Backward Bill by Shel Silverstein (1981) : Poems ESL Listening

(TESOL Worksheets--Poems ESL Listening)
Transcript: drive, docs, pub
Homework Worksheet: docs, pub, Quizlet HERE
Video HERE, 2nd Video HERE







There's a version on Youtube of Shel Silverstein himself performing this song, which he does as a kind of chant/rap.  When I used this in class, I first read through it slowly with my students, then played Shel Silverstein's chant.  Shel Silverstein's version is probably the way this poem is meant to be listened to, but since that version is on youtube already, I did a slow reading for ESL students.

BACKWARD BILL- Shel Silverstein

Backward Bill by Shel Silverstein (1981): poems

Video: https://youtu.be/T3ijIeqE5W8

Quizlet: https://quizlet.com/_56fnzq

Suggested Use:

Step 1: Look at the vocabulary. Check any words that you don’t know in your dictionary.

Step 2: Listen to the video. (Listen only.  Don’t look at the poem yet).

Step  3: Practice the vocabulary on Quizlet 

Step 4: Watch the video again.  This time look at the poem. Read and listen at the same time.

Step 5: Practice the vocabulary on Quizlet again 

Step 6: Listen one last time.  The last time, don’t look at the poem. 

Vocabulary

backward, bang, boss, cellar, clang, clothes, door, front, ground, gun, hate, hole, horse, hoss, neigh, payday, porch, pup, ride, sandy, shack, six gun, spur, sun, supper, toe, underwear, wind

Proper Names

Bill, Lil

Nonsense Words

gnab

Backward Bill by Shel Silverstein (1981): poems

Poem

Words

Backward Bill, Backward Bill, He lives way up on Backward Hill, Which is really a hole in the sandy ground (But that's a hill turned upside down). Backward Bill's got a backward shack With a big front porch that's built out back. You walk through the window and look out the door And the cellar is up on the very top floor. Backward Bill he rides like the wind Don't know where he's going but sees where he's been. His spurs they go "neigh" and his horse it goes "clang," And his six-gun goes "gnab," it never goes "bang." Backward Bill's got a backward pup, They eat their supper when the sun comes up, And he's got a wife named Backward Lil, "She's my own true hate," says Backward Bill. Backward Bill wears his hat on his toes And puts on his underwear over his clothes. And come every payday he pays his boss, And rides off a-smiling a-carrying his hoss.

shack-- a small house                        porch--something in the front of the                                                house                        cellar--a basement (the floor under                                                                  the ground)                         spurs--metal objects used to                                         make a horse go faster                                        pup--a baby dog                                   hoss--horse

Match the missing words to the blanks.  Then watch the video to check your answers

Video: https://youtu.be/T3ijIeqE5W8

Word bank

bang, back, been, clothes, down, floor, hate, hill, hoss, up

Backward Bill by Shel Silverstein

Backward Bill, Backward Bill,

He lives way up on Backward (1)______________,

Which is really a hole in the sandy ground

(But that's a hill turned upside (2)______________).

Backward Bill's got a backward shack

With a big front porch that's built out (3)______________.

You walk through the window and look out the door

And the cellar is up on the very top (4)______________.

Backward Bill he rides like the wind

Don't know where he's going but sees where he's (5)______________.

His spurs they go "neigh" and his horse it goes "clang,"

And his six-gun goes "gnab," it never goes "(6)______________."

Backward Bill's got a backward pup,

They eat their supper when the sun comes (7)______________,

And he's got a wife named Backward Lil,

"She's my own true (8)______________," says Backward Bill.

Backward Bill wears his hat on his toes

And puts on his underwear over his (9)______________.

And come every payday he pays his boss,

And rides off a-smiling a-carrying his (10)______________.

Answers:

Backward Bill by Shel Silverstein

Backward Bill, Backward Bill,

He lives way up on Backward (1)Hill,

Which is really a hole in the sandy ground

(But that's a hill turned upside (2)down).

Backward Bill's got a backward shack

With a big front porch that's built out (3)back.

You walk through the window and look out the door

And the cellar is up on the very top (4)floor.

Backward Bill he rides like the wind

Don't know where he's going but sees where he's (5)been.

His spurs they go "neigh" and his horse it goes "clang,"

And his six-gun goes "gnab," it never goes "(6)bang."

Backward Bill's got a backward pup,

They eat their supper when the sun comes (7)up,

And he's got a wife named Backward Lil,

"She's my own true (8)hate," says Backward Bill.

Backward Bill wears his hat on his toes

And puts on his underwear over his (9)clothes.

And come every payday he pays his boss,

And rides off a-smiling a-carrying his (10)hoss.

Vocabulary

backward - in the direction behind you:

He gave me a backward glance.

bang - a sudden loud noise:

The door slammed with a deafening bang.

boss - someone who is responsible for employees and tells them what to do:

I'll ask my boss if I can leave work early tomorrow.

cellar - a room under the floor of a building

clang - If something metal clangs, it makes a loud ringing sound, or if you clang it, you make it do this:

The gate clanged shut behind me.

clothes - items such as shirts and trousers that you wear on your body:

She was wearing her sister's clothes.

door - the part of a building, room, vehicle, or piece of furniture that you open or close to get inside it or out of it:

Please shut the door behind you.

front - the part of something that is furthest forward:

We asked to sit in the front of the plane.

ground - the surface of the Earth:

I sat down on the ground.

gun - a weapon that you fire bullets out of:

He fired his gun into the air.

hate - to dislike someone or something very much:

He hates going to the dentist's.

hole - a hollow space in something, or an opening in a surface:

We dug a hole to plant the tree.

horse - a large animal with four legs, which people ride or use to pull heavy things:

The horse jumped the last fence.

hoss - a slang way to say "horse"

neigh - a long, loud, high call that is produced by a horse when it is excited or frightened

payday - the day on which a worker is paid

porch - a covered area built onto the entrance to a house

pup - a young dog or other particular type of baby mammal

ride - to travel by sitting on a horse, bicycle, or motorcycle and controlling it:

I ride my bike to work.

sandy - covered with or containing sand:

This is a sandy beach.

shack - a small simple building that has been badly built

spur - a sharp, pointed piece of metal fixed to the boot of someone riding a horse

sun - the large, bright star that shines in the sky during the day and provides light and heat for the Earth:

The sun rises in the East and sets in the West.

supper - a meal that you eat in the evening:

What are we having for supper?

toe - one of the five separate parts at the end of your foot:

This is your big toe.

underwear - the clothes that you wear next to your skin, under your other clothes

wind - a natural, fast movement of air:

The weather forecast said there would be strong wind and rain.

six gun - a revolver that has six chambers.