Monday, September 16, 2024

Model Text for Indirect Questions

(TESOL Materials--Embedded Questions)

Worksheet: docs, pub
[Notes: This video comes from Listen in English - Easy (Embedded).  (The same video can also be found on Youtube HERE).  Additional materials for this video can be found on Listen in English website HERE, and I've copied from some of their materials in making my own worksheet
Suggested lesson staging is as follows:
Lead-in: talk about a time you had an argument with a friend
Orientation to the Text: Explain who all the characters are, and what their relationship is to each other
* Gist task: Why is Jenny upset at Rob?
* Noticing Activity: cut up and shuffle the strips from the second page of worksheet.  Give one to each pair.  From memory, students arrange the strips in the order the questions occur, and then listen and check.  Answers are checked in open class feedback, and then students are given the transcript on the 3rd page of the worksheet.  They write in the questions in the blanks.  Then listen and check, and students are encouraged to make any changes if the wording in the video is different than the questions they wrote down. Finally students are given the answers.  They are encouraged to note any differences between what they wrote and the actual transcript.
* From here, move on to the clarification stage, and continue with the lesson as normal.



https://listeninenglish.com/aef-352.php

Background

  • Jenny and Rob are dating.

  • Paul is Rob's friend from university.

  • Paul has been staying at Rob's apartment.

  • Jenny and Paul do not like each other.

  • Paul told Jenny that Rob wants to leave New York.


Vocabulary

 the issue [n] - the problem

 work out [phrasal verb] - be successful

 I need a word [expression] - I need to talk to you.




Questions:

1. What Paul told Jenny ______ true.

  1. is

  2. isn't


2. Rob _____ planning to leave New York.

  1. is

  2. isn't


3. Paul ______ Rob's apartment.

  1. is still living in

  2. has already left


4. Paul couldn't get a ticket to ______.

  1. Boston

  2. London

  3. Brooklyn


5. Paul couldn't get a ticket because ______.

  1. he was too drunk

  2. the buses were all full

  3. he didn't have enough money


6. Paul is leaving ______.

  1. tonight

  2. tomorrow

  3. next week




7. Rob already told _____ that he misses London.

  1. Don

  2. Kerri

  3. Jenny


8. Rob seemed ______ when he was with Paul.

  1. very happy

  2. out of control

  3. like a different person


9. Jenny thinks that she and Rob ______.

  1. have very different friends

  2. want different things in life

  3. don't really love each other


10. Don needs to talk to ______.

  1. Rob

  2. Jenny



Cut up and have the students put the questions in the order they were asked in the video

What did Paul say to you?


Why is Paul still in your apartment?


Does Paul have a ticket now?


What do you really want?


What is Paul like?


Do you really want to be here?


Is this going to work out?


Do we want the same things anymore?


What did you decide at the last meeting?


https://youtu.be/wdt0eM2PI44?si=NXsGN6nsZYJbHc27

Rob: Hi Jenny.

Jenny: Rob.

Rob: Paul told me _______________________  and it's not true. I'm not planning to leave New York.

Jenny: Oh really? And could you tell me _______________________ ?

Rob: Well he couldn't get a ticket to Boston.

Jenny: You told me _______________________ , or was that another lie?

Rob: No, of course it wasn't. He couldn't get a ticket. The buses to Boston were all full.

Jenny: So do you know _______________________ ?

Rob: I bought it. He's leaving this evening. But that isn't really the issue here, is it? You have to believe me. I don't want to leave New York.

Jenny: How can I believe you? I know _______________________  because you said the same thing to Kerri at the restaurant. Look Rob, I'd like to know _______________________ .

Rob: What do you mean?

Jenny: When you and Paul were together, it was like you were a different person.

Rob: You know _______________________ . What was I meant to do? But that isn't the kind of life I want anymore. I'm not like that.

Jenny: I know_______________________ , but I wonder_______________________ . I wonder if...

Rob: Jenny, what is it?

Jenny: Forget it.

Rob: Jenny, what are you worrying about?

Jenny: I don't know_______________________ .

Rob: You're not serious.

Jenny: I just... I'm just not sure_______________________ .

Rob: That's crazy.

Don: Jenny. Oh, good morning, Rob.

Rob: Don.

Don: I need a word. Can you tell me _______________________ ?

Jenny: Right away Don. Rob was just leaving.

Answers:

Write in the missing words

Rob: Hi Jenny.

Jenny: Rob.

Rob: Paul told me what he said to you and it's not true. I'm not planning to leave New York.

Jenny: Oh really? And could you tell me why Paul is still in your apartment?

Rob: Well he couldn't get a ticket to Boston.

Jenny: You told me he was going a few days ago, or was that another lie?

Rob: No of course it wasn't. He couldn't get a ticket. The buses to Boston were all full.

Jenny: So do you know if he's got one now?

Rob: I bought it. He's leaving this evening. But that isn't really the issue here, is it? You have to believe me. I don't want to leave New York.

Jenny: How can I believe you? I know you're missing London because you said the same thing to Kerri at the restaurant. Look Rob, I'd like to know what you really want.

Rob: What do you mean?

Jenny: When you and Paul were together, it was like you were a different person.

Rob: You know what Paul's like. What was I meant to do? But that isn't the kind of life I want anymore. I'm not like that.

Jenny: I know you're not, but I wonder if you really want to be here. I wonder if...

Rob: Jenny, what is it?

