With the introduction of poems in the syllabus, students can learn to

appreciate beautiful pieces of works, understand poetic language and

features. They can broaden their vocabulary bank. They can also be
encouraged to interact with the texts actively. Their imagination can be
stimulated and thus they can use English in a creative way by writing their
own piece of poems. In short, students can experience the beauty of
English through poetry.
Though we do not take Poems and Songs as an elective in NSS, we have
Popular Culture, in which poems should also play a part. Poems should be
taught more systematically and in a fun way in junior forms. Shape poetry,
limerick, haikus, ballads should be introduced so that students have a
clearer idea about the characteristics of different types of poems. When
they get promoted to higher forms, they should be a bit more prepared to
handle the module of Popular Culture. Besides, as there are poems in the
reading and listening parts of TSA, students may not be scared of this
kind of text-type if poetry is taught spirally and more thoroughly in junior
forms.
One obvious concern is the selection of appropriate materials for our
students. As many poets would like to use lots of poetic devices like
metaphors, metonymy and difficult vocabulary, students may find it
difficult to understand the hidden messages conveyed between the lines.
Their understanding is further hindered if students have limited
knowledge about the background of the poets. So, poems must be chosen
according to students interest, needs and ability.

Page 1

Theme of lesson: explore the cycle/changes of life through nature

Level of students: F.4
School context: an EMI school in which students have exposure to poetry in their
junior forms
Number of lessons and length of time: 3 lessons (120 minutes)
A. Learning objectives:
1. To address the themes of Nature and Cycle of Life through poetry.
2. To explore the central ideas of the two poems about swans.
3. To elicit personal responses from students to the meanings of the poems.
4. To introduce to students the sound, structure of Haiku and some literary
5.

features of poetry like rhyme.

To teach students descriptive language for describing things.

B. The Lesson Plan

Poem

Activities

Duration

Swan Haiku
(40 mins)

1. T shows the book cover of the fairy tale Ugly

Duckling and asks Ss to recall the story. (Sets the
scene and provides a vivid image to facilitate Ss
understanding of the poem.)
2. T shows the picture of a young swan side by side
with the haiku and read the poem out slowly,
explaining the difficult words: cygnet and preening
(1st reading)

5 mins

3. 2nd reading: Ss are asked to group in 4 and discuss

the central ideas of the poem.
4. Ss are invited to share their opinion on the central
ideas with the rest of the class.
Expected central ideas:
a) Life is full of changes;
b) There are always hopes what we are now isnt
equal to what we will be.
rd
5. 3 reading: Ss are asked to read in groups to identify

5 mins

2 mins

10 mins

3 mins

the linguistic features

a. the adjectives used grey, dirty;
Page 2

b. the tense used simple present

6. Ss read for the sound and structure of a haiku and
complete the worksheet
a. How many stanzas are there? 1
b. How many lines are there? 3
c. How many syllables are there in line 1,2,3? 5,7,5
respectively
d. Are there any words which have the contrast
meaning? cygnet vs swan; today vs tomorrow
e. What is the use of a haiku?
captures a single moment in nature. (Inductive
approach)
7. T summaries the features, sound and structure of a
haiku.

10 mins

5 mins

The Wild Swans at Preparation: Ss are asked to draw pictures of the poem
Coole by William
to illustrate its meaning. Ss can then compare their
Butler Yeats
drawing with the powerpoint in the lesson.
(80 mins)
Pre-reading
1. T shows a picture about swans swimming in a lake at
the beginning of the lesson & asks Ss their feelings
about the swans. (Swan Lake is played as the
background music.)
1st reading
1. T reads the poem slowly stanza by stanza, goes

3 mins

10 mins

through the vocabulary & shows pictures of the

scenes of each stanza as portrayed in the poem.
2. T asks Ss to note the poems title & underline all the
words/phrases that describe the swans in the poem
in order to create the swans image.

10 mins

2nd reading (close reading: focus on meaning)

1. T shows the picture of the first stanza again and asks
Ss about the setting of the poem.

10 mins

Time of the day

Season/month
Page 3

 Place
Mood/environment
2(a) Jigsaw approach (Ss are asked to form groups of 4
and each group is responsible for one section only.)
Section 1: The second & third stanzas call up old
memories & emotions of the poet. Which line in the
poem shows this? What does the poet remember?
How did he feel when he saw the swans for the first
time?

10 mins

Section 2: The third to fifth stanzas describe the

present feelings of the poet. How does he feel when
he sees the swans again? Is his feeling the same as
before? What are the changes in him?
Ss are asked to report their discussion results.
2(b) Group work: all groups have to work on the
worksheet about the following:
1. Complete the table of comparison which shows the
2.

