerunds for the verbs listed and use them in sentences. Explain that sometimes you have to add an extra consonant, such as run (running) and hug (hugging). Then list the following verbs: hide, live, make, and ride. Explain that when the verb ends in an -e, the gerund is usually formed by dropping the -e and adding -ing. Help students recognize the two main separate gerund uses covered here. One is the present progressive (the verb to be + gerund), while the other is the gerund after the verbs like, enjoy, and stop (I like watching TV, He can't stop watching TV). Hand out copies of Printout III. Call on students to complete the sentences with the gerund form of the verb in parentheses. Activity V: Is Life Without TV Possible? (20 minutes) Read the title of the second reading and ask students what they think the text is going to be about. Then, introduce the words and phrases that they may be unfamiliar with, such as to break, as you might imagine, modern, trend, instead, and trying to find out. Hand out Printout IV and have students read it and then determine whether the statements are true or false. Encourage students to discuss if they are as dependent on TV as the Swansons are what life might be like without TV. Activity VI: Different Types of Shows (15 minutes) Review the types of shows mentioned in Activity II. Ask them to give examples of each type of show. Can students think of more types of shows? They should add reality shows (shows where people's every day lives are filmed), such as The 1900 House. Ask students whether they know other reality shows (Survivor, 16 people have to live 39 days on a tropical island and struggle for food and shelter, every week one has to leave, price 1 million dollars, 23 million audience; The Real World, seven young people have to live together for six months; Making the Band, 25 aspiring singers to form an 'Nsync like band compete against each other; Big Brother, 10 people are stuck in a house and isolated from the outside world). Discuss reality shows. "Why do you think they are so popular?" Hand out copies of Printout V and have students do the activity. Then ask them to come up with new descriptions and have other students guess what type of show it is. If they like, they can describe a specific show, naming the characters, etc. Activity VII: Writing (20 minutes - 2 days) Have students write a short persuasive essay about their favorite television program. Encourage them to identify the type of program it is and what sets it apart from other programs of the same type. Have them provide reasons as to why they enjoy watching this program and why others would find it compelling, too. Encourage them to use gerunds whenever possible. |