Jenny: Forget it.

Rob: Jenny, what are you worrying about?

Jenny: I don't know if this is going to work out.

Rob: You're not serious.

Jenny: I just... I'm just not sure if we want the same things anymore.

Rob: That's crazy.

Don: Jenny. Oh, good morning Rob.

Rob: Don.

Don: I need a word. Can you tell me what you decided at the last meeting?

Jenny: Right away Don. Rob was just leaving.



Reflect Reading & Writing 3 (Supplementary Materials Index)

(Supplementary Materials for Specific Textbooks Subdivisions)--This index uses the style described in this post here.

Google Drive Folder HERE
Links to Materials: docs, pub
Quizlet Folder HERE

Sunday, September 15, 2024

Embedded Questions (Noun Clauses)



See also: Noun Clauses
The blog in question is here: https://malingual.blogspot.com/.  At the moment it doesn't have any posts, but thank goodness for archive.org
https://web.archive.org/web/20240709230243/https://malingual.blogspot.com/

I've also linked to that blog numerous times over the years, so I guess all those links are dead now.  (Unless I go back and update them to the archive.org versions.)  
Link rot is a big problem with this blog.  Well, I guess that's just the nature of the Internet, huh?

Update

Recently, I've stumbled upon a niche group of Youtube channels that make parody vintage songs using AI.  (I know.  Once again, I'm late to the party.)
Anyway, these parody AI songs are surprisingly good. And I've got mixed feelings about it.  I don't know whether to be delighted or depressed.
I mean, on the one hand, I can totally see where this is a lot of fun.  These songs are really funny, and they actually sound really good.  (Like, it took me a while to realize that these weren't genuine lost vintage songs--that these were AI generated parodies.)
[The comments for each video, in which commenters play along with the conceit and claim to remember these oldies from back in the day, is half the fun as well.]
On the other hand...  I'm really not sure if I like the idea of computers making songs.  Part of me thinks that something about the inherent appeal of music is listening to another human.  If I know that that the breathy soulful vocals are a computer, instead of a human like James Brown, is it as meaningful?
And like everyone else, I'm now envisioning a possible future where a lot of the music we listen to is produced by AI.  And I'm not sure I like that idea.

Anyway, here are a few of the gems I've stumbled upon. 








Sentence Skeletons


I've previously mentioned this activity in Language Practice Activities Grammar.  It is semi-controlled practice.

Students are given the key words of a sentence, and must grammaticize them into a fully grammatical sentence using the target language.  For example: cat, mouse, chase.  Depending on the target language, this can be grammaticized into the present simple “Cats chase mice”, present continuous “The cat is chasing the mouse”, present perfect “The cat has chased the mouse”, present passive simple “Mice are chased by cats”, etc.  

Sentence Skeletons are a common prompt in controlled practice exercises.  They don’t always need to be gamified.  For a more sedentary class, it is perfectly fine to do the sentence skeletons sitting in desks with paper and pencil.   However, if you want to gamify them for a more active class, they  can be combined with other activities: Board Race, Crossword Puzzle, Garbage Man, Grass Skirts, or Hurricane, etc.


Active Passive Review


Present

Past

Past Participle

catch

drive

eat

kick

take

steal

caught

drove

ate

kicked

took

stole

caught

driven

eaten

kicked

taken

stolen



  1. cat mouse catch


Active 

(present)_________________________________________________________________

(past)_________________________________________________________________

(present perfect)_________________________________________________________________


Passive

 (present)_________________________________________________________________

(past)_________________________________________________________________

(present perfect)_________________________________________________________________



  1. boy hamburger eat


Active 

(present)_________________________________________________________________

(past)_________________________________________________________________

(present perfect)_________________________________________________________________


Passive

 (present)_________________________________________________________________

(past)_________________________________________________________________

(present perfect)_________________________________________________________________


  1. students test take



Active 

(present)_________________________________________________________________

(past)_________________________________________________________________

(present perfect)_________________________________________________________________


Passive

 (present)_________________________________________________________________

(past)_________________________________________________________________

(present perfect)_________________________________________________________________






  1. girl ball kick


Active 

(present)_________________________________________________________________

(past)_________________________________________________________________

(present perfect)_________________________________________________________________


Passive

 (present)_________________________________________________________________

(past)_________________________________________________________________

(present perfect)_________________________________________________________________



  1. man car drive


Active 

(present)_________________________________________________________________

(past)_________________________________________________________________

(present perfect)_________________________________________________________________


Passive

 (present)_________________________________________________________________

(past)_________________________________________________________________

(present perfect)_________________________________________________________________


  1. thief steal wallet


Active 

(present)_________________________________________________________________

(past)_________________________________________________________________

(present perfect)_________________________________________________________________


Passive

 (present)_________________________________________________________________

(past)_________________________________________________________________

(present perfect)_________________________________________________________________



Index

While searching for a good video on imbedded questions, I found this youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@listeninenglish-easyembedd1403

The channel has a lot of good material on it for EFL lessons.  Although, it looks like almost all of this material is from traditionally published sources (e.g. Pearson, American English File), which this channel has re-uploaded, and is claiming fair use of.  (I'll have to leave it to others to discuss whether or not this is actually fair use.  All I'm saying is that these videos exist, if anyone wants to make use of them.)

They are linked to a website, https://listeninenglish.com/, which has a lot of additional listening activities.

Friday, September 13, 2024