3.

changing feelings of the poet between now & then.

Discuss the central ideas of the poem.
The vitality, passion, aspiration & freedom of youth
Fear of ageing & loss of inner fire & inspiration to
create
Longing for the past
Changes of life & the cycle of nature & life
T elicits responses from Ss.

10 mins
10 mins

10 mins

3rd reading (focus on sound and structure)

Ss are asked to work in groups to find out the rhyming
scheme and the structure of the poem.

5 mins

Post reading (Homework)

Ss are asked to write reflections on the following
questions and hand in their work on the next day.
(Individual work)
a. What do you think about the image of the swans as

2 mins

presented in the poem?

b. How are the swans different from the poet?
Page 4

c. Among the people you know, can you find the swan
spirit in them? Name one of the persons you know.
d. Do you think you have this spirit in you? Why or why
not?

Page 5

The Ugly Duckling

Page 6

The Swan Haiku

Swan Haiku
http://wordsplash.blogspot.com/2007/03/swan-haiku.html

A cygnet today
preening grey, dirty feathers
is tomorrow's swan.

Page 7

The Swan Haiku Worksheet

1

The central ideas of the poem:

2
a

The linguistic features

Can you find the adjectives used to describe the swan?

What is the tense of this poem?

3
a

The sound and structure of a haiku

How many stanzas are there?

How many lines are there?

How many syllables are there in line 1, 2, 3?

Are there any words which have the contrast meaning?

What is the use of a haiku?

Page 8

The Wild Swans at Coole by William Butler Yeats

http://www.bartleby.com/148/1.html

THE TREES are in their autumn beauty,

The woodland paths are dry,
Under the October twilight the water
Mirrors a still sky;
Upon the brimming water among the stones
Are nine-and-fifty swans.
The nineteenth Autumn has come upon me
Since I first made my count;
I saw, before I had well finished,
All suddenly mount
And scatter wheeling in great broken rings
Upon their clamorous wings.
I have looked upon those brilliant creatures,
And now my heart is sore.
Alls changed since I, hearing at twilight,
The first time on this shore,
The bell-beat of their wings above my head,
Trod with a lighter tread.
Unwearied still, lover by lover,
They paddle in the cold,
Companionable streams or climb the air;
Their hearts have not grown old;
Passion or conquest, wander where they will,
Attend upon them still.
But now they drift on the still water
Mysterious, beautiful;
Among what rushes will they build,
By what lakes edge or pool
Delight mens eyes, when I awake some day
To find they have flown away?

Page 9

The Wild Swan at Coole ~ William Butler Yeats

Preparation
1. Draw a picture to illustrate the meaning(s) of the poem. It can be a cartoon
picture.

Page 10

1st reading (focus on meaning)

1.

What words or phrases are used by the poet to describe the swans? Do these
words/phrases echo those given by you/your classmates given at the beginning
of the lesson?

2.

What kind of image is created by the poet for the swans?

2nd reading (focus on meaning)

Understanding the setting of the poem (1st stanza)
Time of the day:
Season/month:
Place:
Mood/environment:

Page 11

Page 12

Group work
(a)

Each group will be assigned to work on ONE of the following sections only. Each
group needs to report their discussion results.
Section 1
The second and third stanzas call up old memories and emotions of the poet.
Which line in the poem shows this? What does the poet remember? How did he
feel when he saw the swans for the first time?

Section 2
The third to fifth stanzas describe the present feelings of the poet. How does he
feel when he sees the swans again? Is his feeling the same as before? What are
the changes in him?

Page 13

(b) A table comparing the changing feelings of the poet between now and then
Copy the lines from the poem which show how the poet felt in the past and how
he feels now into the table below. Give your comments in the last column of the
table.
Quotes
Past feelings of the poet

Present feelings of the

poet

Your Comments

What are the central ideas in the poem?

1.
2.
3.

3rd reading (focus on sound and structure)

1

Work out the rhyming scheme of the poem. What kind of rhyming pattern does
the poem have?

How many stanzas does the poem have and how many lines are there in each
of the stanzas?

Do you think the poem has a neat organization? Explain.

Page 14

Post reading (Homework)

Write a reflection journal of about 100-150 words on the poem. The following
questions help to guide you to write your reflections.
What do you think about the image of the swans as presented in the
poem?
How are the swans different from the poet?
Among the people you know, can you find the swan spirit in them? Name

one of the persons you know.

Do you think you have this spirit in you? Why or why not?

