6/24/2012

How lucky are you?


Thanks a million Desiree Dodds for sharing this video session!!!




BEFORE YOU WATCH

Discuss

·        Do you believe in luck?
·        Is luck something that happens or something we create?
·        Do you consider yourself lucky or unlucky?
·        Do your students believe in the law of attraction?
·        Have you ever carried a lucky charm? When? Why?

Join with arrows

1.    Experience               a. a positive mindset
2.   Make                       b. prepared to work hard
3.   Tend                        c. good/ ill fortune
4.   Adopt                       d. on destiny/ fate
5.   Be                            e. to be fatalistic/ resilient
6.   Rely                         f. the most of an opportunity


Watch the complete interview first

AFTER YOU WATCH

Listening for main ideas

·        Were any of the ideas you’ve just discussed mentioned in the interview?
·        What point does Professor Richard Wiseman try to make? How far do you agree?

Listening for details

A. True or false?

1.    According to Wiseman the issue of “luck” is central to our lives.
2.   The Aimhigher survey has revealed that 82% of the people regard themselves as lucky.
3.   According to Wiseman, people who consider themselves lucky bounce back more easily after having a bad experience.
4.   According to Wiseman people who believe they are going to fail see no point in making an effort.
5.   People with a positive mindset see more pathways to success.


B.   Listen to the 3 students again – join the student with what he/she said.

·        student 1:
·        student  2:
·        student 3:
 
a-  If  I want something, I go for it.
b-  It all comes down to hard work.
c-  You have to push for things . You have to further your ambitions by being proactive.

C.   Listen and complete

Wiseman says that the goal of AIMHIGHER is to  __________   ________ the barrier of a fatalistic mindset.


FOCUS ON VOCABULARY
English Idioms & Idiomatic Expressions

Read the following English Idioms & Idiomatic Expressions from the links below. Choose 5 and provide examples that are relevant to you.
Best of luck!


4/20/2012

Prenuptial Agreements


  • Look at the picture above. What do you expect this video session to be about?

Discuss before you watch

-         What do you understand by “prenups”?
-         Is there any advantage to signing a prenup? What about the disadvantages?
-         Would you sign a prenup? Why? Why not?

Watch an answer


1.      Who are Bethany and Scott Palmer?
2.      What does Scott say about people’s attitude towards “prenups”?
3.      How should you get the conversation started according to Bethany?
4.      What are some of the reasons to have a prenup according to Bethany?
5.      Why is timing so important when it comes to doing a prenup?
6.      What questions should couples grapple with before you decide to sign the prenup?
7.      Are prenups for everyone of for the rich?
8.      What tips does Bethany give about prenups? What for?
9.      How can you avoid “hard feelings” about prenups?



Focus on language
Collocations: join with arrows and say how these collocations are used in the video
VERBS
           
1.      Exchange                                                    your financial future
2.      Address/ approach/ bring up                          to divorce
3.      Protect                                                        engaged/ married/ divorced/ some things in place
4.      Lead                                                           a relationship
5.      Lay out                                                       an issue
6.      Put something                                             everything on the table
7.      Get                                                             a prenup
8.      Grapple                                                      on the back burner
9.      Strengthen/ weaken                                     vows
10.  Sign                                                           with a problem

Adjectives

1.      Newly                                                      business/ home
2.      A sensitive                                                way to do sth
3.      A family                                                   issue
4.      A surefire                                                 weds
5.      A key                                                       topic


Discuss after you watch



1.     Is there any issue mentioned you hadn’t thought of before watching?

2.     How would you react/ would you have reacted if your fiancé/ fiancée asked you/ had asked you to sign a prenup?

3.     How would you suggest approaching the issue with your fiancé/ fiancée?

4.     Do you agree that people’s attitude toward prenups has changed lately?

5.     Do you think prenups will become more and more common with the passing of time or the other way about?

2/03/2012

Walt Disney


Before you match 
 
  • Have you ever been to Disney World?
  • If so, when did you go? Who with? If not, would you go there if you had the chance? Why? Why not?
  • What do you know about Walt Disney?

WATCH FOR MAIN IDEAS
http://youtu.be/zIA8aKZkR7Y
 
Part 1: An overview of Walt Disney World
Where can you find the following? Join with arrows

The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
Spaceship Earth                                                                                          Animal Kingdom
The Castle                                                                                                  Epcot
The Lights, Motors, Action!                                                                       The Magic Kingdom
Expedition Everest                                                                                      MGM
The complex tunnels

Part 2: Walt Disney: the man.
Say if the following statements are True or false. Account for your answer.

  1. Walter Elias Disney was born in 1010.
  2. He spent his youth in California.
  3. Ever since he was young he wanted to set up his own Hollywood studio.
  4. His brother Roy was in charge of running the business.
  5. Steamboat Willie was Walter’s first feature length film.

Part 4: Disneyland
Watch and answer thr following questions

  1. Why did he decide to build the world’s first theme park?
  2. Where and when was Disneyland set up?
  3. How was the park designed?
  4. What happened on Inauguration Day?
  5. What broke the Disneyland’s magic according to Disney?
  6. Why did he choose Orlando to build Disneyworld? Why did he keep everyone in the dark at first?
  7. Why was his dream put on hold?
  8. What happened in 1966? Why was it such a heavy blow to the Disney Company?
  9. Who made the decision to move ahead with Disneyworld?
  10. Who did he hire and why?

12/11/2011

Workplace Misconduct Rising

DISCUSS BEFORE YOU WATCH
  • Look at the cartoons below on typical ways employees misbehave at work. What do you make of them?



  • Can you think of other rules employees bend or other ways in which they tend to misbehave? 
  • How common is it for people in your country to do so?
  • Have you ever made up an excuse to miss work or to arrive late? If so, what did you say? 
  • What are the most typical excuses workers come up with in these cases? 
  • What is the weirdest excuse you’ve ever heard? 
  • Have you or has any of the people you know ever been caught? 
  • How do companies go about handling “workplace misbehavior”? 
  • What would you do if you were the employer and you discovered that the employees are bending the rules?   
  
WATCH AND COMPLETE THE MINDMAP





Teacher's notes:

Language to exploit or integrate:

  •     Conditional 2 (what would you do if you were the employer?)
  •     Modals (MUST/ HAVE TO for employees'  obligations at work/ MUSTN'T for prohibition)
  •     TENSES: Simple Present (employee habits at work) Simple Past & Present Perfect (to talk about students' experiences)
  •      Passive Voice: BE EXPECTED TO/ NOT BE EXPECTED TO
Useful Vocabulary:



1.   misconduct
2.   call in sick
3.   nab a pen
4.   harmless
5.   mandatory
6.   kidney stones
7.   shift workloads
8.   get-well-Soon card
at a five-year high
9.   look the other way
10.                    set a bad example
11.                    spiral into
12.                    track
13.                    slacker
14.                    tracker
15.                    bend over
16.                    load (v)
17.                    trunk
18.                    do yard work
19.                    performance
20.                    spot
21.                    surveillance van
22.                    Loafer
23.                    ditch work
24.                    breakdown
25.                    cause for alarm
26.                    job-hopping workers
27.                    have a false sense of entitlement
28.                    loyalty
29.                    at will
30.                    get away with sth
31.                    day of leave
32.                    big time
33.                    join a company
34.                      plot the next move