Page 15

Page 16

~ Wild Swans at Coole ~

Page 17

Page 18

Page 19

Page 20

a) Writing a poem
Come and
Have a look!
Reindeer are pulling the sleigh!
In a moment,
Santa Claus will come!
There are presents
In the bag dragged by our guest
Nothing happens? Oh!
A storm has scared him away!!

b) An extended response to a poem

To Daffodils - Robert Herrick
Fair Daffodils, we weep to see
You haste away so soon;
As yet the early-rising sun
Has not attaind his noon.
Stay, stay,
Until the hasting day
Has run
But to the even-song;
And, having prayd together, we
Will go with you along.
We have short time to stay, as you,
We have as short a spring;
As quick a growth to meet decay,
As you, or anything.
We die
As your hours do, and dry
Away,
Like to the summers rain;
Or as the pearls of mornings dew,
Neer to be found again.
Page 21

The central ideas of the poem To Daffodils is that life of nature is

short and the poet laments that beautiful things do not last long. He begins
by saying that we are sad to see the beautiful daffodils haste away so fast.
They die even before noon. I can feel the mourning of the poet towards
the daffodils. Then he urges the daffodils to stay with the evening prayers
who will accompany them. In fact, he is comparing humans to flowers as the
life of men is also short. Both of them grow very fast and will pass away
soon. To him, life is as short as spring, is like summers rain, is like
mornings dew which vanishes very soon. The mood of the whole poem is sad
as he uses words like weep, decay, die, dry away etc.
I agree with the poet that life is short and thus we should treasure what
we have now. Though we are busy, we should be with our parents more
often as they are getting older and older. We should love them, treat them
better with patience and we will not regret when they are no longer with us.
Besides, as life is short, we should not waste time. We should do something
meaningful. After all, it is more bless to give than to receive.
I think the poem is worth being taught as it is very meaningful. Concerning
the sound and structure, there are lots of rhymes, like soon-noon; stay-day;
song-long; spring-anything; die-dry; rain-again. The structure is very neat.
The number of syllables in the corresponding lines of the two stanzas is
the same. For example, line 1 of both stanzas has 8 syllables while line 2
has 6 etc. For language, similes can be taught in this poem.

Page 22

Teaching songs can attract students attention in class as normally

teenagers like listening to music. After all, songs are easily obtainable
from albums or youtube on the Internet. It is not difficult to find songs
with suitable themes and levels. In short, teaching songs suits students
needs and interest. It is a way to get students exposed to authentic and
natural language.
Besides, from the song lyrics, vocabulary, grammar items can be brought
about. Many lyrics are even written with poetic features. With proper
prompt, students can respond to the songs and understand the moods and
feelings conveyed and relate them to their personal life experience.
Using songs is practical in my school since students really enjoy listening to
music. Songs with the same themes as in the chapters of the textbooks
can be introduced as the lead-in activity. More open-ended questions can
be raised to elicit their response instead of merely asking students to fill
in the blanks, which to a large extent is meaningless. Students may even be
asked to write reflective journal to express their personal feelings
towards the lyrics.

Page 23

Theme of lesson
Level of Students
School context
Length of Time
Learning objectives

Broken relationship
S5
EMI school in which students have exposure to songs in
their junior forms and have reasonable standard of English
3 lessons (120 minutes)
By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:
1.
2.
3.

identify the central idea of the songs

appreciate the song lyrics
give personal feelings/responses of the songs in an
intelligent ways
4. understand the features of narrative songs
Texts
1. Last Christmas Wham!
2. Same Old Lang Syne Dan Fogelberg
Resources/References Song 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3354flS1KJs
Song 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhjYbfK9vrk
Teaching Materials
Time
allocation
1 min.

5 mins.

10 mins.

15 mins.

9 mins.

Worksheets, Computer & Projector

Teaching steps

Purpose

1. T plays the introduction of Song 1

and asks Ss to guess the setting and
the mood of the song.
2. T gives out Worksheet 1 and asks Ss
to jot down the key lyrics/words of

Lead-in activities

Song 1 when they listen to the song.

3. T plays Song 1 again and asks Ss to
focus on and guess the age,
appearance and the mood of the
main character (Worksheet 2).
4. T presents the song lyrics of Song 1
to the Ss and shows the music video
and complete Worksheet 3.
5. In groups, Ss discuss to find the
central/poetry ideas (reunion of
ex-lover at a festive season, love can

Characterization &
Scene setting

Problem, Outcome &

Resolution
Central/Poetry ideas
Features of
Page 24

hurt) and the features (setting,

characters, story plot, narration,
past tense) of Song 1 (Worksheet 4).
5 min.

10 mins.

15 mins.

5 mins.

30 mins.

15 mins.

1. T presents a picture of Christmas

Eve. What will Ss do at that time?
Who do they want to be with?
2. T presents the song lyrics of Song 2
to Ss and asks Ss to do the
characterization
and
setting.
(Worksheet 5)
3. T plays Song 2 and asks Ss to
identify the story plot, the changes
of mood and the central ideas of the
song. (Worksheet 6)
4. T plays Song 2 again and asks Ss to
work out the rhyming scheme
(ABCB) of the song.
5. In groups, Ss are asked to rewrite
Stanzas 6 8 into a dialogue and act
out the scene. (Worksheet 7)
6. Creative response: Ss are asked to
write a diary entry from the view
point of one of the characters in
either Song 1 or Song 2. (Worksheet
8)

narrative songs

Lead-in activities

Characterization &
Scene setting

Central / Poetry ideas

Sound/Structure

Language: Direct &

Indirect Speech
Personal response

Page 25

Song 1
Last Christmas ~ Wham
Chorus:
Last Christmas
I gave you my heart
But the very next day you gave it away
This year
To save me from tears
I'll give it to someone special
Chorus
Once bitten and twice shy
I keep my distance
But you still catch my eye
Tell me baby
Do you recognize me?
Well it's been a year
It doesn't surprise me
"Merry Christmas"
I wrapped it up and sent it
With a note saying "I love you"
I meant it
Now I know what a fool I've been
But if you kissed me now
I know you'd fool me again

A crowded room
Friends with tired eyes
I'm hiding from you
And your soul of ice
My god I thought you were
Someone to rely on
Me?
I guess I was a shoulder to cry on
A face on a lover with a fire in his heart
A man under cover but you tore me apart
oh oh
Now I've found a real love you'll never fool me again
Chorus x2
SPECIALLLLLL
A face on a lover with a fire in his heart ( Gave you
my heart)
A man under cover but you tore me apart
Maybe, Next year I'll give it to someone
I'll give it to someone special.
special.

Chorus x2
ooooo
oh oh baby

Page 26

Worksheet 1
First Listening
Listen to the song and write down the key lyrics that you hear or any words that speak to you.

Page 27

Worksheet 2
Second listening
Now you are going to hear the song again. Discuss the following questions.
1. How old do you imagine the singer to be?

2. What do you think the singer look like?

3. What is the setting of the song?

4. What might he be doing?

5. Is the mood of the song the same as your prediction?

Explain your answer.

Page 28

Worksheet 3
Third Listening
Now you are going to view the music video of the song Last Christmas by Wham! Discuss the following questions.

Structural components

Your analysis

PROBLEM
- What happened to the characters?
- What problem did the characters have?

OUTCOME
- What happened in the end?

RESOLUTION
-What have the characters learned from the story?

Page 29

Worksheet 4
Post-listening activity
After listening to the song Last Christmas, try to answer the following questions.

1. What is the central idea of the song?

2. The song Last Christmas is an example of narrative song.

Can you work out the characteristics of the song?

3. Do you like the story narrated in the song? Justify your

answer.

Page 30

Page 31

Song 2
Same Old Lang Syne
(Dan Fogelberg)
Met my old lover in the grocery store,
The snow was falling Christmas Eve.
I stole behind her in the frozen foods,
And I touched her on the sleeve.
She didn't recognize the face at first,
But then her eyes flew open wide.
She went to hug me and she spilled her purse,
And we laughed until we cried.
We took her groceries to the checkout stand,
The food was totalled up and bagged.
We stood there lost in our embarrassment,
As the conversation dragged.
We went to have ourselves a drink or two,
But couldn't find an open bar.
We bought a six-pack at the liquor store,
And we drank it in her car.
We drank a toast to innocence,
We drank a toast to now.
And tried to reach beyond the emptiness,
But neither one knew how.
She said she'd married her an architect,
Who kept her warm and safe and dry,

She would have liked to say she loved the man,

But she didn't like to lie.
I said the years had been a friend to her,
And that her eyes were still as blue.
But in those eyes I wasn't sure if I saw,
Doubt or gratitude.
She said she saw me in the record stores,
And that I must be doing well.
I said the audience was heavenly,
But the traveling was hell.
We drank a toast to innocence,
We drank a toast to now.
And tried to reach beyond the emptiness,
But neither one knew how.
We drank a toast to innocence,
We drank a toast to time.
Reliving in our eloquence,
Another 'auld lang syne'......
The beer was empty and our tongues were tired,
And running out of things to say.
She gave a kiss to me as I got out,
And I watched her drive away.
Just for a moment I was back at school,
And felt that old familiar pain .........
And as I turned to make my way back home,
The snow turned into rain ............

Page 32

Worksheet 5
Now you are going to read the song lyrics. Write down your analysis in the following table.

Structured components
Scene Setting

Your analysis

When?
Where?

Characterization

Character 1

Character 2

Who?
Age?
Appearance?

Page 33

Worksheet 6
Now you are going to listen to Same Old Lang Syne by Dan Fogelberg. Identify the moods at different stages of the song.

In the grocery store

At the checkout stand

Action / Body Language:

Action / Body Language:

Mood:

Mood:

Cause of mood:
Cause of mood:

Page 34

In the car

Alone in the car park

Action / Body Language:

Action / Body Language:

Mood:

Mood:

Cause of mood:

Cause of mood:

Page 35

Worksheet 7
Rewrite the following stanzas into a dialogue between her and me. You may give names to the characters. You can add any details to make the
dialogue more interesting.

She said she'd married her an architect

Kept her warm and safe and dry
She said she'd like to say she loved the
man
but she didn't want to lie

I said the years had been a friend to her

and that her eyes were still as blue
But in those eyes I wasn't sure if I saw
doubt or gratitude

She said she saw me in the record store

and that I must be doing well
I said the audience was heavenly
but the traveling was hell

Page 36

Worksheet 8
Imagine you were one of the characters in Song 1 or Song 2. Write a diary entry
about meeting your ex-lover.

Song title: Last Christmas

Character: Singer

Same Auld Lang Syne

Ex-girlfriend

Dear Diary,

Page 37

Theme of lesson
Level of Students
School context
Length of Time
Learning objectives

Texts
Resources/References

Support and Love

S5
EMI school in which students have exposure to songs in their
junior forms and have reasonable standard of English
3 lessons (120 minutes)
By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:
1. identify the central idea of the songs.
2. appreciate the song lyrics.
3. understand the importance of support to disaster victims.
4. give personal feelings/responses of the songs in an intelligent
ways.
5. learn positive and negative words.
1. Bridge Over Troubled Water Simon and Garfunkel
2. We are the World A group of Artists
Song 1a Bridge over Troubled Water:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYKJuDxYr3I
Song 1b (Chinese version for the Flooding Disaster in 1991)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5kGO4sGe2M
Song 2 : We are the World
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJaHISj2Z7E&feature=related

Teaching Materials
Time
allocation

Worksheets, Computer & Projector

Teaching steps

Purpose

7 mins

1. T asks Ss if they have experienced any troubles before Lead-in activities

6 mins

and asks them what their feelings were when they

faced those troubles and what they needed most at
that time.
Prediction
2. T shows the pictures and asks Ss what they feel about
them. T introduces the song title Bridge over
Troubled Water, asks Ss to guess its meaning and
what they expect the song is about. (Worksheet 1)
3. T plays Song 1a and asks Ss to write down as many Mood setting
key words as possible. (Worksheet 2)

6 mins

4. T plays Song 1a again and asks Ss to focus on the Mood setting /

mood of the singer and the pianist.
Central ideas
5. In groups of 4, T asks Ss to read the lyrics and figure
Page 38

5 mins

3 mins

8 mins

5 mins

5 mins
15 mins

10 mins

15 mins

10 mins

25 mins

out the central ideas and how the mood changes.

(Worksheet 3)
6. T asks Ss to read the lyric again and find out all the
words that show negative meaning and positive
meaning. (Worksheet 4)
7. T plays Song 1b and asks Ss to guess why the song is
translated to Chinese (Ans: because of the disastrous
flooding incident in 1991) and what the lyrics are
about.
8. In groups of four, T asks Ss to compare the two

Language item:
Positive
and
negative words
Prediction

Compare

and

versions and find out the similarities and differences. contrast

(Worksheet 5)
1. T shows the pictures and asks Ss what they think
about them.
2. T gives Ss the lyrics. In groups of 4, T asks Ss to
choose one stanza to work on. Ss are asked to mime
the lyrics and perform.

Lead-in activities
Familiarize with
the lyrics; small
performance
Central ideas

3. T plays Song 2 (without showing the video). Ss are

asked to discuss the central ideas of the song in Personal
groups. (Worksheet 6)
response
4. T plays Song 2 again with the MTV, asks Ss how they
feel about the MTV and if they have more
understanding of the message spread in the song.
5. T shows pictures of Sichuan Earthquake and asks
them to share their feeling towards the incident and
what we can do to help the victims. (Worksheet 7)
Creative work
6. In groups of 4, T asks Ss to draw a poster to appeal
for support from their classmates to offer help to the
victims and present the posters to the class.
(Worksheet 8)
Personal
7. Homework: T asks Ss to write a letter from the angle response
of a victim to talk about his/her feelings, recent life
and thoughts. (Worksheet 9)

Page 39

Song 1a
Bridge over troubled Water ~ Simon and Garfunkel
When you're weary
Feeling small
When tears are in your eyes
I will dry them all
I'm on your side
When times get rough
And friends just can't be found
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
When you're down and out
When you're on the street
When evening falls so hard
I will comfort you
I'll take your part
When darkness comes
And pain is all around
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Sail on Silver Girl,
Sail on by
Your time has come to shine
All your dreams are on their way
See how they shine
If you need a friend
I'm sailing right behind
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind
Page 40

Song 1b
(adapted from Bridge over Troubled Water for the disastrous flooding incident in China in 1991)

Ooh...

Page 41

Worksheet 1

Bridge over Troubled Water means.

Page 42

Worksheet 2
First Listening
Listen to the song and write down the key lyrics that you hear.

Page 43

Worksheet 3
1. Listen to the singer and the pianist again. With the help of the lyrics, how and
why does the mood of the song change? Explain your answers.

Mood

Mood

because

because

2. The central ideas of the song:

Page 44

Worksheet 4
Write down the positive words (in the heart) and the negative ones (in the
lightning).

Page 45

Worksheet 5
Compare the two versions of the song and find out the similarities and differences.

Bridge over Troubled Water

Chinese Version

Page 46

Song 2

So let's start giving

We are the World ~ Michael Jackson

There's a choice we're making

There comes a time

We're saving our own lives

When you're down and out

When we head a certain call

It's true we'll make a better day

There seems no hope at all

When the world must come together as one

Just you and me

But if you just believe

There are people dying

Just you and me

There's no way we can fall

And it's time to lend a hand to life

Send them your heart

Well, well, well, well, let us realize

The greatest gift of all

So they'll know that someone cares

That a change will only come

And their lives will be stronger and free

When we stand together as one

We can't go on

As God has shown us by turning stone to bread

Pretending day by day

So we all must lend a helping hand

That someone, somewhere will soon make a change

[Chorus]
We are the world

We are all a part of

[Chorus]

We are the children

God's great big family

We are the world

We are the ones who make a brighter day

And the truth, you know love is all we need

We are the children

So let's start giving

We are the ones who make a brighter day

There's a choice we're making

[Chorus]

So let's start giving

We're saving our own lives

We are the world

There's a choice we're making

It's true we'll make a better day

We are the children

We're saving our own lives

Just you and me

We are the ones who make a brighter day

It's true we'll make a better day

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Lead in activities

Worksheet 6
The central ideas of the song:

Page 48

Worksheet 7

Page 49

Page 50

1. How do you feel about the incident?

2. How can we help the victims?

Help Box

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Worksheet 8

Write a letter from the angle of a victim (either from Sichuan

earthquake or from African starvation) to talk about your feelings, recent life and
thoughts.

Dear helpers,

Page 52

Worksheet 9

Draw a poster to appeal for support from your classmates to offer

help to those victims.

Page 53

It is always a good idea to use films in class. Apart from making lessons
more interesting and enjoyable, these materials provide samples of
authentic language use. Films are in fact stimuli for learning English.
Students can learn vocabulary, sentence structures, idioms, slangs,
stress, rhythm and intonation from watching the movies. Students can be
aware of the actors body movement, gesture, facial expressions, eye
contact etc, which all form part of our daily communication.
If video films are tied with graded readers, the effect can be even more
powerful. Students can understand the setting of the story more clearly,
when the sound effect, framing and camera movement etc all add meaning
to the story. The personality of the characters can be reflected more
vividly with this kind of visual aid. Thus, students may find it easier to
understand the plot development and the characters.
With careful chosen film excerpts and a good design of classroom
activities, students will be encouraged to view the clips actively, as there
is always a focus for them to pay attention to while watching and then
thorough discussion can be carried out. Students can respond to the clips
more actively while critical thinking and creativity can be developed.
With the introduction of SBA in senior forms, non-print fiction and
non-print non-fiction are the text types students have to explore. It is
good to incorporate film clips in lessons. In my school, movies are
sometimes shown. But we normally display the whole film once and for all
with few follow-up activities. So, carefully planning of the lessons with
good guiding questions is needed. Thus, students will be greatly benefited
if we use films in a more pedagogical way rather than just regard them as
a means of entertainment in class.

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Theme
Level of Students
School Context

Number of lessons
Learning Objectives

Parent-Child Relationship
Secondary Three
EMI school in which students have exposure to poems
and songs in their junior forms and have reasonable
standard of English
3 lessons (120 minutes)

Texts / Resources

By the end of the lessons, students should be able to:

1. learn adjectives to describe people.
2. relate their life experience from the chosen film
clips.
3. give personal feelings or responses to the clips
they have viewed in an intelligent ways.
4. understand and discuss the effects of
sound/music on mood.
Finding Nemo

Teaching materials

Freaky Friday
Matilda
Worksheets, Computer & Projector

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Lesson 1 Focus on Life Lesson

Time
allocation
5 mins

10 mins

10 mins

15 mins

Teaching steps

Purpose

T writes a question What makes an ideal Lead-in activity

parent? on the bb and elicits free responses
from Ss.
T gives out a checklist of qualities of parents and
asks Ss to choose the 5 most important ones.
Ss can compare the choices with neighbors.
Matilda
T shows Clip A to Ss and asks them to establish
the characters of the chosen clip.
T shows Clip A again and asks Ss to focus on the
style of parenting of Mr. & Mrs. Wormwood.
Finding Nemo
T shows Clip B to Ss and asks them to establish
the character s of the chosen clip.
T shows Clip B again and asks Ss to focus on the

Characterization
& Central Idea

Characterization
& Central Idea

style of parenting of Marlin.

Post-viewing activity: Group discussion
In groups of 4, Ss are to compare and contrast Focus on Life
the two parenting styles.
Lesson
Do you think there are real parents like them?
Support your views with examples in your daily
lives.

Compare and contrast the different styles of parenting

Clip A: Matilda http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNKrEmcSZ-k (040 400)
Clip B: Finding Nemo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SxyNSyqN6d8 (031
428)

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Choose 5 most important qualities that make

an ideal parent from the following checklist.
caring

kind

considerate

understanding

rich

handsome / pretty

protective

gentle

open-minded

educated

funny

thoughtful

knowledgeable

cheerful

easy-going

strict

polite

good at cooking

clean & tidy

patient

fair

others

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Clip A Who are they?

Name / Role:
Age:
Appearance:

Name / Role:
Age:
Appearance:

Name / Role:
Age:
Appearance:

Name / Role:
Age:
Appearance:

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Clip B Who says this?

There're over 400 eggs.

Odds are, one of them is
bound to like you.

Name / Role:

Coral, honey, these are

our kids we're talking
about. They deserve the
best.

Name / Role:

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In groups of four, compare and contrast the parenting styles of the

viewed clips. [List at least 5 items.]

Matildas parents
uncaring

Nemos parents
caring

Do you think there are real parents like them? Support your views with
examples in your daily lives.

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Lesson 2 Focus on Life-lesson & Language

Time
allocation
2 mins

38 mins

Teaching steps

Purpose

T asks Ss if they have been detained before and Lead-in activity

what their feelings were.
T asks Ss to describe their parents reaction
towards their detention.
Freaky Friday
T shows Clip C to Ss and pauses at 608.
Setting
In group of 4, Ss are to guess what will happen Prediction
and explain.
Ss are to write a dialogue between mother and Script writing
daughter.
Role play
Ss are to act out the scene. [T records the
performance for future use.]
Ss are to vote for the best dialogue & the best
performance.
T shows the rest of Clip C for the film version.
Ss are to discuss and suggest ways to settle the
dispute between mother and daughter.
Problem-solving

Clip C: Freaky Friday part 2 (406 742)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MD1lRZ6jvIw&feature=related

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1. Have you or your friend ever been detained before? Yes No

2. Use an adjective to describe your / your friends feeling about the
detention.
________________________________________________________
3. What about your / your friends parents reaction towards the
detention?
_______________________________________________________
4. You are about to watch a clip from the movie Freaky Friday. In
groups of four, predict what will happen and justify your prediction.
What will happen next?

Reason for prediction

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Based on your prediction, write a dialogue

between mother (Tess) and daughter (Anna).

Page 63

While you are enjoying your classmates performance, choose the

winners for:
The Best Dialogue
The Best Performance
based on the rubrics provided.

The Best Dialogue

Name:
The Dialogue I like best is produced by Group
__________.
I like the dialogue because:

The Best Performance

Name:
The performance I like best is produced by Group
__________.
I like the performance because:

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Can you help to settle the dispute between

mother (Tess) and daughter (Anna)?

Solution(s)

Reason(s) for your

suggestions

Page 65

Lesson 3 Focus on Technical Aspects of Film: Sound and Images

Time
allocation
5 mins
10 mins

15 mins

10 mins

Teaching steps

Purpose

T plays some sound track and asks Ss to describe

the mood / feeling.
Finding Nemo
T plays Clip D and asks Ss to focus on the music
and sound.
T elicits answers from Ss and introduces the

Lead-in activity

Understand &
discuss the
effects of sound

relationship between sound/music and mood.

and mood.
Freaky Friday
T plays Clip C (without showing) and asks Ss to
draw the facial expression on a face.
Ss are to explain their drawings.
T plays Clip C again.
T shows the clips from the previous lesson and
asks Ss to add sound / music to their clips to Consolidation
create a mood for their performance (as
assignment).

Soundtrack: http://www.freesoundtrackmusic.com/
Clip C: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MD1lRZ6jvIw&feature=related [406
742]
Clip D: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cqb0L1CCgiU&feature=related [740
810]

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Describe your feeling when you hear the

following music.
Clip 1:

Clip 2:

Clip 3:

Page 67

Listen closely to the sound / music.

Draw my expression.

Page 68

Life is beautiful is a movie about comedy, drama, romance and war. In

1939 in Italy, carefree Jewish Guido, who works as a waiter, falls in love
with Dora, a school teacher, who later dumps her fianc and gets married
with Guido. They have a son called Giosie. One day, Guido and Giosie are
arrested and sent to the concentration camp. In order to help his son
survive the horrors, Guido disguises Holocaust as just a game and tells
Giosie that they have to try hard to win the grand prize a real tank.
One of the themes of the movie is about love. Guido is a great father. He
loves his son Giosie very much. He uses his imagination to convince him
that they are engaging in a game to win a great prize. All he does is
simple to keep Giosie safe and protect him from the vile truth. Even
though Guido has to do the exhausting physical work in the camp, when he
meets Gisoie, he smiles and does not want to make him worried or afraid.
Dora, who is a non-Jewish, demands to be taken to the concentration
camp too after she knows that her beloved ones are caught. She should
have known that life will be very harsh there but she insists on doing so.
Later, Guido attempts to free Dora but is killed by the Nazi SS. We can
see the true love in the family.
Besides, it also tells us to deal with adversity with an optimistic mind.
Though the life in the concentration camp is brutal, Guido is still
optimistic. With his wits and creativity, he always finds a positive way to
tell the story even though things are not good to him at all. We should
learn from him indeed. There are always ups and downs in our lives. We
should not always grumble but try our best to find ways out. In case
something is out of our control, we should face it bravely and change our
attitude towards it. Life then becomes easier.
From the film, we can also see the cruel life in the days of Nazi rule.
Racial discrimination was there in the society. There was a scene in the
movie showing the sign reading Jewish and dogs are not allowed on the
window of shops. Whats more, Jewish were sent to the concentration
camp with an overcrowding living environment. They were not arrested
because of committing any crimes, but merely their race. How ridiculous
it was! Men were tortured by doing physically demanding work while old
people and kids were sent to the gas chamber. This kind of unfair
Page 69

treatment is totally unreasonable but once existed in our world.

Concerning the characters, I love Guido the most. He is a humorous,
happy and imaginative man. He is also witty. He is so smart when a German
officer needs a translator. Though he does not know German, he pretends
he does and makes up the rules for the Hide and Seek game, stating that
Giosue cannot cry, ask for mother or snacks during the process. He is so
brilliant to hide his son from the truth, which is scary and
life-threatening. He is also willing to sacrifice. Knowing the danger of
being caught and killed, he still tries his best to find ways to free his wife.
Before that, he hides Giosie in a junction box to prevent the officers
from finding him. He is such a thoughtful father! It is really touching to
find Guido marches in a funny way when he knows his son sees him from
the junction box in order to hide from the fact that he is going to be
shot.
It is really a great movie, showing the holocaust in a different way, but
embedded with the ideas of love, sacrifice, optimism and war. No wonder
it won a number of Oscar prizes.

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Poems, songs and films are good text types to teach our students the
language as they are all wonderful, natural and authentic materials. With
a careful design of lesson activities, these devices can help students
learn better English by achieving targets under the Interpersonal,
Knowledge and Experience Strands: For example, students can discuss,
argue and justify their ideas and feelings with others; can learn the
poetic features in poems and songs; can respond to characters, plots and
themes in films and relate them to their own experience.
What I learn in the course is that we should incorporate language arts
into our daily teaching. They should not be regarded as a separate issue
and taught in an isolated way. In fact, language arts elements like poems,
songs, movies, short stories with different themes and levels are easily
accessible. We should make good use of them in our lessons. We should
let students respond more to the text by asking more meaningful and
open-ended questions, instead of just asking about the facts or filling in
the blanks for the song lyrics. More creative writing tasks can be set like
putting themselves in one of the characters and situations and then
writing journals. In this way, students will enjoy learning English more as
they become active participants in and outside lessons.

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